Shooting in the park portrait- how to take best shot

[eninja]

I would like to ask some tips on shooting outdoor family portraits, specifically in the park.
I will try to describe the scenario and hope you can share how would you take the picture.
The only tool i have are camera and flash.

the scene looks like this: Its on a park, there's green grass all over, one big tree, bright skies, hard sunlight,

My specific question is, would the use of flash be better? - i haven't tried and would like to ask for your inputs to get good shot - coz i find my pictures, if taken on shade, background scene is over exposed.
and if i take directly under the sun - light falls on the face too bright - should I use flash and over power the sunlight?

And as Sir Surapon used to say.. thanks thanks thanks to all master teacher here in forum.

Definition of Master: if the effort to attain the goal is lost, the u r a master of it.

 

[scottkinfw]

Midday is tough and requires a lot of tricks and skills that I have not mastered, but I can help a bit anyway.

You may want to look into a scrim and reflectors which can help diffuse the light, supplement the light, and even change color the light.

On the other hand, you can also use your flash as a fill flash cutting back on power output (play with this) depending on how far you are from subject.

Another way to use flash to eliminate or minimize the sun is using the high speed synch (hss) option.

I am sure portrait photogs can add more and better hints, but going out and learning about light will help.

sek

 

[nonac]

I haven't shot a whole bunch of portraits; however, for those that I have, I find my best shots were taken early and late in the day. The light is just much easier to work with during those times.

 

[scottkinfw]

Here's another helpful tip for you. Get this book:

"Speedlighter's Handbook" by Syl Arena. This book will really help you with your flash work.

sek

 

[Bennymiata]

Don't take photos of people facing the sun, unless they are wearing sunglasses. Their eyes will scrunch up because the light.
If your flash can't light up their faces with the sun behind them, then turn them at an angle to the sun so they can fully open their eyes, even if for only a short time (a second or 2), so you can get a good shot.
Don't forget, in portraits, the eyes are EVERYTHING.
A reflector is a godsend for these conditions, and depending on the strength and harshness of the light, can also be used in combination with your flash.
Don't be afraid to turn your flash up either, as you may need all it's got to overpower the sun. It's good if you can overpower the sun, as the background will look darker and hence the people will pop out of the shot rather than blend into a bright background.

Don't be afraid to play around with the flash and reflector, and if you can, pick a nice overcast day.

I could go about this for hours.
Most of my work at events is in darkness, which brings other problems to the fore, but I've done a lot of work outside too.

 

[eninja]

Don't be afraid to turn your flash up either, as you may need all it's got to overpower the sun. It's good if you can overpower the sun, as the background will look darker and hence the people will pop out of the shot rather than blend into a bright background.

Thanks guys for sharing your experience.. This is a basic good concept to remember.

Do I need color gel for my flash, to balance color with sunlight.

I might need ND filter, to battle sunlight..?

 

[Vossie]

Don't be afraid to turn your flash up either, as you may need all it's got to overpower the sun. It's good if you can overpower the sun, as the background will look darker and hence the people will pop out of the shot rather than blend into a bright background.

Thanks guys for sharing your experience.. This is a basic good concept to remember.

Do I need color gel for my flash, to balance color with sunlight.

I might need ND filter, to battle sunlight..?

If you shoot a group, you probably need to stop down to get sufficient DoF to have the whole group in focus, so I would not worry about needing ND's. If you use a speedlight, you can use high speed sync allowing you to use shutter speeds above the x-sync speed of your body.

As mentioned by the others, it is best to have the sun somewhere behind the group. You can then overcome the shadows on their bodies and faces by using a flash (prefereblay with diffusor) or reflector(s), or a combination thereof. Reflector(s) will give you more smooth light like whith a softbox, but with large groups, you may need multiple relfectors to get an even illumination on the subjects. When using reflectors an extra hand to hold them in position is helpful. Some extra tripods to position them against may also work. Using "gold" reflectors may give you nice warm photos even mid day.

If you can place your group in the shadow of the tree, you will get an even shadow that is more easy to overcome than a mixture of hard lights and hard shadows on their faces.

I have no experience with on-flah gels, but can imagine that they offer the same potential as "gold" reflectors.

If you shoot in RAW, you can do quite a bit of color correction to balance colors in post.

 

[AcutancePhotography]

Here's another helpful tip for you. Get this book:

"Speedlighter's Handbook" by Syl Arena. This book will really help you with your flash work.

sek

Even if you don't shoot Canon, this is an excellent book!

 

[eninja]

looking thru the photos I took last weekends. Found out that, its a No No to let subject face the sun.
and the best I saw, was the bright sun was a bit behind and on top of the subject - lighting the hair, nose and casting a shadow. Under the shade, without flash, I still find lighting flat, so I find it no good - but for flash maybe its perfect.

looking at this, I remember a simple tool to let you decide where to face your client.
you raise your hand with your palm facing you - then you could see how the sunlight falls to your palm and create shadow.

well I guess I must priority placing subject relative to sunlight THAN placing subject due to nice background/scenery behind.

 

[BL]

I would like to ask some tips on shooting outdoor family portraits, specifically in the park.
I will try to describe the scenario and hope you can share how would you take the picture.
The only tool i have are camera and flash.

the scene looks like this: Its on a park, there's green grass all over, one big tree, bright skies, hard sunlight,

My specific question is, would the use of flash be better? - i haven't tried and would like to ask for your inputs to get good shot - coz i find my pictures, if taken on shade, background scene is over exposed.
and if i take directly under the sun - light falls on the face too bright - should I use flash and over power the sunlight?

I went to the park last week with my boy and brought along an optical umbrella (which folds down to nothing) and a speedlite in case a photo presented itself. Keep your setup simple. My wife held the umbrella while I took this quick snapshot.

I like to shoot with the sun in the back as a rim and use my flash to light the subject. Don't be afraid to use a bare speedlite to fill in for harsh midday sun. It doesn't necessarily look out of place or unnatural since the sun is hard light too afterall.

Do I need color gel for my flash, to balance color with sunlight.

I might need ND filter, to battle sunlight..?

No gels needed for daylight shooting, although I would consider a 1/2 CTO if you were shooting sunset so your skin tone matched the warm orange glow of the sky.

I used a 3stop ND so I could get my xsync to 1/250 while using a f2.0 aperture at ISO 100. I suppose one could use a 6stop to boost ISO to 800 to get much more power/faster recycle from the speedlite. I don't have time to play around with manual mode for child portraits so I shot ETTL +1. Based on how long it took to recycle the flash, I'm guessing it discharged at 1/2 to 2/3 power manual.