29 Oct, 2009
Family photoshoot at Westboro Beach (and a bit about work flow)
Posted by andrea tomkins in: Photography
I had a photoshoot with a mother and her son at Westboro Beach last week.
They brought their dog to the shoot. The mom apologized but I was really happy about it. Family portraits should definitely include the family pet!
The dog was terribly excited – so high energy – that he wasn’t able to sit still for one single second. He chased the ducks, dug in the sand, ran up and down and up and down the beach, jumped and splashed in the water … I laughed and laughed. We were all covered in sand by the end of it. It was totally hilarious.
We couldn’t chase him down. It didn’t matter. My focus was on this little family.
Can I tell you again how much I enjoy taking photos of people in a meaningful, natural environment? It makes my heart sing:
This foray into family photography has been an amazing learning experience. I always walk away with something new.
I’ve learned a little secret. Can I share? Never ask a shy child to smile. Or even worse, say cheese. It’s best to get them talking about stuff:
… or just thinking about something you said:
Although bathroom humour is almost always certain to work, even if they’re about to slide out of a tree:
I’ve really found my groove over these past few months.
Here’s how I work. After the shoot I review all of the photos (all 200-300 of them) and delete the closed eyes and the grimaces. That being said I make a point of leaving in some of the outtakes, even if they’re not likely to be printed. For example, like when the dog gets a little overexcited and starts knocking people over:
See what I mean? Too cute not to keep. So yes, I delete some, keep others. And then I’m faced with the issue of post-processing. The term “post-processing” refers to anything that is done in the “digital darkroom” a.k.a Photoshop or other photo software. You can do anything with Photoshop, like take off 20 lbs, change the colour of someone’s eyes, brighten teeth, make wrinkles disappear etc. On a more basic level you can also use Photoshop to change colour and tone and make a photo darker or lighter.
I use Photoshop to crop and tweak my photos (if required), but I don’t like going overboard. Everyone has their own point of view on this topic – some photographers are wildly against post-processing, some don’t care – but I have to admit I tend to shy away from it.
There is a certain look that I do like, and that’s strong contrast with punchy black levels and great colour. That’s what I’m trying to achieve when I’m processing 200 client photos. But some people overdo it, or don’t get it just right. The processing has to fit the photo. When I see an overprocessed photo I immediately wonder what the photographer was trying to fix. Exposure issues? Colour balance? I’m not a big fan of overprocessing because if it’s not a good photograph to begin with it will take away more than it gives … and it just ends up being distracting, you know what I mean?
I could talk more about this stuff but I also recognize it’s pretty dull. And I need to get some work done today. So how about I switch tracks to something a little more exciting? Drum roll please … I have another giveaway coming up. It’s for Ottawa peeps, so check back tomorrow for details!
