I found a great deal so now I think I have all the backdrops I've been wanting (color wise). I do hate those wrinkles I'll have to get me a steamer (or a studio where I can just leave up canvas's...heh).

Hallie was a patient model and I practiced a bunch with different lighting too, I finally got the backlight (hairlight? Is it the same thing or is it only a hair light when you point it at the back of the subject?) to work with the gels. I also got my posing table so that made things a lot easier too. I have to admit...I am getting all this stuff mainly to take photos of Hallie! I'm doing some studio shooting jobs on the side which is nice to get a little back on my investment but my reward is just getting to do my own kid. I didn't work on posing her on most of these I was just having her sit there so I could practice lighting and see how the backdrops look, next I need to get creative and think of something things for her to do.

I think I had the strobes set too high on this first one LOL.

Dee Dee,
On that first one, Hallie is saying "Yikes, mom, your stobes are a little too high!!!"

As for the wrinkles, that's so much a personal preference. I love unstructured wrinkles in my backdrops because it gives even more softness to it visually. In fact, I often hang them with large folds to focus on the subject in front. That's why I use muslin because they're light, can be bunched into a ball and carried anywhere easily.

In the studio, I've used canvass attached to a pulley system so that the backdrops were always hanging and I could just pull the one I wanted into the scene. That's the only way I've found to keep them from getting wrinkles.

When you use the hairlight, you need to make sure the front illumination is adequate so that the hairlight doesn't overpower the subject. It's only supposed to accent the hair; not backlight the subject.

Isn't it great having your own model to try things out? All my guys are great at holding a pose but my favorite guy, Rowdy, will do whatever I ask him to do so he's the one I take to shows to test out my lighting. You should see the look on people's faces when I stack him on the podium, tell him to "stay" and walk back to the camera and take a bunch of frames. Sometimes, I just toss a toy and he'll come up into a classic pose. I'm not sure why, but there's something about a 125 lb male Rottie standing without a handler that makes people nervous LOL.

Hallie is a great model! Very expressive. That's fun.

Keep experimenting until you get the look you like.

Jim

I really like these Dee Dee. I like the first as it is different and seems it should be the way it is. It isn't a soft looking portrait so the extra light is good

You might want to burn the edges giving a soft vignette look to them. Maybe not, and I get a bit heavy handed with it. Here was my thought on this one, since the bottom portion already looked vignetted

Thanks for the comments I need all the advice I can get.

LOL Jim I can picture Rowdy sitting there with people giving a wide berth! He is huge he almost weighs as my as my Dane did! Hallie is a willing model too, because she gets t-r-e-a-t-s. She tries to get into position before I get everything set up.

One thing I am having trouble with with her shots are they don't seem to be super sharp. I've noticed that with other black dogs (skips are awful for me to get sharp) could it be the camera can't focus correctly beforehand on such a low contrast subject?

I wouldn't be happy with any of these as a portrait, except maybe the first one LOL I was hoping to experiment and find something that looks good but isn't the usual flat lighting (I always am lookign for something different) but wasn't successful, but it was fun playing with the lights. I have a long way to go with the posing and props.

I agree muslin is sure nice for carrying around. I would LOVE to use canvas but it's so heavy, I wish I had a spot at home where I could set it up and leave it. I see the photographers at the shows use different rolls of it they just pull down as needed like you said, that would be so nice. Maybe it's the folds and not the wrinkles that bother me most, I will try balling them up and see if that helps.

Thanks Julie I did leave some of these without a vignette, I think they would have looked better with one too. I also often slightly blur the vignetted part but it's easy to overdo. It's fun to experiment I have taken a lot of shots of Hallie's favorite stuffed toy that is a life sized duplicate of her lol.I am learning a lot every time I set this stuff up.

Dee Dee,
black dogs are very hard for most camera's auto-focus to lock on to. As you know, I shoot a lot of black dogs and I use only the center focus spot and try to focus on the outline of the dog so that there is contrast between the dog and the background. I focus, lock it in by depressing the shutter half-way and hold it there and then recompose and press the shutter the rest of the way.

If you don't have a focus problem in other situations, then try the above approach. Also, in a studio set-up, make sure you're using halogen modeling lights in your strobes. They give off more illumination and that will help your auto-focus lock in.

Give Hallie a kiss for me.

Jim

Dee Dee, I burst out laughing when I viewed the first image! It is grand.
Your work reminds me of the photographer Yann Arthus-Bertrand. His books titled Good Breeding, Horses, and Dogs are among my favorties in their simplicy. Look at the huge muslins used in the large animal books. The wrinkles just do not matter. When the images are that good, like some of yours, the background just does not exist. (Except for the image maker that hates wrinkles)

When I travel with muslin, I try and take the background lengthwise and twist one way at the top and the opposite at the bottom. Then roll. That way the wrinkles tend to be more vertical which does not disturb me as much as horizontal. In the studio I use steamer.

I do know that some backgrounds I have purchased do not shoot like I envision. And sometimes ones that I did not think would work, are my favorites.

Keep up the great work. You are a joy to watch create.

Good to know it is a common problem! That is exactly how I've been getting the focus, I would tip the camera either to an edge of her that contrasts the background and lock focus then recompose or I would set it on where the black and tan meet in her face, which sometimes would and sometimes would not work. I had wondered if that bit of recomposing was enough to change the DOF into a not as sharp focus when I was shooting at 2.8. (newbie boo boo). But I remembered what you had told me in another post here that you normally shoot at f/8 and iso 200 and ss of 200 (at least I think I was close...as I was setting up last night,I didn't stop to look it up to see if I was exact but I figured that was at least the ball park! ) so that is what I was using last night. At f/8 I'm sure the recomposing would not effect the focus. You are right I don't have any problems with focus with lighter dogs.

My modeling lights are just the standard 100w light bulbs. I'll get some halogen ones thanks for the tip! These aren't very bright, that would help a lot.

Hallie sends one back to Rowdy, she likes big dark and handsome guys!

Dee Dee,
Rowdy wanted me to share his latest photo with you guys (and, especially, with Hallie). Here's his placement photo from the 2007 American Rottweiler Club's National Specialty in April. It was his dad's pleasure to be able to take this photo of his favorite boy.



Hallie would like Rowdy very much. He's the sweetest, most gentle boy I've ever known. Truly, a Golden Retriever in a black & tan suit.

Jim

Wow he is gorgeous Jim! You had to be busting your buttons taking this picture of him (great pic too by the way!). He sounds like such a sweet guy. I'm sure Hallie WOULD like him. She drooled on the key board when she saw him! It's nice you got the whole package with him, conformation and temperament!

Have you heard of a rottie called Raven's Cres D Alchemist? I know his handler, the dog if from Canada. He's been winning a lot in this area anyway I don't know how far he travels for shows.

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Have you heard of a rottie called Raven's Cres D Alchemist? I know his handler, the dog if from Canada.

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Yes, Burton was bred by Pam Boles in Canada and he's very nice. I believe his brother is Kobe, The Talisman, and he went WD at the 2004 ARC National and was on the cover of our magazine The Rottweiler Magazine .

Pam has bred some very nice dogs: gorgeous physically; all health clearances; sound temperaments. Both Burton and Kobe are on my short list for Cassidy's next breeding.

As for Rowdy, we've been blessed. He not only is a wonderful dog and a great embassador for the breed, he has also produced his temperament in his 3 litters. Ultimately, that is the greatest contribution he could make to the next generations of Rottweilers.

Tell Hallie that Rowdy sends puppy kisses (no big slurpies!).

Jim