Quick Family Portrait

We were having a family celebration this Monday where I took a portrait of the young family featured in today's post. I like to be challenged by the environment that I don't know beforehand. It is a good practice in finding good backgrounds and angles. Normally, I would not place the family at the exact center but thanks to the simplicity of the scene and a dominant decoration at the top of the frame, I think it works very well in this particular image. The almost shadowless lighting was achieved by bouncing the on-camera flash backwards against the ceiling. Camera spec: Canon 5D mark ii with Canon 24-105 4L USM at 32mm, F4 @ 1/125, ISO 800.

On-Location Portrait

Today I am posting another portrait I took a few days ago. While traveling light with only two flashes, I could still achieve a studio quality portrait. The main light was my 580EX II with shoot-through umbrella to camera left and I placed a white towel to camera right to soften the shadows. The background light was done by the small 430EX II placed behind my subject. No color filter was needed as the wall was actually red/purple, so the effect came for free. I also like the expression of the model and the connection in her eyes. Camera spec: Canon 5D mark ii with Canon 24-105 at 93mm, F5.6 @ 1/125, ISO 160.

X-mas Smile

X-mas is coming soon and while visiting my parents in the city of Trebic in Czech Republic, I had the opportunity to photograph this cute little girl. It took some time before she got comfortable with the camera but then the images looked great. I used my portable light studio, a speedlite 580EX II with a shoot-through umbrella and a small 430EX behind the subject for the illumination of the background. I was experimenting with Pocket Wizard zone controller to remotely adjust the flash power and it worked like a dream. It seems that this will become my standard on-location equipment. Camera spec: Canon 5D mark ii with Canon 24-105 4L at 105mm, F5.6 @ 1/200, ISO 100.

A Safe Place

Today I am posting an image of a few months old baby in the arms of her father. I like how the baby was exploring the surroundings (and me with my camera) from a very safe place close to her father. Lighting was provided by a studio strobe on camera right with a silver reflector to fill in the shadows and a small Canon speedlite 580EX II with a diffuser is placed behind the baby to illuminate the background and create a subtle rim light. Camera spec: Canon 5D mark ii with Canon 70-200 2.8L IS II at 135mm, F16 @ 1/125, ISO 200.

Baby on the Way

I like this photo where the couple hold the belly and they look at each other. It is simply the connection between them which works for me. Lighting was provided with my studio lights with an umbrella softbox as the key light and a silver reflector for fill. The white background is lighten just by one studio light where feathering is used to make sure that the light spreads equally on the background. Camera spec: Canon 5D mark ii with Canon 70-200 2.8L IS II at 88mm, F8 @ 1/125, ISO 100.

Relaxed and Smiling

Here is my favourite photo from a recent photo session in my home studio. I like the relaxed expression of the happy couple. The white shirts and high-key background make the image very simple, focusing all the attention of their faces. The photo was edited in Lightroom 3 and I was very happy about the result. Camera spec: Canon 5D mark ii with Canon 70-200 2.8L IS II at 95mm, F11 @ 1/125, ISO 200.

Happy, happy ...

Here is another image I took a few days ago. This happy smiling baby really shines on this photo. Apart from this, there are a few things that make the photo interesting. I placed the head slightly off the center and was waiting for the moment when the eyes look towards left (to the center of the photo) to restore the dynamic balance. Also the head position is not following the axis of the shoulders, something I often try to achieve when photographing adults. Here no posing took place, simply waiting for the right moment while entertaining the baby in the mean time. Camera spec: Canon 5D mark ii with Canon 70-200 2.8L IS II at 115mm, F11 @ 1/160, ISO 200.