Merry Christmas!

Published!

**HOPEFULLY THE LAST UPDATE**
The articles are all back on the magazine and the site seems to be working well. There were many articles missing. Thanks Laura for letting me know you couldn't get there this morning so I could let Brent know. All the links to the magazine, article and gallery should work correctly now.

**UPDATE AGAIN**
It has been brought to my attention that the link to my article no longer works, and that it isn't listed in the contents of the magazine either. I've got a note into Brent about this and hopefully it will be fixed soon. The good news is the magazine seems to be working better now. The heavy traffic from a couple of very popular blogs yesterday overloaded the server and caused it not to respond correctly. So while you're waiting for my article to come back, go read some of the other great information included in this issue!!

**UPDATE**
If you tried to get to my article today and had problems, try again now. The site got overloaded due to all the traffic from MckMama's Blog!!

**Original Post**

A couple of weeks ago, after I wrote this post, Brent Riggs sent an email out saying he wanted to do a photography issue of Serious.life Magazine to be published before Christmas. He and I exchanged a few emails, and the issue published today,including my article on Posing Hands.

Check it out, if you get the chance. I also have a small photo gallery in the magazine. Be sure to go through the whole magazine as it has a ton of great information from some other really great photographers (including one many of you probably will recognize), as well as a lot of other fun and interesting articles.

Thanks again Brent!

iHeartFaces - Constructive Feedback Friday

This week at iHeartFaces, it's Constructive Feedback Friday. It is a chance for people to submit one of their own photos, and have other readers provide constructive criticism or tell them how the would edit the photo. I played with a few of the entries and thought I would share what I did!

Also, If the owners of the photographs would like a larger version, please let me know. I uploaded a smaller file to save space on my Flikr account, but I would be happy to send you the full version!

This first photo was submitted by Tricia from Capturing a Moment. Tricia says: "I know that her eyes are squinty, but this “pose” is perfectly Karlee...My issues with this photo are that the overall effect is rather dark, and there is not enough contrast"

The first thing I noticed about the photo was her awesomely chubby cheeks! I ABSOLUTELY LOVE THEM! And other than having a bit of a blue cast, there wasn't a whole lot to do with this photo. So, in lightroom, I just warmed it up a bit, bumped up the contrast a touch and added some vibrance. I also added a white vignette, just enough to give the photo some light. I also cropped out the shoe behind the little girl, and did a little touch up on her face to get rid of the remnants of lunch!

This next photo was submitted by Lisa of Being What I Want To Be. The first thing I noticed about this photo was the little ones Beautiful blue eyes. I also noticed that the photo was crooked (something Lisa fixed in her edits) and that there was WAY too much light on her face. Also, she took the photo in a horizontal orientation. She did crop it in post processing, but if I could give anyone one piece of advice it would be to take the photo as close to how you want it to look when it's printed as possible. This means using your zoom or getting in close. By getting in closer, Lisa may have been able to notice some of the problems with her photo before she even took it!

The first thing I did was to straighten the photo, then I cropped it. I warmed the photo just a touch (litterally, I only bumped it up to +5). I also darkened the photo just a bit. her face was way too washed out, and there wasn't a lot of dimension to it. It looked to me like she was facing the light source. Maybe next time, turn her just a little bit, so the light hits her at a slight angle. Also, if you are planning to do more pictures like these, invest in a piece of white foam board and use it as a reflector. You can prop it up against a chair, or anything so that it faces your subject and bounces the light that is coming through the window to light the other side of her face.

I also softened the photo and added a little saturation and vibrance. Then I sharpened it and added a vignette. I also used the touch up tool to get rid of the {stuff} on the backdrop.

Finally, I used the sunlight tool in PhotoImpact (we all know how much I love the sunlight tool) to add just a little bit of color back into the photo. The reason I love this tool so much is that it makes the light look like it's coming in at an angle, so it looks natural. The key is to not use too much. I almost NEVER take it up to more than the default of 10.

Here is the finished image:

This next photo is the last one I did. I LOVE sweet little baby faces, so I just {had} to do this one! Here is the original from D & C Steward.

The photo is very dark, which upon looking at the photo information, I can see why. Here is what it was shot at ISO 1600, 1/20 sec, f18. So I'll hit all the points... ISO 1600 is way too high. If this photo were to be blown up it would be very grainy... especially after being lightened in post processing. It looks like this photo was shot indoors using natural light. Moving closer to the light source, or finding a diferent, brighter light source all together would have helped a lot! ISO 400 would have been absolutely perfect. 1/20 of a second is quite slow. If this baby had moved, the whole photo would have been blurry. 1/100 of a second or even faster helps get nice crisp shots. f/18 explains a LOT of the darkness. The higher that number, the smaller the opening on your lens. By lowering that number (most kit lenses top out around f/4.6) to around 5.8, the photographer could have lowered her ISO and used a faster shutter speed and still gotten a lighter photograph.

As far as the pose: I like it. I do wish the photographer had moved her camera up slightly. It would have cut out all the black under the baby and gotten the hat in there too. I also am not fond of all the black in front of the baby. So the first thing I did in processing was to crop the photo. Then I lightened and softened it. Unfortunately, this photo may not print well because of noise from such a high ISO.. although I did blow it up and it did look remarkably well! Again I used the sunlight tool on this photo to add some light and to also soften it just a bit!

Here is my edited photo:

I had so much fun working with these photos. I love photo editing and learning new things!! Thanks to all who submitted their photos for people like me to play with. I wish I could have done more!

Fix-It Friday #39

So for this week's Fix-It Friday, I went WAY overboard. But when you see the photo, you'll know why! What a cool, action packed photo it was.

Here is the original:

This photo was great! I had so many ideas, and as you'll see below, I followed through on every one of them! But first I did a basic edit. I did all of my editing in lightroom today. Have I mentioned lately that I love lightroom?

Yeah, I do!

Anyway here is what I did for my basic edit:
1. Warmed the temperature just a bit because I was going for a rugged, older fashioned look.

2. I adjusted the exposure just a bit.

3. Then I cropped just enough to get the focus back on the action. Everything in the background did add to the feel of the photo (and come on.. you can never have TOO MANY horses in a picture), but it was just a bit TOO distracting to me.

4. A little softening to tone down the dust a little. I Loved the actual chunks of dirt flying, but the dust was taking away from the action that was happening RIGHT NOW.

5. Bumped up the vibrance & Saturation. Even though I was going for an aged feel, I LOVED the color in this photo and I wanted it to stand out!

6. Took a little orange/red out because his face was VERY red by the time I got to this point.

7. Lastly, I added a Vignette/Lens Correction post-crop. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this feature of lightroom!!

Here is the result:

I also did a LOT of playing with presets in Lightroom. This was the perfect photo to do it with, and as you can see there were a lot of them that looked really good on it.

In the first photo, I used the Mocha Preset from Coffee Shop. The other three were Built into Lightroom. I used Antique Grayscale on the 2nd photo, Aged Photo on the 3rd and B&W High Contrast on the last photo.

The rest of the presets I used came from Preset Heaven. Let me tell you, this place really is Heaven for photo editing. I downloaded over 50 presets one day, and there are a TON more that I haven't even seen yet. The best part is, they are all free!

So in the top set of photos I used Elsie, Auto Tone (I wanted to compare that one to the edit I did manually.. pretty close, I'd say), Direct Positive and Orange Garden. I love the way the Orange Garden photo turned out!

For this last set, again all the presets came from Preset Heaven. The first photo is Retro, and is exactly what I was going for. I also used Zurich Street Scene (love the grain in that one!), Cold Tone and 7 Up! I love the way 7 up turned out, and what a fun name, too!!

To see more great fixes, visit iHeartFaces by clicking the button below.

Fix-It Friday #38

Most of my reason for doing this week's fix was to play in Lightroom. This photo really didn't need much fixing at all. I did a little color adjustment, softened and sharpened his eyes and that's about it for fix 1. For fix 2 I just converted it to black and white in Photo Impact.

Here are the fixes:

To view more great fixes, click the button below

What Do I Do With My Hands?

Have you ever tried to take photos of someone only to discover neither of you have any clue as to what to do with their hands? I get this question a lot while photographing, especially during Senior portrait sessions.. "What do you want me to do with my hands?" Hands can be difficult to pose, but they don't have to be.

My rule of thumb? Don't pose them.

When I think of the word "pose," I think of my grade school years. Every year in October, we'd have school picture day. You remember…. The day where you have to get up early, wear your best clothes to school (but don't you DARE get them dirty) and then have a weird man touch you and move you so that you were sitting just so, then in a flash (literally) it's over and you are left with a stiff, head-cocked-too-far snapshot to document that year in your life.

Sound like fun?

Nope, I didn't think so either. That's why, when I am photographing someone, I just let them be themselves. I let their natural look come out, and then capture their beauty. From head to toe… including their hands.

Finding something to do with the hands doesn't have to be difficult. Your subject should never feel awkward, and should most definitely never look awkward in their photographs. Here are some of the things I do to get great shots of someone and incorporate their hands nicely. MOST of the suggestions I have here are for photographing seniors, but you can incorporate any group type and modify to suit your needs.

POCKETS, POCKETS, POCKETS! Most seniors today are foregoing the suit and tie look in their senior pictures and going for looks that are totally natural for them. Jeans and t-shirts, jackets and their favorite sweatshirts, the look is more comfortable than ever before. This is great for photographers because we can use those pockets to our advantage.

For girls, have them put their hands in their back pockets, then point their body at an angle where they're slightly turned, but their eyes are still looking into the lens. This gives them a sassy, flirty look. Take photos both with and without smiles. Some of my all time favorite photos are of girls who are not smiling. This same pose is also very cute if you have them put just their thumbs in their front pockets (or their belt loops). Keep their body turned at a slight angle and have them turn their heads toward the camera. Also have them tilt their head down just a little and use their eyes to create the emotion in the photograph.

For guys, hands in the front pockets work best. But be careful. Just have them put their hands half into their front pockets. You don't want them to go in all the way because it makes it look too bulky. Also, the fingers in the pockets or belt loops works nicely. Again have them turn slightly and even lean back on one leg so they look very relaxed. Having them lean against a tree, wall or fence is a great way to achieve the relaxed, even macho-cool look. Again, they can smile or not. Do a series of both so you have the choice of what you like best later.

You can also incorporate props here.. A chair, stool or trunk makes a nice footrest and makes your photo a little more interesting. But don't go overboard. The focus should always be on your subject. You don't want them to get lost in a sea of props.

USE CLOTHING TO YOUR ADVANTAGE. Have your subject bring a jacket. leather, jean or their Letterman all work nicely. For girls, you can also have them bring a sweater (turtlenecks or even scarves work nicely). For the girl poses, turn up the collar on the jacket and have them gently rest their hands around the collar near their face. Guys can either sling the jacket over their shoulder, or wear it, and put their hands in the pockets. When you do this, have them open the jacket just slightly outward. Don't let them stuff their hands in the pockets and close off their body as if they're walking home from school on a cold, 30 below day.


FOUND OBJECTS, BUILDINGS AND THINGS that have character make GREAT photograph props. Have your subject rest their hands on a fencepost, crate, tre, barrel, wall or any other object that looks interesting. This also works well if it is an object (such as a fence) where they can also set one foot on it. Have them put one foot on the bottom rail of a fence and then rest their hands on the fencepost. If the fence is sturdy enough (and if you have permission), have your subject sit on it with one foot up. have them rest their hands on their knee. This is a great pose to take in landscape orientation so you can lead up to your subject with the fence. If you have a crate, chair or trunk, they can prop their foot on that and rest their hands on their knee as well (make sure that senior ring shows!)

You may also have them lean against a wall or tree with their hands up near their face. Be careful with this though, it only works if you have the right subject and if you do it just right. I don't use this option very often, because it looks stiff and "posed." However as I said above... you can have them lean on the tree and cross their arms, put their hands in their pockets, or even sit against the tree with their hands on their knees.

LESS IS MORE when it comes to props. By all means use props and have your subject hold something, especially if they are having a hard time with hand placement. But be careful not to overwhelm them. Simplicity is key. A flower, a piece of sporting equipment, musical instrument, letterman jacket, anything that in the finished product says "this is me" are perfect props. If you are photographing a girl outdoors, find a garden or even a field and have them cup a hand around a flower and kneel on the ground as if they are either admiring it or smelling it.

RELAX, RELAX, RELAX Teens have a very laid back, relaxed attitude. Use this to your advantage. Have them cross their arms and lean on ANYTHING. You can also have them put their hands in their front pockets (or jacket pockets) while leaning, too. This works great in studio and on location, they can bend over and lean ON anything (for example, a fencepost, chair, trunk), stand and lean AGAINST anything (a wall, their car, a tree). Also the arms crossed looks good with them just standing too... especially if you put them at a slight angle like I suggested with the hands in the pocket.

SIT, BOO BOO, SIT! Not all of your photographs are going to be of your subject standing. If you are doing head shots with your subject sitting on a stool, then just have your subject place their hands in their lap, but when you're ready for more fun poses that include more of the body, move to the floor or a chair.

For shots where you're using a chair as a prop, there are two great ways to incorporate the hands. One, have them sit on the chair backwards. Then you can have them cross their arms and rest their head on their arms (have them turn their head, so their cheek rests on the arm, not the chin). This pose looks better with girls than guys. You can also have them just place their hands on the back of the chair. If the chair has knobs on each side of the back, have them rest both hands on the knob and sit at a slight angle. Then have them sit with their heads up, but still relaxed. No military poses here.

Next, have them seated on the floor or ground. You can choose to have them sit alone, or have a prop (such as a trunk, stuffed animal, book, or musical instrument). If you use something such as a trunk, have them place their elbow on the trunk and rest their head in one hand, and have them lay the other on the trunk (quick tip: if they have rings on... make that the hand that lays on the prop. They'll be easier to see). When placing hands on or near the face, either place their hand under and slightly to the side of their chin or against the temple. Don't stick their hand straight under their chin. It is too stiff and unnatural.

Another pose I love is to have them just sit on the floor or ground with one leg tucked under the other, sans props.

The untucked leg should be the leg furthest from you camera and should be up with the foot flat on the floor, and their body should be turned at an angle. Their other leg will lay on the floor crossed under the back leg. Have them balance themselves by placing the front hand behind and off to the side of them and just have them rest the other arm or hand on their knee.

This will naturally turn their upper body toward the camera. This also works with both knees up and the arms wrapped around them with the fingers entwined (you'll want to have them turn a little more toward the camera for this one)... make sure those senior rings show off, too!

While they are on the floor with one leg up, have them wrap their hands around the leg and cross their fingers. Then have them rest their head in a relaxed way on their knee. This pose is nice for girls when you don't have them smile. It gives it a dreamy look, almost like they are thinking about all the excitement ahead of them.

I LOVE HATS!! If they are wearing a hat (especially a cowboy hat or beret or similar style) or if you have some for props, have them place a hand on the hat either in a flirty manner or as if they are tipping it. This is especially effective if you get right in their face with your lens. That way you are focusing on their face and the only other thing in the picture are their fingers.. No arms flapping in the breeze!

DON'T STRESS OVER IT The more relaxed your subject is, the less you'll find yourself directing their posing. It will become natural. Talk to them, laugh with them and you'll notice a huge difference.

I like to catch my subjects off guard. My favorite thing to tell them: "hold that" if I see something I like. I'll just tell them (softly, I don't want to scare the living daylights out of them!) "hold that" and shoot real quick before they have a chance to move. Some of my favorite shots are of "poses" that came by naturally.

If I could give you one all around piece of advice it is to limit how much YOU touch and move your subject. You never want your subject to LOOK posed. So instead of turning, pushing, tilting and placing my subject, I simply guide and ask or tell them to do a certain thing. 99% of the time when I touch a subject it Is to pull down a shirt, smooth their hair or point to where I want their hand to be on their leg.
I don’t hesitate, however to walk right up and show them exactly what I want them to do, but I won't touch them. I have found that this technique not only makes them more comfortable, makes them look more relaxed and makes the photograph turn out more natural, but I find that they also have more natural smiles too! Think about it. If you are uncomfortable, does your smile feel funny? But if you are relaxed and doing what you do, your smile is completely you.. Completely beautiful!

IF ALL ELSE FAILS, hide the hands! If I have a subject who just absolutely can't get it, I'll take all my full frame photos with the hands hidden. I will have them put their hands in their pockets, hold something or even put them up against a tree then lean around that tree. Then the rest of the photos I do as head shots where the hands won't be seen. And head shots don't always have to be taken with the subject sitting on a stool. Be creative. Find a pose you like and move in closer to make it a head shot.

SPEAKING OF HEAD SHOTS… please, by all means, NEVER EVER let your subject just let their hands fall to their side. Even if you are only taking head shots, it makes their shoulders sag and their posture stinks! Instead just have them lay their hands in their lap. It will make for a more natural look. Sometimes for added effect I'll even let my subjects sit on a stool at a bit of an angle and put one foot up a rung of the stool.

No matter what level of photographer you are, I hope you benefit from my words of wisdom. I am by no means an expert in posing… more like an expert in trial and error! If you have any questions or even your own posing ideas, please feel free to leave me a comment. I love to learn, and am always looking for new ideas!