Okay, this session was done in the middle of a Babies R Us. The very pretty subject of this shoot didn't want to do this at her house, because the nursery was not ready. She works at a Babies R Us and wanted the session done there.

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I know you are asking for us to go easy on you... but holmes... the color is really off on these. Here is a before and after of one of the images with the after being me trying to get it as neutral as possible.



Shooting in a retail environment, IMHO, should be a last resort type of location due to the horrible light conditions you would be in. This is one of those shoots where I feel you would have been better off by nixing the idea of shooting in the store and choosing another location.

I'ld really suggest that you consider taking these off of your blog. Especially in their current color condition.

Cheers,
Zack

Well, I have some work cut out for me this afternoon.

How's the B&W?

One suggestion for future consideration would be to ask the mother to be to choose a solid top. You want to accentuate and call attention to the belly and with a busy printed top a lot of that is lost.

For your B&W try adjusting the curves or levels to give it a little more contrast and pop.

I agree with the above. Play with these in PS and then repost on your blog. And also agree with the solid shirt, but that's not your fault! Just recommend it to the mother next time. I not big on shirt prints in any photos myself.

I think the last shot would be good in all b&w (no selective coloring) and it would ROCK if it was with a solid black top!

Actually, I did suggest solid colors. I only spoke to her less than eight hours before the shoot.

Here's the back story:

I am doing a baby fair at Babies R Us this weekend. I found out that one of the employees is expecting, so I thought it would be nice to do a maternity so that I would have something to show this weekend. I thought it would be nice because then she will talk about it at the show.

I talked to her manager (I didn't know who the pregnant employee was) and I was told Friday (this past Friday) night that she was interested in doing the shoot. I didn't speak to the girl until Saturday morning and did the shoot Saturday evening.

Off to do some PS.

Just saw Zach already cooled one off but here's another one - and how it could look:

http://www.opensourcephoto.net/forum/uploa...-1168544112.jpg

vs

http://www.pictureinfinity.com/ospics/neal.jpg

Zack & Matt:

Would you please share the secrets of your trade?

I have been working on this all day. I have been sick all week and stayed home from work Tuesday through today. Today is actually the first day I didn't sleep all day. I am going back to work tomorrow. I was hoping to have something to show on Saturday.

Thank you very much.

-Neal

ONE way you could try is opening it up in light room. Use the eye dropper and it will balance it.

Okay, I'm off to download lightroom.

If anyone wants to see the RAW files, I am uploading them right now to:

http://jacobfam.net/images/

Carina-NJ10004.NEF
Carina-NJ10011.NEF
Carina-NJ10013.NEF
Carina-NJ10016.NEF
Carina-NJ10020.NEF
Carina-NJ10021.NEF
Carina-NJ10034.NEF

Thank you

Neal, if you shot these in RAW you should be able to do a custom white balance on them in ACR. If you shot those in JPEG, but don't have Lightroom, follow these steps to balance the color.

With image open in Photoshop:

1) Create a Threshold layer
1.a) Move the slider all the way to the left, then bring it to the right slowly until you see the first black area big enough to clearly create a point with the eyedropper tool (tool within the threshold dialogue box)
1.a) Repeat 1.a for the other side, move the slider all the way to the right, then bring back slowly, etc. and create a second point.
Note: If I got the above 1.a and 1.b backwards, it's irrelevant (I am going from memory here ;-))
2. Cancel the creation of the Threshold layer (yes, cancel it, we need the points not the layer)
3. Create a Curves layer (or a Levels layer, works with both)
4. In the curves layer, select the black eyedropper, and click on the point in the black area that was created in the threshold dialogue
5. Then select the white eyedropper and click on the white point you created in the threshold dialogue
6. Click OK. The colors in the image should be balanced.

I hope that helps.

Edit: I just saw your post. In that case, open the files in Adobe Camera Raw, and since the lighting is pretty much the same, select all of them in ACR, then select the eyedropper tool from the top (that is the White Balance tool) and simply click on a part of the image that should be white. That should balance all of them in one shot, then you can go through each one of them and adjust the WB slider to make them look natural.

I'm not going to be "easy" on you here simply because you are presenting yourself as a working pro. Not an enthusiast. You are trying to part people from their money and give them photos in return so I'll just go down the list here a bit in hopes that it gives you good food for thought.

Handling this specific situation you are in...

• Being the pro I would take control of the situation and move locations. Shooting in the store would have been the last resort.

• IF I had to shoot in the store I would have scoured the place for locations off the sales floor to stay away from mixing my flash with the ambient fluorescent lights or just plan on the whole shoot being B&W unless I could find just the right gel for my flash to match the whatever horrible lights they have in the store.

• Try once again to move locations.

• Shoot RAW

• Have a basic OFF CAMERA lighting rig. On camera Stofen, Lightshpere, etc would have done ZERO good in this situation. This is a situation I talk about in the OneLight. If you are an available light photographer there will be times when the available light is horrible and that is all you have to work with. Having an off camera light rig gives you more options in these times.

• My concern for you first and foremost though is that you posted these images on your blog without seeing how far off the color was in the first place. You have to get your eye trained to see this. Judging from your site I don't see images in your galleries that are this off base. All I can see across the board on your site is that you could use a bood in contrast on a number of images but not by much and not by the amount these images need. That leaves me wondering why you didn't see the color, contrast, and density issues with these images.

• Just because you are presenting work to pregnant ladies or those with small children, it doesn't necessarily mean you have to show them maternity images and portraits of babies. I've booked video gigs from showing still photos. I've booked fashion jobs showing band pictures. I've booked family portraits showing product shots.

• I would not show these images no matter if they are color corrected or not. Show some of your engagement portraits. Those are the strongest images on your site. Maybe one of your bridals. Get these specific photos corrected or converted to B&W and give them to the subject and I'm sure she'll be pleased but I would not show them as pieces to get more work from unless you are going to try to shut down the local Wal Mart portrait studio and their $4.99 specials.

• DON'T cut off hands, fingers, and feet at the ankle! (sorry, just a pet peeve of mine. Like, I start twitching and stuff. )

• 99% of the time, selective coloring is something "to not to do." ( - Mater from 'Cars') In your example the color leads the eye away from the subject and keeps you down there in her lap AND her face is out of focus so there is no need to spend time there. Again, this shot just doesn't work no matter how you tone it.

#3 is your best shot. #1 comes close but it looks like more like an image of a woman shopping for baby products rather than a portrait of the woman. Know what I mean?

Last but not least... It's ALL ABOUT LIGHT! Einstein called photographers "light monkeys". I love that term. Light and not just in a large enough quantity to make an exposure, but there is a quality of light you are looking for and large suburban retail box stores do not contain the light you seek! I would go so far as to bet $100 that there were better images to be made in the warehouse in the back of the store.

Please know I'm not trying to be a jerk and don't take this personally. You are in a time where you need to grow as a photographer so I hope that this discussion stretches you a bit.

Cheers,
Zack

Good luck on the job and hope you feel better!
Considering the circumstances you did a pretty good job. You could always follow up with her to see if she would consider another shoot and try out a few more things.

Tips above are great!

"Forbidden You don't have permission to access /images/ on this server."

Maybe you are still uploading?

I opened the image in Lightroom, pressed on the eye dropper and clicked the whitest area I could find, tweaked the WB a little after that, brightened a bit, added some contrast, added a bit of black back for the shadows, tweaked WB one last time, sharpened it and uploaded.

The good thing about LR is that once you did all that and got it done, you could ctrl+shift+c copy settings then select all images, ctrl+shift+v to paste settings and be done with the fixing.

And yes, +1 everything Zach said.

Zack:

In reverse order (of posts)

1: Yes, the files are still uploading. Also note that "NEF" is all CAPS

2: Regarding your other posts. All points are 100% valid and I agree with all of what you said. I really wanted to have something to show that was themed to the show. So, since it is going to be a "baby fair" I was looking for "baby" related images.

I did not use flash. A majority of these are 50mm 1.4 with some 17-55mm 2.8. All are available light (and the light was crap).

The images (with the exception of the selective color) are no longer on the blog.

Thank you very much for the comments regarding the other images on my web site. I will print out some of the E-Session prints and bring them with me on Saturday.

Here are some images I have taken (some recently, some a few years ago) :

http://nealjacobphoto.slide.com/p/4/untitled?view=True

And here are some others :


http://nealjacobphoto.slide.com/p/4/unsorteditems?view=True

My wife is out for the evening.... so, time to put the kids to bed and then come down here and do some work!

Neal... you just did an AWESOME job taking critique!!

I would have cried a bit, then pouted to my husband that Zack was the biggest jerk ever, and what did he know anyway? (no offense, Zack), and then 12 minutes into my bubble bath, I would have realized that Zack was totally right, and really being an awesome teacher, and then I would prolly still be a bit wounded and a smidge defensive in my reply!

In my head, I know that taking critique is super crazy important, and you are a great example of what opening yourself up will do for your learning process.

*nod nod*

Yup, Neal you did well taking all that.

And

Zack, good on ya for not holding back, it really shows you cared enough to put yourself on the line. Makes me really want to take your onelight course!

+1, pouting bit and all. I've been a victim pupil of 'THE ZACK' before and honestly it really just made me want to get better and get a positive critique.

Big Kudos to you, my friend.

Zack

While I agree with the above posts on the color balance and posting. I think Neal did okay for the first shoot with limited time, limited backdrop and limited resources. Keep in mind that this girl did not seek out Neal for the session that he offered this as free. She may have felt uncomfortable having someone she does not know photograph her and putting her into an uncomfortable situation. Her husband was not able to attend the session and if he was able to that may have changed the setting.

My understanding is that she did not want any "belly" shots and that also limits what he was able to shoot. As for shooting in other areas of store. The store may have policies regarding where employees and customers may be. The store may not have been comfortable with someone photographing in their stockroom due to security reasons.

I think that converting several of the above photos into black and white and working on the post-processing and you will have something to show.

Amanda

Okay, here's a lightroom corrected image:

Click to view attachment

Definitely TONS better Neal. Add some red back in there somehow (saturation, hue shift, whatever works) and/or fix the tint +2 or so - something so she looks more reddish than yellowy and I think it'll be better.

I agree with carrie about taking criticism - you've done great with it so far and I also zach for what he's said.

Hey everyone.

1) Thank you for the comments about how well I am handling the critique. For the most part Zack is right on. As far as not crying... Well.... I have a different attitude all together towards OSP verses other forums (such as DWF). I posted the same critique on DWF and I haven't been able to check back because they have been having server issues. On DWF they are probably tearing me to shreds and yes, I would be crying on DWF.


2) What Amanda said is pretty much the case:

She didn't know me. She just met me when I walked in with my camera. I did have Becky Waurio with me, so it wasn't like this strange guy she never met was taking pictures of her, she actually had two people she never met taking pictures of her!

Yes, her husband was not able to be there.

This is her first child. I don't think that she really understood what a maternity session was all about.

The store did have very limited areas where we could shoot. Also, we (Becky and I) shot a few and she was done. She didn't want to shoot any more. She didn't want to go anywhere else. She was the one that said that we should shoot at the store and not at her home. I did this for free. She isn't paying for these images. Yes, she is aware that I have never shot a Maternity before.

Well, since I have been sick all week, it is now 8:20. I am going to get ready for bed and hopefully tomorrow night when I get home from work I can do some more work on these in preparation for the baby shower.

Good-night

good show.

this place is about 'learning' not 'leering' I have found. I too, thank those who have stepped up and helped Neal out, and applaude Neal for taking it in to improve his work.



*golfclap*


(these are real tears )

zack is BRILLIANT.

that is why we are hosting a one light workshop in pittsburgh for him!

neal, you just got a critique from zack, not a criticism. this is a true gift form the master of the light. practice what zack suggests and, wow!, you'll grow so much!


if i may suggest a few ideas for the composition?
just some ideas for next time - since there will be a next time!

try to position your subject off-center leave some dead space. i realize the location may not have left you much choice, but wide open, close to the subject with the focus on her eyes would have knocked everything out of focus that you didn't want to see, and brought the attention to the eyes.

try a different angle. for example, when she was sitting on the floor, try to shoot down over her shoulder. if she put her hands on her belly, you could focus on her rings.

try every shot vertical and horizontal - they WON'T all work, but you will know what does!

maternity pics aren't all about the belly try some with mom looking back over her shoulder - keep it tight, just her face and shoulder. this would be pretty near a window with ambient light. have her look at you, and then have her move her gaze... have her look up to the right a little , then left, then down. she'll probably laugh beacuse this will seem funny to her - and THAT is the shot!

not everything works, but try all kinds of stuff - you can always delete!

i love that you want to learn. your passion will take you far.

Back in school, I had some very passionate and very tough teachers that led me to interning and assisting very passionate and very tough photographers. The school of thought was, if you want to be a pro photographer then you better dang well know what is going to be expected of you.

Or as I have sort of said at one time, "If you are going make photography your living, you better be living photography." It makes no sense but there you go.

For those who may think critique online from fellow photographers is difficult, I can tell you stories of me putting my visual pollution in front of photographers, editors, and art directors that very nearly had me walking away from the profession for good. I once built a portfolio book I was so very proud of and got a chance to sit down with a high level Art Director in Dallas. He spent about 10 seconds looking at my book and sent me on my way. "Nope." That was some critique right there.

Looking forward to seeing your second maternity shoot!

Cheers,
Zack

much better:)
..... now maybe blur the background a bit or give it a vignette if you really want to use it:) that would help get rid of the distractions in the background

Heather

Call me CRAZY but I gotta disagree with Zack on a couple of points here.



# 1 Cutting hands off at the ankle is very difficult to do. (Unless you subject is a neanderthal...)

# 2 Mater's line is actually "to not to" not "to not to do." Go back and watch it again. I've only seen the movie once...but I've heard it from the back of the van about one thousand three hundred and seventy eight times...since November 5th.

Okay...yeah...I'm just bustin' on ya' Zack.

Neal...listen to everything else that Zack says.

(should've kept that one to yourself !!!!)


Neal, I REALLY think your best option is to go B&W with these... I know I already said that... but I really really think it's the best option in this case!

Oh that wasn't even close to one of my "almost posts."

"Maybe...I should have...hooked him up to Bessie...
and then released the boot."

The kids were watching cars last night while I was posting.

I'll respond to the rest later, I just wanted to weigh in on "Cars"

B & W:

I need to read "Using the Burn Tool for Dummies"

That B&W I posted was my rush version.... meaning I did it in less than a minute because I was running late this morning...because I was reading the replies to this thread.

All I did on that rush version was Saturation - 0, bump some curves, run some actions from PhotoKit. I'll spend a little more time on it later.

Well, the show is tomorrow. So, I'll polish up some things tonight. I'll do as Zack said and bring some of my E-Sessions. I am planning on bringing a sample album from one of my weddings.

The main problem with this Maternity Shoot (other than the bad color, contrast, etc...) was that I was not in control of the environment. I wanted to get these shots because I wanted to have some Maternity to show at the show. Had it been any other situation, I probably would have walked away saying that this is not the environment that I want to shoot in.

I have to run .... work calls....

Okay, I sooooooo need to go to OneLight.

I feel like arguing this one. You need samples to show people. You can get by without them, but that's just it--you're getting by.

If you're shopping for towels, you pick them up and stroke them. If a supermarket wants to boost sales of a new product, they give away samples. You try on jeans before you buy them. You test drive cars. People shop with their senses. They look, feel, smell, taste and hear. We'd all agree a slideshow with music is more effective than one without, right? People test products out, and then envision them bettering their lives. If the cost/benefit ratio is right, they'll buy. In the same way, people want to see shots framed, finished albums and etc.

If you're spending the money to advertise - shoot for free or at a cut rate so you've got finished product to demo. I realize Zack was implying you'd sell with other work you've done first and then make demos later. While you may sell a few, that's bad advice if you're advertising the service you don't have demos for, you're wasting money. If you're not yet advertising, then give it a shot.

BTW - I pretty much agree with everything else Zack has stated, except for avoiding that location. I'd be willing to bet with an expodisc, a reflector, a better model & wardrobe - you could still get great shots even at Babies R Us. Now I'm sort of tempted to go out and try it. It shows creativity. I've never seen photos of an expectant mother shopping for new baby essentials, it's photojournalistic. I think the difference here though, was that the shoot was more about the pictures than it was about the shopping. Have you ever been out with an expectant mother while shopping? Their hormones are amplified, and they're emotional (especially first mothers). They'll pick up a pair of booties and either start sobbing, or laughing, or their heart melts. Either way, GREAT shots. With better execution, you probably really have a sharp idea.

-Tim