Senior Pictures

[F/1.4]

I'm going to advise not to use a tripod (unless you're shooting large format). It's another piece of equipment you have to fiddle with and put between you and your subject, it prohibits the creation of those great grab shots you could only get with the speed of hand-holding, and if you're at shutter speeds slow enough to use a tripod, your subject might still be blurry from moving.

Like what ChristopherCoy and I said before, just shoot hand-held, wide open the whole time. It will look great. Shooting at f/11 on a tripod is for large groups and old timers who had to stop down on their 4x5's.

Take a look at this one, Shot the whole thing on a 1V and 85L, hand-held. Looks awesome: http://www.michellemooreblog.com/201...k-to-my-roots/

[JimO]

all good stuff.... i to would the tripod, but use a paper background and a posing stand to lean on - just the effect i like and it causes them to stick in one place!

[Alan Gales]

I'm going to advise not to use a tripod (unless you're shooting large format). It's another piece of equipment you have to fiddle with and put between you and your subject, it prohibits the creation of those great grab shots you could only get with the speed of hand-holding, and if you're at shutter speeds slow enough to use a tripod, your subject might still be blurry from moving.

Like what ChristopherCoy and I said before, just shoot hand-held, wide open the whole time. It will look great. Shooting at f/11 on a tripod is for large groups and old timers who had to stop down on their 4x5's.

Take a look at this one, Shot the whole thing on a 1V and 85L, hand-held. Looks awesome: http://www.michellemooreblog.com/201...k-to-my-roots/

Just because you use a tripod does not mean you have to stop down to f/11 and use a slow shutter speed.

I guess I'm an old timer (age 50) who shoots 4x5 and 8x10 but when I started out I shot a whole lot of 35mm film. When I was shooting 35mm I noticed early that almost all my best shots were done using a tripod. They were not necessarily sharper, just better. The reason being that when I used a tripod It slowed me down and I spent more time with my subjects.

This is my opinion about tripod shooting. Nice portraits by the way!

[Alan Gales]

Michelle, I do understand where you are coming from with the spontaneity you can get with hand holding a camera for portraits.

The thing is that Laostyle17 has little to no experience with portraiture and is asking for advice. I just feel a tripod will slow things down so he can concentrate on the shot.

Also we don't know what camera he is using. If he's got a Mamiya RZ67 like I used to have it can be a bit awkward for hand holding!

[pbromaghin]

Laostyle17 has little photography and almost no film experience, but a VERY high degree of enthusiasm for film. Prior to about a year ago (when we spent a couple hours putting our noseprints on Ansel Adam's Museum Set) all his shooting had been digital point and shoot and he knows his way around photoshop pretty well. He has 3 35mm slrs from the 70s, 80s and 90s, various lenses (mostly zooms) available to him. He reads all the time and absorbs like a sponge.

[Alan Gales]

A VERY high degree of enthusiasm is just what he needs! Knowing his way around photoshop puts him way ahead of me in that respect, I just have lightroom 2!

I wish him a whole lot of fun with film photography and that his enthusiasm spreads to his family and friends!