Glam/Rock'Roll/Jet-setting/Squirrel-chasing Diva II

[Loose Canon]

Miss Kellie agreed to sit with me again today.

She really didn’t want to but it is amazing how convincing a little Cheez-Whiz can be! (I mean really? Spray cheese in a can?? Who wouldn’t be convinced?!?) Just as a side note, we don't generally feed our pups this kind of stuff, but her vet gives her this as a treat for visiting and hides her meds in it to get them down. At this point, she can have pretty much anything she wants.

We changed things up a bit this session. Key light fired from overhead with a 15* grid. A little harder quality of light. But I wanted a little more dramatic fall-off.

Flagged/diffused fill light fired into a reflector from below.

A flagged/gelled light fired from atop the BG stands (still got a little spill on my Diva) to rake a little color over the BG.



A couple of things to remember for the next sitting…

I would have preferred a little softer key.

I really need her Agent/Handler/Publicist/Mommy on set! (I was on my own with this session)

I may have over-cooked this one in post and created some problems I'm not exactly happy with. I may bring it back to the drawing board, but if I can hose Miss Kellie with enough Cheez-Whiz there will be another shoot!

Just thought I'd bounce this off the Forum to see what anyone might think!

[pnodrog]

The lighting maybe harsh but it is showing of her coat wonderfully. Like the vignetting but I find the saturation of the magenta a bit distracting. Can you hide the tag?

A very good pose and without the agent there.

[ggt]

What a face!!!!!!!

I agree about the tag --if you could gray out the blue part, I think that would be enough.

[Loose Canon]

Hi Paul and Gretchen,

Good comments and thank you for taking the time to make them.

What I really need to do is just remove the tags before the shoot rather than try to deal with them in post. I will mention this to Miss Kellie and maybe while she is in her trailer getting made up for her shoot she will agree to remove them temporarily! I could de-color them and make them less apparent but completely removing them in post might be tricky to do convincingly. I am going to do something with them one way or another for sure on your recommendations. Thanks for mentioning that guys.

It wouldn’t be that difficult to de-saturate the BG color, Paul. I have already done it in post just to see what I might do with it. Then left it as is for no particular reason. When I was thinking how I wanted to shoot this session I just wanted to try some different lighting schemes since I already have one of her “in the can” that her Agent/Handler/Publicist/Mommy likes!

I thought the color rake would be difficult because the BG is directly behind her with practically no separation. I was actually able to get it pretty close with very little spill. I need to challenge myself and take the risk of failure (which I never fail to do!) and the rake was kind of along that line. Really no other reason for it.

I noticed in post that I was not particularly happy with the key’s quality of light. I tend to think of it as either hard, soft, or somewhere in between as opposed to harsh. But a rose is still a rose! I started to agree with your assessment Paul, once I brought down the contrast on her to get my little Silver-Haired Beauty to shine. Once I did that I began liking the key’s quality more for her. I'm thinking now that I wouldn’t hesitate to hit her with hard light again.

I must admit to doing a hair transplant. Her left (camera right) leg has a shaved section where she recently had to have an I.V. Her contract stated that I must convincingly hide this for any shoot. She may appear on the cover of “Cosmutt”! You can tell if you look close enough and maybe if you know I did it. But so far nobody has noticed it (or mentioned it) including her Mommy who knows its there. So maybe that went okay!

Your comments will help me on the next shoot and I really appreciate them. So does Miss Kellie! She knows I need all the help I can get!

Might be a day or two until the next session. The grandmob (aka grandkids) are coming over to take us by siege to deck the halls! Had to strike the set temporarily!

Thanks again for the help and if anyone thinks of anything else please feel free to pipe up!

[terrib]

I agree that the lighting really does show off her coat really well. You apparently did a good job on the shaved leg because I didn't notice and I'm not even sure if I see it after being told.

[rpcrowe]

Terry... losing a loved friend is always a heart wrenching occasion. But having a good picture of your friend, especially if it is hanging on your wall, can keep the friend in your heart and mind.

It has been many-many years since we lost our darling Golden Retriever - German Shepherd - Wolf, Sara Lee, but, I see her every day as I move from the family room to the dining room. Her portrait is on our wall and we say hello to each other whenever I pass it.

I am sure Sara, along with many other dogs, will be waiing for me at the Rainbow Bridge...

[HMW12]

Hi Terry I must confess that I think the first version is much better. I don't think that this is as flattering a pose. Her left (photo right) leg seems unnaturally long and if you look below her left eye it's looks to me like her part of her snout is missing. I do agree that the lighting shows off her lovely coat though.

[Loose Canon]

Terry... losing a loved friend is always a heart wrenching occasion. But having a good picture of your friend, especially if it is hanging on your wall, can keep the friend in your heart and mind.

It has been many-many years since we lost our darling Golden Retriever - German Shepherd - Wolf, Sara Lee, but, I see her every day as I move from the family room to the dining room. Her portrait is on our wall and we say hello to each other whenever I pass it.

I am sure Sara, along with many other dogs, will be waiing for me at the Rainbow Bridge...

Richard… ain’t that the truth. Nothing makes it any easier. But one thing is sure. This pup has had a profound effect on us. She has given us something that we never, ever would have had otherwise. We will always remember and never forget.

So I’m sure working on that wall hanger here. I appreciate the help I’m getting from everyone.

Richard there will be a whole pack of happy kisses raining on your face at the Bridge! Even from those still waiting; just for what you have done.

Hi Terry I must confess that I think the first version is much better. I don't think that this is as flattering a pose. Her left (photo right) leg seems unnaturally long and if you look below her left eye it's looks to me like her part of her snout is missing. I do agree that the lighting shows off her lovely coat though.

Hi Helen!

My Little Diva’s Agent/Handler/Publicist/Mommy agrees with you! And she will make the final selection(s).

I guess I’m just too used to seeing this puppy. Now that you mention it, this pose does look a little long on the leg. I wondered, but she has the legs of a jackrabbit and I really didn’t think anything of it. She can still run a squirrel to ground before they can tree! And I also see what you mean about her snoot! How her hair is cut gives that impression anyway and the angle of her head emphasizes that.

Thank you for the input, Helen, and mentioning some things I didn’t think of and just took for granted.

This is what portraiture is about. It is up to us as shooters to get the best angle, pose, lighting that we can for the subject. If I could even get close I would be happy!

With a little help from my friends I’ll just keep on!