How to shoot an image of a pretty girl...

[Cantab]

Thank you for all the great advice. I just ordered the Joe Demb Flash Diffuser Pro, should get here in about a week.....I'm not going to do any pro photography, but I do like to fool around with family, friends and pets and objects....it's my hobby, my therapy, my leisure time! I f I had to do it professionally, I would be so stressed and that would send me over the edge!! Your photographs are always so good, I appreciate you taking the time to help me! It's like when I was painting. As long as it was for pleasure and fun and therapy, I loved it! But when a friend talked me into doing some shows, and it became work and then people started asking for "special" things added, I gave it up. I no longer got the "relief" from it I needed. I have my day job, but I need the therapy! I have adopted 4 dogs over the last 20 years, best dogs I have ever had. One German Shepherd had fear aggression, and the humane society was going to put her down. She was 2....we had her for ten more years, and she was the best family dog ever! Just not so good with strangers, but she was crate trained and that worked for us when needed. So many people dump cats here (I live in a rural area) and over the years I have spayed or neutered and raised many many cats. The newest one came to us already neutered, but with a bad tooth. I had the tooth pulled, updated on shots, and trying to get adopted thru Cat Connections in our area. But people want kittens. He's a 16 pound beautiful orange cat. I would keep him, but he does not get along with my other 3 house cats or dogs.....we have tried everything.....I will try to get some decent shots of him....

Nat, I'll look forward to seeing photos of your large orange cat. In an earlier post in this thread, I mentioned a black rescue cat we've adopted. We fostered her six kittens; they now all have permanent good homes. Inspired by Richard I did my best to take portraits of each of the kittens. I'll post them hopefully sooner rather than later but my post-processing is slow, slow......

[rpcrowe]

I don't have any professional connection with Joe Demb except that some of my human single flash portraits were exhibited on his website.

http://rpcrowe.smugmug.com/Portraits...ional/n-LPGK4/

I use the Flash Diffuser Pro with my hotshoe flashes both on camera and mounted on a camera-flip flash bracket. I will always use the flash bracket when shooting human portraits because I want to shoot in the vertical (portrait) configuration. The bracket makes it easier to keep my flash in one place when I need to shoot in the vertical configuration.

However, if you twist your flash so that it is at right angles to the camera and place the FlipIt reflector at the rearmost side of the flash, it is easy to shoot verticals with the flash on the hotshoe.



When I am shooting my dogs, I keep the FlipIt straight up. if I tilt it forward, there will be too much light sent along the lens axis and I will get a bit of blue eye. Not as bad as direct flash but, I'd rather avoid it.

When I am shooting outdoors or in an area that doesn't have a ceiling or if the ceiling is too high or too dark, I tilt the FlipIt forward at about 45 degrees which will send a goodly portion of the light forward. However, it will still be relatively soft as in this next image shot in an open air China market...



There is lots of Demb Flash information on his website at www.dembflashproducts.com but, since you ordered the Flash Diffuser Pro, you have probably been to that website.

[Nat]

That smugmug gallery is spectacular. Thanks again for sharing that, and for your advice...Hope I can put it to good use and not shame you with my efforts