I Feel Dirty (C&C Please)

**speedneeder** · 17th February 2011, 02:23 AM

I feel a little dirty posting this picture...
It's sad that I am reduced to doing things like this while American Idol is on...
Anyway, I wanted to do a little more with colored backgrounds. I figured it's just a doll, so why worry about color balance? I used an umbrella flash for the main light with a 3/4 CTO gel high right, an $8 Lowe's shop light for a hair light behind left, a silver reflector low left, and a second flash gelled blue for the background.
What do you think of the overall lighting?
Who else is out there taking pictures of baby dolls!??!

**MiniChris** · 17th February 2011, 02:51 AM

When I did a color balance off this image, I cam eup with a lsightly brighter image but managed to keep the detail. I did no tother adjustments other than a color balance in the curves dialogue.
I picked the black from the card, the grey from the same place and the white from the doll's collar.

**speedneeder** · 17th February 2011, 03:04 AM

Thanks Chris. I think my monitor is a little bright! I didn't know if you clicked all 3 it would change the brightness too? With everything in full manual when I do this, that would probably help! I adjusted the brightness in DPP.

**speedneeder** · 17th February 2011, 03:12 AM

How would I go about checking my total exposure when shooting everything in manual?

**MiniChris** · 17th February 2011, 03:34 AM

I shoot in manual using spot as my meter. I dial into a gray card to set an initial exposure and then dial back either the aperture or shutter to zero out the meter. This is a kinda-sorta-almost verson of shooting Zone. When I open my image in Raw, i take a pop off the white card. You are using the same set of cards I have, but I taped all three of mine on the back side so I can take a broader range of exposure values.

After I've done all my ACR adj's I do a curves adjustment and check each value for its clipping point. From there, it is simply a matter of tweaking here and there with other layer adj layers.

**speedneeder** · 17th February 2011, 03:43 AM

I can surely check exposures when I'm using ambient light, it's when I'm doing the manual flash stuff that I need some help. You mentioned clipping, so I took a couple of pics and looked at the histograms, that could surely give me a better idea of the total exposure with the flash. I'll have to practice that more. Also, I'll have to turn down the brightness on my monitor

Thanks for your input.

**wilgk** · 17th February 2011, 05:17 AM

Excellent Brian - keep up the good work - I took a doll out with me also today and had him with my grey card stuck on him

**speedneeder** · 17th February 2011, 11:46 AM

Haha! I knew there had to be at least one other person out there taking doll pictures

Thanks Kay.

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