6 Responses to “I’m Somewhat New To Photography And I Am Taking My Friends Senior Portraits. What Settings Would Be Best?”

1. Steve P
   January 21st, 2010 @ 2:51 am

   How confident would you feel if you took your car, if you have one, in to a mechanic and he had to ask you what tools he needed to use and how to use them?
   There is no doubt you can just leave everything in AUTO and at least get some photos. The difference in that type of photo and a true professional photo is in the placement of light, the posing to make the subject look their best, the CONTROL of the light done with accurate external metering and light modifiers, and knowing what lens to use for a flattering representation of a person’s features, where to position the person in relation to a background, how to use aperture for depth of field control and relating that to the light intensity.
   No one here can tell you some magic “settings” for a senior portrait. Photography, (GOOD photography), is a skill and art and takes years of practice and experience and proper equipment to do well.
   The best your friend is going to get from you is some basic photos with all the normal, typical problems that come from an amateur trying to do a pro’s work. This will include overexposed areas of the skin, focus issues, white balance issues, blown out areas in the background, dark eye sockets, harsh black shadows around the subject, distorted features, and on and on. If your friend is happy with that, so be it.
   I’m not trying to be hard on you, just stating facts. I have seen it happen way too many times. Same with wedding shooters. People get a new camera and all of a sudden think they can do professional work, or OTHER people think they can just because they see someone with a “professional” camera.
   If you still want to do this, the best advice I can give you is to READ AND STUDY your owners manual. LEARN what shutter speeds and apertures do for you. Learn about metering and exposure. At the very least, PRACTICE. Do test shots with a friend under the same conditions under which you will photograph the senior. Read your histogram on your monitor to gauge your exposures. Don’t rely on just looking at the photo on the monitor, that is next to worthless. When you get photos that seem decent, make notes of everything, but what you are trying to do is learn in a short period of time what good photographers have spent their lifetimes mastering.
   Think you can do that???
   steve

2. Sakura
   January 21st, 2010 @ 5:37 am

   Kaylee, there’s a reason why professionals get paid so much… it’s because they know what they’re doing! There isn’t one setting that’s going to perfect your images. Different settings are needed for different situations. Metering is necessary.
   Don’t risk messing this up for your friend. This photo isn’t just going to be in that yearbook today… it’s going to be in there forever. Tell your friend that you’re not up to the challenge, and that he/she needs to consult a professional.

3. bc13snip
   January 21st, 2010 @ 8:19 am

   Set it on aperture. Next for the background to be blurry set it to like 5.6 or lower. And like sukara said there isn’t a magic button on a camera that would make your picture go look a very good picture. Its not as easy as you think. If you cant do it then tell her to contact some one else.

4. Anonymous
   January 21st, 2010 @ 9:27 am

   You should be shooting manual.
   If you’re not, you shouldn’t be taking senior pictures.

5. mistaked
   January 21st, 2010 @ 10:10 am

   I agree with Sakura. You have to know what you’re doing and be able to change settings from your own knowledge, because no one setting will work for everything. I just hope you’re not charging her…

6. Perki88
   January 21st, 2010 @ 3:43 pm

   Manual!

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