some very dear friends came to visit us last night and this is their adorable daughter.
she entertained us all night long.
to say that i hate indoor lighting is an understatement, but since i'm a natural light photographer i have to suck it up and just make it work. the only really good way to deal with it {and what keeps me halfway sane} is knowing that i can tweak most of the horrible lighting issues in lightroom 3.
seriously people, i can't even begin to tell you how horrible my original photos looked. most of these photos were taken around 7pm, with just canned lighting above us and a few lamps off to the sides. my ISO was usually on 1600 or 3200 and i overexposed the photos by 2 steps.
unfortunately with overhead lighting you tend to get horrible shadows and it's usually next to impossible to get any catch light in your subject's eyes. if you do get some, especially on a moving target like a two year old, it's usually just luck.
i'm showing both of these black and white family photos to show you the differences in editing. the top one is a little bit blown out or brighter and the bottom one is a more natural black and white. when you're editing, make sure to play around a bit and if you're not quite sure, make multiple black and white edits and decide which one you like best once you can put them side by side.
this photos melts my heart. that's my son sitting there with her. oh gosh, too sweet !
thanks E and D and L for playing with us last night. we loved having you here.
*
Your photos are wonderful, especially considering the lighting as you say. Great editing. She is a real cutie. I really like the coloured ones as all the tomes are earthy anyway.
ReplyDeleteI'm with you on hating indoor lighting for photography. LR has saved me many times over. Shooting in raw is helpful, too. These are beautiful photos and so perfectly processed. Gorgeous family. :)
ReplyDeleteWhat a cute little one ... she is adorable.
ReplyDeletewith such an adorable subject, getting good photos shouldn't be too hard :-) Funny, with the two comparison photos of the family, I thought the first one was processed, the second the "before" shot :-) One of the problems with black and white is that so often its not really black and white, is it, but shades of grey? Your pictures here are so beautiful, especially the close-up shots. Frame-worthy.
ReplyDeleteShe is like a little angel. Such amazing smile!
ReplyDeleteYour talent shows in all the photographs you took, Beth and it really helps when you have such a sweetheart posing for you xo
ReplyDeleteIndoor lighting is so tricky...but I think you nailed these shots. And I love the last photo...my goodness those eyes!!! wow...
ReplyDeleteShe is gorgeous! Your photos are amazing. I really struggle with indoor photography. Thanks always for your tips. I am just touching on retouching photos and love learning how to improve.
ReplyDeleteOh you know it with the indoor night lighting...ugh!! But what I can see these are just beautiful. She is a doll baby, I can see how you were entertained the entire evening!!
ReplyDeleteWhat, don't you have any unattractive friends?
ReplyDeleteThis little girl....Beth I swear I scrolled up and down and up and down, she - is - GORGEOUS.
I narrowed the best down to #6 and #10. But then decided. It's number 10. Just look at that face.
Your photography is amazing.
that is just the kind of cuteness overload we need right now. i am smiling. how could i not? xo
ReplyDeleteBeautiful Beth, great photo's...Love the eyes and her precious face. I also agree..cuteness overload is a wonderful thing!
ReplyDeleteLove that the little one enjoyed hanging out with Jack ! So cute.
ReplyDeleteYou are awesome, Miss Beth ! Gorgeous working with what you got !
You did an excellent job! Wow! I have never figured out the flash and rarely like what it does to my photos, but no light doesn't help either. Bravo to you for overcoming with such bravado!
ReplyDeleteMy teeth ache from her sweetness.
ReplyDeleteprecious
ReplyDeletewhat a face!
ReplyDeleteWould have never known from the images that you had any trouble at all with the light. They are gorgeous.
ReplyDeleteWhat Kate said.. beautiful, especially love the second to last.
ReplyDeleteThese are precious and to know that you shot everything with yucky indoor lighting.... Well! That just goes to show that with the right attitude and software (and creativity) you can achieve beautiful results. Thanks for showing the two black and whites side-by-side.
ReplyDeleteSHE IS ADORABLE! That last shot is just too much...
ReplyDeleteI absolutely hate indoor lighting but I do not know my camera enough to work with the settings ESPECIALLY with the indoor lighting. I might have to check out that program.
Oh, these pictures made me smile. I've been missing my blog-hopping habit and I wanted to stop by and say, "Hello, friend. Merry Christmas."
ReplyDeleteReally nice photos Beth. She's such a cutie pie.
ReplyDelete