I'm no surf photographer, but I wanted to capture the intensity and determination of the body surfer as he traveled through the wave. I simply set my camera to a fast shutter speed (action setting) and shot away! Having your camera on a tripod will of course help you get the perfect shot!
If your camera has an option for shooting in RAW format, I suggest that you try it out if you haven't already. Color temperature is such an important consideration in the way your photos turn out. Please see inset image. All three pictures are the same image; however, they have been adjusted along the range of color temperatures. The top image has a "cool" temperature of "2000"; the middle image has a "warm" temperature of "9400"; and the bottom image has a color balance temperature of "5450". (These numbers taken from my Adobe Camera Raw 5.3 RAW editing software. You camera probably came with RAW editing software if it can shoot in RAW format.) All off the changes that you see that I made to the image were non destructible in the sense that there was no loss of data in the process of making the changes. Not so with a JPG image; making these kinds of changes to a JPG image will result in some loss of data and that means a less nice looking printed image.
Here, Kelcey's face, which is smooth, is against the tree, which is rough. Great contrast, great look.
Try putting the flash on the other (back) side of the subject for a dramatic, way cool look.
- Bob The Camera Man
This photo was taken in a place with a ceiling where the flash was directed straight up. The light that then comes down is somewhat diffused, creating the pleasing, soft light effect on the face that you see here. The same principle also applies to flash that is bounced off of a wall or other surface to the side, it's just that the "mood" will tend to change with side lighting; it will probably be more dramatic, as shadows fall over faces in horizontal casts. Please see the second photo in this post.
The very best expressions happen spontaneously. Do what you need to do to get ready for the portrait so that you can press the shutter release button and take the shot right away. This helps to ensure that the expressions are more natural and relaxed; the people are simply themselves, which is always the very best case.
This image was a result of total "shot in the dark" experimentation. It was very dark out (night). The flash was about 20 feet away and pointed to a beach house that was about 50 feet away; the light was bounced off of that and came all the way back to the bride subject you see here. I took a series of shots, and most of them didn't turn out. But the one here is priceless. Grant it not everybody has a wireless system (I use Radio Poppers in case you were wondering); never-the-less, one doesn't need sophisticated equipment to do new things with what one has.
