Sorry I’m late with this! I was out of town the last few days, got home yesterday with every intention of posting but my husband had a surprise for me and suddenly the last thing I was thinking about was Q&A Wednesday. 😉 But better late then never….
I’m pretty short. How can I not let this effect my shooting?
Hey me too! I think I may qualify as really short! I’m 5’2 and a HALF! I run into short problems all the time! So I do a few things to help even out the playing field. With adults I’m on my tiptoes ALL the time. I’ve brought a ladder with me for group shoots and 2 step foldable stool and this handy little light stool from Ikea ($6).
It really is critical that you are not shooting below your subjects unless it’s on purpose. So having a small step stool that’s easy to transport is a great idea. This one from Ikea does a little double duty as I can flip it over to help me carry props and such up to the location before hand.
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Do you use a lens hood and do I really need one?
Yes I do! No it’s not a necessity, but it is a really good idea. My Canon L Series Lens came with the hood making it very easy for me – if your lens did not it still might be a good investment. Here’s why… First of all to protect your lens. I spent a lot of money on my lenses and I want to keep them protected and away from finger prints. Working with little kids – they often reach for my camera/lens. The hood has saved my lens several times. Another reason to use a lens hood is for richer color and deeper saturation you can read more about that here.
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I am wondering if you shoot in JPEG or RAW. I’ve heard that RAW is the professional way to go, but I am afraid of how difficult it is. Just wondering if you have any input on the transition.
I shoot in JPEG. I have heard all the same arguments as to why you should/shouldn’t shoot in RAW. Bottom line – You do have more post editing control with RAW! It does take up a ton more space on your cards and your hard drive. If you want full control in post processing RAW might be right for you. You will get 2 to 3x less images on your card if you shoot in RAW so thats important to think about with card space.
My own little personal idea is that I would rather shoot as close to a perfect exposure as I can from the get go and not spend even more time in post editing than I already do. I’m happy shooting in JPEG, I still feel like I have plenty of control and my harddrive in filling up faster then I can keep up as it is. I was wondering if I was the only pro shooting in raw, did some research and found than a ton of pros agree, and of course some do not. Here is a great article to give a much better understanding about RAW vs JPEG.
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The WORST part of a photography business for me is weather. I hate that my body is constantly stressing about what the weather is going to be like over the weekend. How do you handle this? Do you reschedule often, work in the rain, etc. Do you have a stress-free protocol you do? I am praying that there is a way that I can not be so stressed–about weather!
I completely understand. It use to stress me out a ton too, but as time has gone I’ve just stopped worrying about it. I’m not even sure when and why? But thinking about it now, here are maybe a few of the reasons why. I’ve only been rained out once and I would have been HAPPY to do the shoot but the clients asked for a reschedule. I guess I realized that all that worrying was often for no reason. If rain is in the forecast, I plan at parks that have nice coverings (like a gazebo) and suggest fun rain boots and cute umbrellas. Another easy fix is using the doorway. The light is usually great and so I often pile the family in the doorway and I stand outside and shoot inward. I also keep the time tentative and this is just one more reason. It may rain in the morning but be fine in the afternoon or vise versa. Of course you do not want to be in a torrential downpour but there are a lot of things you can do to prepare yourself for rain so I’ll devote an entire post to that soon!
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Do you need contracts for just a newborn shoot?
You always need a contract! I firmly feel thats it’s important to always have a contract and model release!! I have never had to pull one out and I really think that part of the reason is that I have it all spelled out clear as can be so that there are no questions. Also if you are using the images on your blog, website or anything else you need to have a model release to protect yourself. You may find out you have a client that does not want their children on your blog, I had one that did not want their sons name on the posting. You will know about any such conditions with a model release and contract. I send over my packet before the shoot and make it clear that contracts and payment must be received before the shoot can start. I got all my contracts from Photographic Foundations.
Keep sending your questions and we will keep answering them!
I can't wait for the rain post! You're awesome!!
awesome! I always looks forward to your posts, especially the Q & A..thanks!
I just did a photoshoot yesterday–in the rain. And no stress! Thank you!