Some recent portraits

These are some recent portraits I have photographed that both use a soft glow layer in Photoshop but in different ways. The Pumas below were shot at Hilton Head on the beach. When you shoot on the beach on a sunny day, you have to remember that you are shooting not with a large soft box but inside of a large soft box because the sand is kicking light up and all around. So The beach is a great place to start for a hi key style portrait. As the sun was indeed behind them, I knew I would have to add light so my wife held a Canon 600 ex rt shooting through a 24 inch Westcott umbrella just right of camera. The soft glow on this shot was achieved with a gaussian blur layer set to overlay.You can see the soft glow effect more substantially on the back of his and her hair where the sun is the  brightest. As a portrait photographer in Austin, I try to determine what style of portrait is best suited for each group or individual.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another example is Claire’s portrait. I really like her shot out of the box,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

but I thought a bit of glow effect would add some contrast and add some drama. It darkened the background at the same time which added even more drama.