The other day, I had the incredible opportunity to shoot family portraits in Huntington Beach for the most fun, cooperative, and loving family! Unfortunately, it was a cloudy morning and I really wanted to try out some backlighting with them. Can't have it all I guess! Anyways, it was my first time shooting family portraits and it was a fun challenge. I'm glad they helped make it easier on me by being extremely cooperative and energetic!
Although it was a cloudy day, I still made the most of my experience. After reading countless articles about photography, I realize that sometimes we have to deal with the conditions we are given. The way I looked at it, God gave me a softbox so I wouldn't have to deal with harsh shadows. Maybe it ended up making things easier for me! Still didn't get the shots I was planning for, but oh well.
Since I didn't get the shots I wanted, I really wanted to somehow redeem my photos. So I looked up some things I could do in lightroom to give each photo some style and pop. I've fallen in love with the recent craze for flat/matte/retro/vintage style images. The ones where there aren't any true blacks in the photo and things kind of look pale. I'm sure you know what I'm talking about.
After looking around and reading countless blogs and tutorials, I did some post-processing myself in Lightroom 5. I'm not going to say they're my favorite photos, but given the circumstances, I really do like them. If you're really into the vintage look, you can download some free presets from: http://www.on1.com/dl/87/
This is a free selection of presets for Lightroom that adds a nice matte finish to photos. It's super handy and can transform a number of images! It's a trend that's really booming, so you don't want to be caught without knowing how to create these style of photos! If you're not into the whole "Lightroom presets" thing, you can also take a look at this blog that will give you step-by-step instructions on how to accomplish that look: http://digital-photography-school.com/how-to-create-a-vintage-look-using-lightroom/
Sometimes we can't expect the world to give us exactly what we need, so we have to make the most out of it! In this case, I was able to learn some valuable Lightroom techniques to make a bad lighting day okay!
Work with what you got, then learn from it!
Here are some shots from the day:
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