Painting with Light - again

I have figured out that 30 seconds is okay as a starting point with the camera on manual mode. You need time to light around the subject. I started with f/16 and adjusted up or down until the image was light enough but not burnt out.

Use one focus point, focus on the eye and switthc to manual focusing.

The subject has to sit compeltely still. Work on the eyes only once, to retain sharpness. I you look at the text "Converse" in the top image you can see that it is not sharp. I lit it early and then went back later. OK for the sweater but not for the face.

Decide whether you want to spread some light on the background, or instead work with a black backround.

I recommend shooting in raw or at least raw + jpeg. If your image is too red, you introduce noise when adjusting a jpeg image.

"Stir" the torch when painting, to even out the light. Make sure to light the sides of the hair. On the red image you can see that the hair is not lit properly and blends into the background.

If you work with a completely dark background it is easier to work with a blond than a dark model.

And - for the top image I added a b/wh layer that I reduced the opacity of. Thus the pale colours.

I have only started playing with this type of images but this is my notes so far.