# Alexis- Beauty/ Fashion Portraits



## DanOstergren (Aug 4, 2014)

This girl is pretty damn talented. She's only 17, is a very talented portrait photographer, a skilled makeup artist and model. I definitely want to work with her again. 

Both shots were captured in all natural lighting with no modifiers. 

EOS 5D (MKI)
135mm @f/2
1/400th
ISO 400







EOS 5D (MKI)
135mm @f/3.2
1/500th
ISO 320


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## Designer (Aug 4, 2014)

Win!  :cheer:


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## SoulfulRecover (Aug 4, 2014)

wonderful as always


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## tirediron (Aug 4, 2014)

Nicely done Dan.


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## hannaschelling (Aug 4, 2014)

Love the 2nd shot. She really looks like Christina Applegate in it.


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## Braineack (Aug 4, 2014)

#1 should be nominated for POTM but I lazy.


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## keyseddie (Aug 4, 2014)

Ooooh a girl! Thanks Dan the man. Nice!


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## DanOstergren (Aug 4, 2014)

Glad you like them.   It's hard to get a bad shot of her.


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## DanOstergren (Aug 4, 2014)

Braineack said:


> #1 should be nominated for POTM but I lazy.


Well i certainly can't nominate it,  but thank you!  I definitely take that as a big compliment.


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## DanOstergren (Aug 4, 2014)

One more from this shoot.


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## wyogirl (Aug 4, 2014)

I LOVE your processing in these.  They are soft and dreamy but also vibrant.  I can't explain why I love these, but I do.


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## Trever1t (Aug 4, 2014)

WOW!!!! I love the process on the colored frames, she is indeed striking but the pose, light and dof really make these rock!


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## runnah (Aug 4, 2014)

I really like the bw one. I am also really starting to like the 135mm!


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## frommrstomommy (Aug 4, 2014)

She's gorgeous. I love her look. Great job! I want to process like this. Love it.


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## DanOstergren (Aug 4, 2014)

runnah said:


> I really like the bw one. I am also really starting to like the 135mm!


It's great, but I'm considering upgrading it to a Canon 85mm f/1.2 or Sigma 85mm f/1.4 instead. The working distance with the 135mm can become restricting.


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## Bo4key (Aug 4, 2014)

Only 17, wow.

The processing is great and that 135mm is hhhhhhnng


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## DanOstergren (Aug 5, 2014)

Bo4key said:


> Only 17, wow.
> 
> The processing is great and that 135mm is hhhhhhnng


Thank you.  I'm not quite sure what hhhhhnng means though.


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## runnah (Aug 5, 2014)

DanOstergren said:


> It's great, but I'm considering upgrading it to a Canon 85mm f/1.2 or Sigma 85mm f/1.4 instead. The working distance with the 135mm can become restricting.



From everything I have heard and read I would skip the 85 1.2 and get the 1.8.


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## DanOstergren (Aug 5, 2014)

runnah said:


> DanOstergren said:
> 
> 
> > It's great, but I'm considering upgrading it to a Canon 85mm f/1.2 or Sigma 85mm f/1.4 instead. The working distance with the 135mm can become restricting.
> ...


I have the 1.8. It just isn't doing the job the way I want it to,  and a sharper focus and faster aperture are what I want.  The depth of field on the 135mm f2 wide open is almost identical to the depth of field of the 85mm 1.2 wide open,  but the 85mm has a much more versatile field of view compared to the 135mm.


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## runnah (Aug 5, 2014)

DanOstergren said:


> I have the 1.8. It just isn't doing the job the way I want it to,  and a sharper focus and faster aperture are what I want.  The depth of field on the 135mm f2 wide open is almost identical to the depth of field of the 85mm 1.2 wide open,  but the 85mm has a much more versatile field of view compared to the 135mm.



I agree with the FOV point but maybe rent one first as they are super expensive. I'd hate for you to shell out all that money and be disappointed.

Also I have heard rumors that canon was going to release a slew of new L primes soon.


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## Rosy (Aug 5, 2014)

DanOstergren said:


> One more from this shoot.



Dan...this is stunning, absolutely stunning
I know it's alot to ask but can you share some of your lighting and pp tops


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## Rosy (Aug 5, 2014)

Rosy said:


> Dan...this is stunning, absolutely stunning
> I know it's alot to ask but can you share some of your lighting and pp tops



Take back the lighting,  I see you mentioned all natural no modifiers


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## DanOstergren (Aug 5, 2014)

Rosy said:


> DanOstergren said:
> 
> 
> > One more from this shoot.
> ...


Sure,  just give me a moment to get off my tablet so I can write up something detailed.


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## Rosy (Aug 5, 2014)

DanOstergren said:


> Sure,  just give me a moment to get off my tablet so I can write up something detailed.



Oh my thanks...there's just something about your PP that is so captivating


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## frommrstomommy (Aug 5, 2014)

eeee *stalking thread* lol


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## DanOstergren (Aug 5, 2014)

As far as lighting, I almost always shoot in the shade; these photos are no exception. Shooting in the shade gives softer lighting for portraits and a more even exposure between the skin, hair and clothing, allowing for more details to be captured. You still need to be aware of all of your light sources though. I look for lighting that sculpts and contours the face. You'll notice when looking at a lot of my photos how the highlights and shadows shape the face; the facial structure helps with this, but finding lighting that enhances it is key. If you are unsure of what I am talking about, go to youtube and search "makeup contouring"; the light that I like to use mimics the effect of good makeup contouring. I also enhance this light in photoshop by creating a new grey layer above a duplicate background layer, and set this layer to soft light mode, and check the little box that says "fill with 50% neutral color grey" in the new layer dialogue box. On this layer I use the dodge tool at 8% exposure set to the "midtones" range, and only slightly dodge the midtones of the skin (these are the tones between the highlights and the shadows). This creates a softer lighting effect. Then on the same layer I set the dodge tool to effect the "highlights" range at 8% exposure, and begin dodging only the highlights of the skin. This is how I achieve that soft glowing look on the skin. While still using the dodge tool set to the highlights range, zoom in on the eyes and dodge the highlghts in the iris of the eyes in order to bring out the color and detail in the eyes, and also dodge the catchlights just a little bit if they are present. You have to be very careful with this, otherwise it becomes obvious that it's been edited. On the same layer, switch to the burn tool, set to 6% exposure and set it to effect the "shadows" range. Then burn the shadows on the cheek created by the cheekbone (this shadow goes from the bottom of the ear to just halfway to the lip) in order to enhance the contour. Again, I really encourage anyone who attempts using this technique to become familiar with how to contour a person's face using makeup. Watch tutorials. Doing this will make adding these highlights and shadows much easier because you will have an understanding of exactly why you are doing so. Next, I use a curves adjustment layer for contrast and some tonal  adjustments, a selective color adjustment layer to mess with each of the  color channels (I highly recommend experimenting with this one, because this is how I achieve my dramatic color changes), and a hue/saturation adjustment layer to tone down the  color vibrancy. Make sure that the hue/saturation layer is positioned underneath the rest of the adjustment layers, and above the layer used to add highlights and shadows to the facial contour. If you don't know how to use or find adjustment layers, a quick search for a youtube tutorial will have the answers for you. 
Since all of these adjustments are done on separate layers they become non-destructive to the original background layer. It lso means that you can adjust the opacity of each of these layers, giving you control of just how much they affect the image.


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## Igtocru (Aug 6, 2014)

Both ara amazing, but I really like the soft tones of black and white and her expression is very sweet. Lovely.


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## DanOstergren (Aug 6, 2014)

Thank you.


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## SoulfulRecover (Aug 6, 2014)

Have you ever considered doing a tutorial video for one of your edits? If you ever have the time and ability I think a lot of people on here would enjoy it


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## frommrstomommy (Aug 6, 2014)

This makes me want to give editing in PS a go. I pretty exclusively use LR. And I agree.. a video tutorial would be ah-mazing.


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## DanOstergren (Aug 6, 2014)

I've thought about it, but with as critical as this forum is I don't think I would be able to handle the negativity with much grace. The internet just isn't my medium for teaching, especially with my lack of ability to tolerate trolls.


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## SoulfulRecover (Aug 6, 2014)

Understandable. If you ever do, Id personally love to see you work.


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## JacaRanda (Aug 6, 2014)

frommrstomommy said:


> This makes me want to give editing in PS a go. I pretty exclusively use LR. And I agree.. a video tutorial would be ah-mazing.



Dive right in.  I finally did my first little bird shot with it.  Nothing fancy at all, but it left an impression on me so much that I have gone video crazy.  Going to PS CC has forced me to start learning.


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## frommrstomommy (Aug 6, 2014)

JacaRanda said:


> frommrstomommy said:
> 
> 
> > This makes me want to give editing in PS a go. I pretty exclusively use LR. And I agree.. a video tutorial would be ah-mazing.
> ...



I think I could be into editing specific photos in PS but for regular work flow.. LR has made my life soooooo easy. I <3 simple. lol


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## JacaRanda (Aug 6, 2014)

All 3 make me think of book covers.  If I were Dean Koontz, we'd be negotiating $'s.  

Enjoying that you are using an older camera to create and that you post the camera and lens combo.  Makes some of that 'my pixel is denser than yours' stuff kinda silly -  I'm guilty of it at times.

#'s 2&3 are killer!


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## Rosy (Aug 6, 2014)

DanOstergren said:


> I've thought about it, but with as critical as this forum is I don't think I would be able to handle the negativity with much grace. The internet just isn't my medium for teaching, especially with my lack of ability to tolerate trolls.



The hell with the trolls...you have a gift! Thank you for sharing


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## DanOstergren (Aug 6, 2014)

Rosy said:


> DanOstergren said:
> 
> 
> > I've thought about it, but with as critical as this forum is I don't think I would be able to handle the negativity with much grace. The internet just isn't my medium for teaching, especially with my lack of ability to tolerate trolls.
> ...


Well either way, I hope my written instructions were helpful.


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## DanOstergren (Aug 6, 2014)

frommrstomommy said:


> JacaRanda said:
> 
> 
> > frommrstomommy said:
> ...


I only use Photoshop CS5 and Adobe Camera Raw to edit every photograph. It takes more time, but the payoff in quality is worth it to me. Lightroom just gives me a headache. The only time I use Lightroom is to do a batch re-size on a photo set if necessary, or to make proofs. I probably open LR once every 6 months.


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## frommrstomommy (Aug 6, 2014)

Just wanted to tell you that you've created a monster with the selective color layer. lol


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## DanOstergren (Aug 6, 2014)

JacaRanda said:


> All 3 make me think of book covers.  If I were Dean Koontz, we'd be negotiating $'s.
> 
> Enjoying that you are using an older camera to create and that you post the camera and lens combo.  Makes some of that 'my pixel is denser than yours' stuff kinda silly -  I'm guilty of it at times.
> 
> #'s 2&3 are killer!


Thank you! Yeah, camera body/ pixel count has never made a difference to me. What matters to me is that it looks great. I was shooting on a 50D for a year after having my first 5D MKI stollen; it had more megapixels, better technology and was newer, however I hated the images it produced for me. They just didn't look right to me, and eventually I was able to "upgrade" back to a 5D MKI again. Lately though I have been considering an upgrade to a 5D MKII.


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## DanOstergren (Aug 6, 2014)

frommrstomommy said:


> Just wanted to tell you that you've created a monster with the selective color layer. lol


It's a really useful tool, though I think the curves adjustment layer is just as useful if not more.


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## DanOstergren (Aug 6, 2014)

Rosy said:


> DanOstergren said:
> 
> 
> > I've thought about it, but with as critical as this forum is I don't think I would be able to handle the negativity with much grace. The internet just isn't my medium for teaching, especially with my lack of ability to tolerate trolls.
> ...


I've tried time and time again to get over it, but I know for a fact that I just don't handle trolling and non-constructive critique with _any_ grace.


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## Rosy (Aug 6, 2014)

well I  hope you handle praise well

I voted your image for Photo of the month


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## DanOstergren (Aug 6, 2014)

Rosy said:


> well I  hope you handle praise well
> 
> I voted your image for Photo of the month



Oh, I didn't realize it had been nominated! Thank you!


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## manaheim (Aug 6, 2014)

I like the first one more every time I look at this thread.
The second is downright dreamy in quality.
Lovely shots, both of them.


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## FITBMX (Aug 7, 2014)

I can't even say which on I like more, they are all incredible!
The best I've seen in a while!!!:hail::hail::hail:


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## FITBMX (Aug 7, 2014)

frommrstomommy said:


> This makes me want to give editing in PS a go. I pretty exclusively use LR. And I agree.. a video tutorial would be ah-mazing.



I'm the same way. I also now want to try PS now!


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## FITBMX (Aug 7, 2014)

Thanks for wright out all the info, I learn so much from all of you!!!


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## e.rose (Aug 7, 2014)

I love your posts. 

It's such great inspirational eye-candy. :hug:: :heart:


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