[jeztastic]

This is best looked at on black background with flickr.

Taken with one gridded speedlight camera left. I was shooting in a dark room, so the shot is slightly OOF. :-( Some tips on getting the camera to focus whilst maintaining a low key look would be appreciated.

[Na Horuk]

The portrait looks good with nice lighting and sharpness, but I would also like to see some of the drums. The instrument is part of the musician, after all.

[rm2]

I like it. Maybe I would have experimented with black and white processing. I would also play a bit with composition through cropping since there is room. Finally, I wonder if by having slowed down the shutter speed a little you would have been able to capture some of the drums and a bit of hand movement. Maybe that would have been interesting too. But, it is a great capture as it is.

[jeztastic]

Good point regarding the drums. I think a second fill flash from the right would ave been the answer. Unfortunately the room was untidy, and I was going for the low key look, so any spread of light was picking up clutter. Hence the fast shutter as well.

[jeztastic]

I think this is a better edit...

[eddie1960]

low light like that for focus i'd go manual focus with a fast lens (1.4 or so) then stop it down for the light desired) taks work well for this with the auto manual switch letting you filp between wide open and the desired f stop

[kaiserz]

I love the first one.

[jeztastic]

I love the first one.

Thanks! It's amazing how a couple of tweaks changed the mood of the photo so much.

I received a comment elsewhere that it is underexposed... Any thoughts on that?

[eddie1960]

I received a comment elsewhere that it is underexposed... Any thoughts on that?

yeah the person making the comment has never heard of low key and high key

the interwebs is full of opinions and most of them are wrong (mine included )

[MSL]

I prefer the second edit. An interesting shot - one that shows a thoughtfulness of the photographer. So even if there are aspects of the picture that a person may not like, my sense is that you set out with certain intentions and in that respect succeeded.

[kaiserz]

Thanks! It's amazing how a couple of tweaks changed the mood of the photo so much.

I received a comment elsewhere that it is underexposed... Any thoughts on that?

To be honest, I don't think so. The mood is awesome, the feeling of isolation, and his expression can mean anything from loving what he does to hating it. All I can say is bravo. And like eddie1960 said the interwebs is full of opinions and most of them are wrong (Including mine. yes, mine too.) So if you feel that it doesn't, and a lot of people think it does, then yeah hehe. the important thing is that you're happy, because to me, a photographers greatest critic is himself.

[jeztastic]

So glad all that emotion came through in the shot. I am very pleased with it. That's exactly what I was hoping to portray.

[VisualDarkness]

I really like the ow key and the pose is perfect, like a phantom in the dark, but I also miss a hint of the drums.

[jeztastic]

By the way, he was playing an electric kit, so it wouldn't have looked as good as the flash glinting of brass, sadly... That would have been ideal.

[VisualDarkness]

By the way, he was playing an electric kit, so it wouldn't have looked as good as the flash glinting of brass, sadly... That would have been ideal.

Ah bugger, I'm with your choice. I will paint a glimpse of shining metal and white leather in my head then.