Free Garden Catalogs

Tips for taking portaits outdoors on an overcast day?

Today I'm taking my 5 yr old niece to a beautiful flower garden to take some pictures. Hopefully it doesn't rain but it might. I do come across this problem often though. How to add some life to the subject and not make them look flat. Any tips other than a reflector? I'm currently sporting a sony A200 with standard lens. I know very mediocre but the economy sucks! Any tips? Thanks! Thank you everyone for all the tips! I do love my camera but when I see what I could do with it with other lenses, flashes and what not it does get a little discouraging. Awesome tips! Thank you!

Public Comments

1. It is perfect lighting for outdoor portraiture. Just set your white balance to overcast or cloudy. This will correct for the blue cast an overcast sky will give your images. Contrast is something you want less of when shooting portraits, but if you really want to add a little contrast, do it later in post production. When shooting fashion outdoors, we use huge scrims to "make" shade to reduce harsh contrast that direct sun causes. In response to your "... sony A200 with standard lens. I know very mediocre ...". You seem be be very new at the biz of shooting using a fully adjustable camera. Your A200 can produce superb images with the very fine 18-70 mm lens. It is up to you to learn to use it. Not more than ten years ago, cameras had none the features your fine camera has and were still producing amazing images. Take some time to learn how to use your camera under different lighting conditions, using different focal lengths. A class or two in photography can help reduce your frustration level and save you from learning bad habits. More on cameras vs photography http://www.kenrockwell.com/tech/notcamera.htm
2. I think thats a nice camera... Anyway try playing with your exposure comp and diffusing your flash with a cotton ball taped on or something.
3. Don't let your hardware get you down! The Sony A200 with the 50mm prime is a fantastic set-up and perfect for what you are doing. The reality is that you make the picture not your camera. Overcast days are great for portraiture. Be sure to shoot in RAW so you can better correct white balance issues or convert to B&W. Snap and contrast can also be added during post processing if desired. I use Elements 6.0 but GIMP works too.
4. Keep the sky out of the picture. Take a cute umbrella as a prop for the kid - a little rain may make a great photo op. Maybe Wellies and a rain coat too. Use a shallow depth of field with flowers in the background adjust contrast and sharpness in post processing - as mentioned. Your camera is capable of very good images.
5. Best lighting you can ask for!