Dark-skinned subject

I've been shooting for a long time, but suddenly I find myself facing
an unfamiliar situation, and I could use some advice. I happen to live in
a part of the country that has very few black people. Lots of Latinos and
Polynesians, but very few black. I have been booked to shoot a wedding at
which the groom is a very dark-skinned African. (No, he's not
African-American. He's from Ghana.) And I'm told he has very dark skin.
Same presumably goes for his family.
The bride will be wearing white, which means the range between her
dress and the groom's skin tone could be pretty significant.
I will be using Nikon 8008 and/or N90 cameras, in program mode, with
flash. I generally shoot Portra, with a rated ISO of 160, but I set the
camera for 100.
So what's the best course of action? Wash out the whites to get the
dark skin tones? Keep the whites and risk losing the groom's face? Just
let the computer decide for me? Any wisdom from someone who's handled
this kind of shoot would be greatly appreciated.

In article ,
wrote:

I've been shooting for a long time, but suddenly I find myself facing
an unfamiliar situation, and I could use some advice. I happen to live in
a part of the country that has very few black people. Lots of Latinos and
Polynesians, but very few black. I have been booked to shoot a wedding at
which the groom is a very dark-skinned African. (No, he's not
African-American. He's from Ghana.) And I'm told he has very dark skin.
Same presumably goes for his family.
The bride will be wearing white, which means the range between her
dress and the groom's skin tone could be pretty significant.
I will be using Nikon 8008 and/or N90 cameras, in program mode, with
flash. I generally shoot Portra, with a rated ISO of 160, but I set the
camera for 100.
So what's the best course of action? Wash out the whites to get the
dark skin tones? Keep the whites and risk losing the groom's face? Just
let the computer decide for me? Any wisdom from someone who's handled
this kind of shoot would be greatly appreciated.

This post sounds very familiar,...like once a year. Almost seems troll
like. In any event my feeling is if you have to ask maybe someone better
qualified should be shooting the wedding. Dark people get the same
exposure to look normal as light people. At the most open up 1/2 stop if
your insecure. After all the man is not a living shadow.
--
LOL.

In article ,
wrote:

I've been shooting for a long time, but suddenly I find myself facing
an unfamiliar situation, and I could use some advice. I happen to live in
a part of the country that has very few black people. Lots of Latinos and
Polynesians, but very few black. I have been booked to shoot a wedding at
which the groom is a very dark-skinned African. (No, he's not
African-American. He's from Ghana.) And I'm told he has very dark skin.
Same presumably goes for his family.
The bride will be wearing white, which means the range between her
dress and the groom's skin tone could be pretty significant.
I will be using Nikon 8008 and/or N90 cameras, in program mode, with
flash. I generally shoot Portra, with a rated ISO of 160, but I set the
camera for 100.
So what's the best course of action? Wash out the whites to get the
dark skin tones? Keep the whites and risk losing the groom's face? Just
let the computer decide for me? Any wisdom from someone who's handled
this kind of shoot would be greatly appreciated.

This post sounds very familiar,...like once a year. Almost seems troll
like. In any event my feeling is if you have to ask maybe someone better
qualified should be shooting the wedding. Dark people get the same
exposure to look normal as light people. At the most open up 1/2 stop if
your insecure. After all the man is not a living shadow.
--
LOL.

writes:

I've been shooting for a long time, but suddenly I find myself facing
an unfamiliar situation, and I could use some advice. I happen to live in
a part of the country that has very few black people. Lots of Latinos and
Polynesians, but very few black. I have been booked to shoot a wedding at
which the groom is a very dark-skinned African. (No, he's not
African-American. He's from Ghana.) And I'm told he has very dark skin.
Same presumably goes for his family.
The bride will be wearing white, which means the range between her
dress and the groom's skin tone could be pretty significant.
I will be using Nikon 8008 and/or N90 cameras, in program mode, with
flash. I generally shoot Portra, with a rated ISO of 160, but I set the
camera for 100.
So what's the best course of action? Wash out the whites to get the
dark skin tones? Keep the whites and risk losing the groom's face? Just
let the computer decide for me? Any wisdom from someone who's handled
this kind of shoot would be greatly appreciated.

Expose everything normally. Dark skin in white clothing is no different
from pale skin in black clothing.

The only difference I've ever noticed is that black skin tends to
benefit from diffuse lighting, and pale skin tends to benefit from more
directional sources. But you won't have much control over that outside
a studio.

--
Transpose hotmail and mxsmanic in my e-mail address to reach me directly.

writes:

I've been shooting for a long time, but suddenly I find myself facing
an unfamiliar situation, and I could use some advice. I happen to live in
a part of the country that has very few black people. Lots of Latinos and
Polynesians, but very few black. I have been booked to shoot a wedding at
which the groom is a very dark-skinned African. (No, he's not
African-American. He's from Ghana.) And I'm told he has very dark skin.
Same presumably goes for his family.
The bride will be wearing white, which means the range between her
dress and the groom's skin tone could be pretty significant.
I will be using Nikon 8008 and/or N90 cameras, in program mode, with
flash. I generally shoot Portra, with a rated ISO of 160, but I set the
camera for 100.
So what's the best course of action? Wash out the whites to get the
dark skin tones? Keep the whites and risk losing the groom's face? Just
let the computer decide for me? Any wisdom from someone who's handled
this kind of shoot would be greatly appreciated.

Expose everything normally. Dark skin in white clothing is no different
from pale skin in black clothing.

The only difference I've ever noticed is that black skin tends to
benefit from diffuse lighting, and pale skin tends to benefit from more
directional sources. But you won't have much control over that outside
a studio.

--
Transpose hotmail and mxsmanic in my e-mail address to reach me directly.

In article ,
wrote:

I've been shooting for a long time, but suddenly I find myself facing
an unfamiliar situation, and I could use some advice. I happen to live in
a part of the country that has very few black people. Lots of Latinos and
Polynesians, but very few black. I have been booked to shoot a wedding at
which the groom is a very dark-skinned African. (No, he's not
African-American. He's from Ghana.) And I'm told he has very dark skin.
Same presumably goes for his family.
The bride will be wearing white, which means the range between her
dress and the groom's skin tone could be pretty significant.
I will be using Nikon 8008 and/or N90 cameras, in program mode, with
flash. I generally shoot Portra, with a rated ISO of 160, but I set the
camera for 100.
So what's the best course of action? Wash out the whites to get the
dark skin tones? Keep the whites and risk losing the groom's face? Just
let the computer decide for me? Any wisdom from someone who's handled
this kind of shoot would be greatly appreciated.

Mmmm...35mm weddings.

Learn photography and let someone else do the wedding.

In article ,
wrote:

I've been shooting for a long time, but suddenly I find myself facing
an unfamiliar situation, and I could use some advice. I happen to live in
a part of the country that has very few black people. Lots of Latinos and
Polynesians, but very few black. I have been booked to shoot a wedding at
which the groom is a very dark-skinned African. (No, he's not
African-American. He's from Ghana.) And I'm told he has very dark skin.
Same presumably goes for his family.
The bride will be wearing white, which means the range between her
dress and the groom's skin tone could be pretty significant.
I will be using Nikon 8008 and/or N90 cameras, in program mode, with
flash. I generally shoot Portra, with a rated ISO of 160, but I set the
camera for 100.
So what's the best course of action? Wash out the whites to get the
dark skin tones? Keep the whites and risk losing the groom's face? Just
let the computer decide for me? Any wisdom from someone who's handled
this kind of shoot would be greatly appreciated.

Mmmm...35mm weddings.

Learn photography and let someone else do the wedding.

Randall Ainsworth writes:

Mmmm...35mm weddings.

Some people are making money shooting weddings digitally, so shooting
35mm is probably overkill.

--
Transpose hotmail and mxsmanic in my e-mail address to reach me directly.

Randall Ainsworth writes:

Mmmm...35mm weddings.

Some people are making money shooting weddings digitally, so shooting
35mm is probably overkill.

--
Transpose hotmail and mxsmanic in my e-mail address to reach me directly.

In article ,
Mxsmanic wrote:

Randall Ainsworth writes:

Mmmm...35mm weddings.

Some people are making money shooting weddings digitally, so shooting
35mm is probably overkill.

Unquestionably there are all levels that one can make money doing photo.
The question becomes how much can one give the client and still make a
decent profit, also perception of quality is important. Show people MF
imagery beside 35mm and digital at an equal price and most I guarantee
will choose the MF shots. At least they will with mine versus someone
else's :-) If price is the sole consideration many would choose 35mm or
digital especially if one is giving more prints from 35mm or the
perception of more imagery as in the case of the digital scenario.

A lot of photographers are actually charging more for the digital
weddings than 35mm. In my case I have shot wedding this last year both
as my own business doing MF weddings, and sub-contractually for another
photographer whereby I shoot 35 mm or digital. I initially found it to
be a handicap going back to 35 mm in that the other photographer requires
me to frame the image for 3.5 x 5 proofs, this means I am using less
than FF on the 35 mm. Try doing large 14+ person wedding party shots
when you are subtracting 1/3 of the frame so to get everyone on a 3.5 x5
proof. Coupled with being required to use Kodak Gold 100 for those shots
I tend to agree with Randall "in part". Digital is whole nother ball of
wax which allows all kinds of less than qualified people to participate
in wedding photography that really just don't belong. IMOP.

--
LF Website @ http://members.verizon.net/~gregoryblank

"To announce that there must be no criticism of the President,
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is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable
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