Better pictures???

While I am still in practising mode, I like to take pictures of the facepaints I do.
But most of the times, the pictures don't turn out so nice as the original.
Does anyone has an advice how to get better pictures???

Dear Creabella:
Face painting is a living, breathing art. It never photographs as well as it looks in person. And, I am married to a photographer.

I believe Daizy has some excellent tips on taking photographs of your work.

What is it that you are struggling with the most? Paint that looks fantastic in person and appears blotchy in photos? Are you having a hard time with symmetry? Are colors not as astonishingly vivid in pictures as they are in real life?

Happy Painting!

The main thing that bothers me is that I find it difficult to get a good picture of the total design, as also that the colours or glitters don't come out nice on picture

it is all about lighting...I find my pictures dark and dingy too while the colours are so bright and lively

Stand a little away from your Model (2,5 Meter) an use the the flash. Most People are too near at the Model. In Front of a dark backround the colours turn out better.

Schminkerlitzchen wrote:Stand a little away from your Model (2,5 Meter) an use the the flash. Most People are too near at the Model. In Front of a dark backround the colours turn out better.

I would not have thought standing further away from the design, because I usually want a close up of the design.

You can zoom with your camera, but if the flash is too near it turns out bad.
You can also try to take a picture outside with flash on.
And put the Model also a little away from the backround, then the model turn out clear on the picture - not the backround.

Can you post a couple examples of pictures that you feel didn;t turn out good?

I just saw on Steven and Chris not long ago that the bests distance for flash is 6 ft away from your model.

I avoid using the flash as much as possible when taking pictures. If I really need to (if I have been painting in the evening) then I try to use a piece of plain white paper to hold in front of the flash to bounce off the light (being careful not to make shaddows)

Natural lighting is the best, and out of direct sunlight. With my old little digital I found I got better shots using the macro function and made sure it focussed on the eyes and face.

I would always take lots of shots too, that way I have plenty to choose from.

Keep the back ground plain and make sure clothes and hair aren't too distracting for the design.

There are all sorts of things you can do with angleing the face to get the most flattering photo, take the photo slightly from above so you are avoiding double chins and looking up tightens the skin under the eyes. Also depending on the design and placement, taking a picture slightly from the side so you get the full detail.

Hope that helps

I'm a fan of the macro function as well