Here is me dabbling in portraits again…
Reflector
Bride
This model had a reflector on her left side reflecting the light. It was much needed where I did the sun rays. With the sun directly in my picture it would have washed out the models face without some light being redirected towards her face. In this shot I added a warmer temperature scheme and increased the tint. This made the day look warmer and the dress to still look white, and not yellow colored. I added some saturation to make the colors come out more. Finally I softened the skin on the arms to not have so much detail so that the attention was drawn to the face. I like that the sun rays are right along the face. I also left the sun spots in to add to the effect. I cropped the picture to get rid of unnecessary content and bring the subject more into focus.
Sheriff
This model also had a reflector on him coming from his left. As he was inside a building at this point, he would have been very underexposed in contrast to the outside wall if he had not had a reflector on him. I performed an iris enhancement and used the spot healing tool. I left some of the imperfections in his outfit because it added character to him. I left all of it in focus for context. I like that his body is pointing to the right side of the picture and he is looking off to the left side of the picture. I cropped it so that he was looking off of the close side, but it adds an element of mystery. Also why is he holding his gun as if he is ready to shoot someone?
Continuous light
Teacher
This model had a continuous light on her right side, ambient light from behind her on her left side. I added some noise to her dress to make the face look more in focus. I dropped the exposure since the settings I had made the picture a little bright. I added some iris enhancement, and sharpened the lips slightly. I used the spot healing tool to remove some minor blemishes. I cropped the picture to make the subjects face even more out of center.
Ambient
Cowboy
This model had no additional lighting on him. You can tell by the shadows on the back of his head and neck. This lighting situation makes it more interesting because it only lights part of him. The diffused light coming in the old window casts a feathered light on him making the shadows not so hard. I added some sharpness to his hat and face to emphasize the detail. I decreased the highlights so that the outside was not so eye catching, and I increased the lowlights so that the model and his clothing would be more in focus.
Native American
There was a reflector available, but this picture was taken without so that the light would shine through her hair. It was bright enough outside that her face was pleasantly lit.