08-15-13 The Pensive Nicole

2013 08-15 Pensive Nicole by Scott Shephard This portrait of Nicole was taken in the Black Hills at my July "Black Hills Photo Adventure." I took quite a few photos of her and she was a great subject. I teach that the eyes are one of the most important parts of a portrait and yet I have her looking away from the camera. Why? Well, we were working on a pose that showed her relaxed and seemingly unaware of the camera's presence. In the next frame, Nicole is looking at me but I ended up liking this one best.

Is this the "real" Nicole? I can't say, though for the three days she was part of the Workshop, she impressed me as a fairly quiet girl and I think this photo captures that.

For those interested in technical things, this photo is lit with natural light and with a small soft box being held by Nicole's aunt, Patricia. I converted to black and white and then did something I don't think I've done with a portrait - I added grain so that it looks like it was taken with film. Imagine that!

Canon 5DIII 1/640s f/3.2 ISO400 120mm

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