Lessons
Lesson Info
Why Perspective Is Important
In this lesson, we're gonna talk about playing with perspective. We're gonna have a little fun and alter the scene based on the distance that our subjects are from the camera. So, we're gonna keep one subject close, and send one subject further away. And, what that will enable us to do is play with the perspective and create things that don't really exist in real life. What we have here, I mean, you see they're both right here in front of me. So, what we wanna do is play with the perspective a little bit. So, in order to do that we have to create separation between my foreground subject and my background subject. So, then I'm gonna ask you to walk up, up gracefully to the back of the roof. And, we have two poses in mind for this, for this shoot. So, the first one is gonna be the tiny dancer pose. And, go ahead and hold out your hand, Madison. Yeah, that's great. So, what we're doing is playing with perspective. I'm gonna shift my body downward, ever so slightly. And, you can see that w...
hat it's gonna take, here, is a little bit of lining up to get this shot right. The wonderful thing about shooting on the iPhone is that the depth of field is so deep that it actually works out really well that my foreground subject, and my background subject, can stay in focus at the same time. So, I'm gonna try to line this up. So Madison, can you lower your hand a little bit more? Like significantly, yeah. And, go up a tiny bit higher for me. And then, I'm gonna shift my camera up, as well. I'm gonna shift so I'm more in front of you. And, Ben, I'm gonna have you walk that way, a little bit. Okay, stop right there. And, the reason I did that is because I was seeing her shadow on the ground a little bit. I'm basically, I'm shooting you from about the knees up. Just to get this vertical shot. And, from what I'm doing here. Ben, I'll need you to go about one step to your right. Great, great. So, I'm gonna go ahead and line this up, so that he's on her hand. Go ahead and lower your hand for me, Madison. A tiny bit more. That's great. And, let's get you centered. I'm gonna lock this exposure, lower ever so slightly so nothing's blown out, and then go ahead, Ben get in your pose. That's great. And then, Madison, I'd love (mumbles) a little smile on your face is great, like you're looking at your little miniature dancer in your hand, that's great. That's perfect. That was really nice. So, just to add a little variety in. We're gonna do one more pose. We're gonna kinda keep this same subject distance going on that we have now. So, Madison is going to stay close. We're gonna have Ben stay further back in the frame. We're just gonna change the pose. So, with this kind of perspective play, you can have a lot of fun with it really. The photos are great. I'm really loving what I see. The next pose that I have in mind is having her really kinda of like carrying her little tiny dancer around in a different pose. So, yeah, Madison, go ahead and put your hand up, like that, and let me kind of adjust myself, so that I can get in at the same time. So, let's see, I wanna make sure I can get you. I'm shifting ever so slightly. So, the problem is that... The problem that I'm encountering is that at this angle when you have your leg up, your body is behind her forearm. Madison raise your arm up. Yeah, so you're more like carrying him like that. Yeah, that'll solve that problem. So, we're just doing some angle adjustments to make sure the pieces that we need aren't sort of interfering with one another. So, here we go. I'm gonna lock this. And, go ahead and get into your position again, Ben. I'm gonna try to shoot this time. And, adjust quickly, a burst mode. Try to get it in. I'm shooting in burst mode because I'm making tiny adjustments as his leg goes up. Hopefully, I'm able to capture that precise moment where his foot is lined up with her fingers. Go ahead and lift your elbow up for me, again. Yeah, that's great. So, let's try this again. Yeah, I'm ready whenever you are. Oh, oh, so close. What I'm also doing is I'm keeping in mind my overall composition, again, as well. And, what I'm not liking is that I'm losing Madison's left hand. So, can you put it on, yeah, let's try that. In general, composition wise, you don't want to chop people off at the wrist, or at different joints. Not at the wrists, the knees, or the ankles 'cause it makes them feel like they've been amputated. So, yeah, I just want to keep her left hand up, while we do this same composition. This is great. Oh, perfect. I think I got it that time. So, I think we're good. Great, thank you. Essentially what I did was create a little tiny dancer look by having Ben stand on Madison's hand. And then, I also did another one where she looks like she's holding him up, which is kinda fun. The way that we achieved that was really by altering the distance of each subject from the camera. And, because the iPhone has such a deep depth of field, we can capture both, in pretty sharp focus. I'm teaching you all these tips and tricks and techniques, but it really is about having fun and playing around and seeing what you get when you're shooting.
Ratings and Reviews
Daniel Williams
I enjoyed this class and found it helpful. I'm primarily a DSLR shooter, but want to up my game for those times that I want to use my mobile phone either to shoot silently or to take advantage of photographic moments on those occasions that I'm not carrying my DSLR. Pei uses an iPhone, throughout, however, many of her recommendations apply to newer top level Android phones, such as the Samsung Note 9, as well. Pei demonstrates Portrait mode in the iPhone for a shallow depth of field vs. the native iPhone for wider shots. And, for wide angle photography, she uses a "Moment" cellphone case with a "Moment" wide angle lens attached. I've just added both accessories to my "gotta have" list. In addition, she teaches some basics on lighting, posing, composition, rule of thirds, and depth of field. Pei effectively demonstrates the use of burst mode to capture fleeting moments and exposure compensation to counter harsh light, as well. Professional photographers will already be familiar with the photography concepts taught. However, mobile phone photographers and beginning photographers who want to capture beautiful pics anywhere and anytime may find this course beneficial. It's short, about 40 minutes, total, and so priced a bit high, in my opinion. However, CreativeLive.com has GREAT sales--especially on weekends. Watch for it on sale and it's a worthwhile purchase. For future mobile photography classes, I'd ask for a more in-depth presentation of iPhone camera settings and features. And, as an Android phone user, I'd love to see a top Android phone or two used and explained, as well. Thank you Pei and thank you CreativeLive.com. I enjoyed this class. I watched it twice and picked up useful tips, both times! Daniel Williams, Santa Fe, NM danielw58@gmail.com
Maryanne Evans
Nice lesson. I picked up some good tips
Student Work
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