I have only been doing LF for one year, so I feel a bit intimidated by the project I have in mind. I want to go to a senior center and take close in B&W portraits using my 210 lens on a 4x5 camera. I want only the face and neck and perhaps a tiny bit of shoulder. I want the face to be well lit so I can get all the wrinkles and character lines.
Here are some questions I have:
I want an uncluttered background and don't want to rely on chance, so I thought about bringing a white or light grey foam board to put behind the subject. I don't know how I would secure it, and how far in front of it would be ideal to position the person?
If there is good window natural light I will try to use it, but I want highlights on the face, and if there is not enough from the natural light should I bring a small flood or a handheld flash or use something like a maglite to "paint" the face? I am going to experiment this weekend with all of these, but I would like to know if there is wise advice from people who can do this in their sleep.
I am thinking of keeping everything in the face in focus because I want to show how interesting reality is, warts and all. I don't want a misty look or out of focus look, but I still wonder if I should use a little adjustable focus to maybe move the viewer's eye to a particular area?
I know the experience may be tiring for elderly people, so I need to think of ways to make it as pleasant for them as possible. Maybe someone has an idea of how to do this?
Any and all advice will be most gratefully appreciated.
Geraldine
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