I’ve made it past Day 100 of my 365 Project XLV

Day 100

Day 101

I took the rose shot and  a couple of others at my Mother’s house while we were visiting last week.

I also spent a couple of hours last Friday getting some new head shots done.

This was my first time properly shooting tethered – connecting the camera direct to my laptop and controlling the camera from there.

It’s the only sensible way to get a ‘selfie’ like this. With the camera in LiveView mode I could get myself lined up with the lens so that I was positioned nicely in the shot. Then set the exposure settings and take a few pictures with different expressions.

I also tried a couple of backgrounds. The most tricky thing was to ensure there was no reflection of the light in my glasses. Although larger softboxes produce nice even light they are hellishly difficult to prevent reflection. So I MacGyvered my own modifier out of a milk bottle;

This worked really well. As a small point source it was easier to avoid reflection but it lets out light in all directions and so gives a nice even tone. It’s a bit like a Gary Fong modifier – but loads cheaper.

I’m definitely going to shoot more tethered for ease of use and the ability to see a large preview of the shot immediately so that you can check exposure and focus.

You can use software such as Lightroom to shoot tethered, but most DSLRs come with camera control software for free, so have a look and see if your camera does. It’s well worth experimenting with.