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Old 03-17-2012, 01:58 PM
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Default Dark eyes/squinty eyes in photos

My kids have very almond shaped eyes and when they smile in photos their eyes practically close. The iris of their eyes always looks really dark, too. For instance, when I took this photo today, I was sure it was going to be awesome...and I like it but I wish his eyes weren't so dark. Is there ANYthing I can do to help this?

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Old 03-17-2012, 02:11 PM
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Let me know when you find a solution for the squinty eyes. My husband has the same shaped eyes and this happens often in photos. I always take 4-5 extra pics of him just to get one with his eyes open enough to make it a keeper.
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Old 03-17-2012, 02:13 PM
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a fill flash would help some I believe. What a cutie you have there
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Old 03-17-2012, 02:14 PM
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I use the dodge brush on eyes set really low on opacity and hardness to lighten them. As for the squinting maybe have them not smile so big when you take the pictures? Or take a few of the same shot so that maybe some of them their eyes arent squinting
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Old 03-17-2012, 02:21 PM
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I don't have advice for squinty eyes... but when you have great light, you get great catchlights. It looks like the light wasn't very good here. I learned an easy trick to have your subject stand in front of you and twirl slowly with them and just look into their eyes and stop spinning once you see really good light in their eyes. Obviously, sometimes you just take what you get with little kids though. You can't always get them to face the way you want.
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Old 03-17-2012, 03:06 PM
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I use the dodge tool as well, on very low opacity and medium/light hardness depending. For your photo (hope you don't mind lolol), I did the corners of the eye and the actual iris. Doing that helped make the little sparkle a little brighter. I also used the dodge tool set to very low (10) and very soft (20) and did the eye lid between the eyeball and the eyebrow. Just like applying a brightener type of eye make-up, it helps open up the eye.

I did some quick editing to brighten the entire photo. I can let you know the settings if you'd like (I use PSP). I'm definitely not an expert, but with just a few tricks, I think his eyes look brighter and more sparkly.

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Old 03-17-2012, 03:19 PM
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Okay, how do I get better light? I mean, we were outside, how do I do better than that LOL? I don't know a ton about photography but I know to have my back to the sun, which I did. Should I use a flash outside? I have a speedlight but I've never used it outside. If it will help, I'll use it. I'll try your method too, Megan! this was SOOC but I have the RAW file so I could edit if it would help, I'm just not sure what to do.
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Old 03-17-2012, 03:34 PM
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I find I have to use a fill flash a lot outdoors. I never get THE perfect lighting at the time I need to take pictures. You'd think natural light would make for awesome photos but certain times of the day the light just isn't great.

My kids tend to squint in photos a lot too and they have really dark brown eyes so their eyes look incredibly dark at times.
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Old 03-17-2012, 03:45 PM
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There are just times of day when light is hard outside. When I intentionally take my kids outside for photos, it's usually in the late afternoon or early evening when the sun is lower in the sky and I can use either open shade or I can do some backlighting. I looooove backlighting. So pretty. I avoid midday at all costs. The sun is way too harsh here for that!
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Old 03-17-2012, 04:15 PM
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I have the same problem with my girls. I found this on Pinterest the other day, I hope it helps,
http://confessionsofapropjunkie.com/?p=3068
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Old 03-17-2012, 04:23 PM
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I prefer backlighting, too. It's nice to have some sort of reflector to softly bounce the light back.
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Old 03-17-2012, 04:23 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by aballen View Post
I have the same problem with my girls. I found this on Pinterest the other day, I hope it helps,
http://confessionsofapropjunkie.com/?p=3068
Great link. Thanks!
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Old 03-17-2012, 04:36 PM
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If the sun is at your back, it's in your subject's eyes. I usually have my kids stand in the shade, and then I'll have them close their eyes and I'll count to 3. They open their eyes wide and I click the shutter. My girls are so sensitive to light that if I don't get them out of the sun, they're just a big squinty mess.
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Old 03-17-2012, 05:19 PM
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I should add that their eyes do that inside, too. It's just the way they are shaped It can actually be way worse, like this



That blog post was really helpful!

I think I might practice with my speedlight. I rarely use it so I'm wasting my money!

What do you mean about reflectors? Sorry I've never aspired to professional photography and this is my first year in manual after 2 years in auto so there's a bit of a learning curve for me. That might seem like a dumb question so I apologize if so
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Old 03-17-2012, 05:32 PM
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I was looking back through pictures of my kids and when they are smiling big I noticed their eyes do that a lot. I think that's why its so hard for me to get a great picture of them (one I consider great), because I can't see their eyes!

I LOVE my speedlight.
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Old 03-17-2012, 07:05 PM
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Ask your kids to blink directly before you plan to take the photo and you may have a little better luck capturing them with their eyes open wider. I have the same problem (both in photos of myself) and those of my kids. I spend a lot of time working with my dodge tool.
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Old 03-17-2012, 07:38 PM
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I have the same kind of eyes, and when you combine squinty-eyed smiles with glasses it's nearly impossible to get good photos of the eyes! My kids all have dark eyes, and some of them get squinty, too.

I'm definitely a photography novice, but many of the tips I've read for photographing eyes don't help if your kids are as anti-posing as mine. I'm busy using every trick I have to keep them still and facing me, and that's the most cooperation I'm going to get. For photo editing, I like the 2nd method in this tutorial that Janet Phillips wrote for The Daily Digi. There may be better ways, but it's what I know and it helps.
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Old 03-17-2012, 07:47 PM
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It's actually worse if they are facing the sun because the eyes get shadowed that way. You'd be better off with the sun behind the subject (but then you have to be careful with the exposure because it will tend to be underexposed. Easier is to photograph in open shade - have them look out at you toward the light from the shade (but they should still be in the shade part). The light will be softer and more diffuse. Or fill flash definitely helps for when you are shooting in full sun.
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Old 03-18-2012, 12:49 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by LenaGardner View Post
I should add that their eyes do that inside, too. It's just the way they are shaped It can actually be way worse, like this



That blog post was really helpful!

I think I might practice with my speedlight. I rarely use it so I'm wasting my money!

What do you mean about reflectors? Sorry I've never aspired to professional photography and this is my first year in manual after 2 years in auto so there's a bit of a learning curve for me. That might seem like a dumb question so I apologize if so
Some kiddos are just more sensitive to light (my oldest Evan). A reflector helps because you can put them away from the light (at their back) and then use a reflector (by your feet angled up) to bounce some light back onto them. Usually this light is more diffused and therefore brightens them up without making them squint. You can purchase one that folds up for not too much http://www.amazon.com/Opteka-Collaps...2048920&sr=8-6. The hard part is to get it to stand up right, they make free standing ones, but those are much more expensive! You could also use a big piece of foamcore for a reflector. It works fairly well and is cheap.

Fill flash is good as long as you use it for fill (set flash compensation way down and even up your ISO to get more background in vs having the flashy look). That just takes a flash and practice (which I'm still working on). If you are near a building you can also use the bounce flash to bounce off the building to diffuse it and make it more natural looking too.

Do you have a garage Lena? One thing I did learn in my Rock Your Camera class is they are great for getting "good light" but not so bright that squinters are squinting. And if you have them far enough away from the "stuff" and are shooting wide open, you can't even tell you are in a garage! And if they want to smile let them smile, but don't ask them to. Sometimes a more serious looking photo is better because their eyes are wide open.


Here's a photo I got of Kyle using our garage in TX. The light there was sooo harsh! So the garage was good to get a good shot of his eyes (I was selling my lens and wanted a good eye shot). Also places between buildings can be used to do this too.
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Old 03-18-2012, 11:20 AM
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The tips are all awesome. I just wish there was an easier way to get those great eyes when the kids are just goofing around being kids in an impromptu setting without any equipment. LOL
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Old 03-18-2012, 11:54 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Sherri Tierney View Post
The tips are all awesome. I just wish there was an easier way to get those great eyes when the kids are just goofing around being kids in an impromptu setting without any equipment. LOL
Oh I know, its hard to be "picture perfect" when real life (the good stuff) is going on. Sometimes I try to move myself around them while they are playing (inconspicuously otherwise they will bolt) and see if I can get better light in their eyes). Mostly I just grab the memory and run with it. I break out the "gear" for those times I want to work on my photography or when i have a need for a "portrait" type shot.
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