Ryan Phillips Blog

Oh wow, you’ve opened the floodgates! I could keep you busy for a while. :-) Here are a few questions that come to mind:

1. When shooting at larger f-stops, it seems the quality seems to change – doesn’t seem as sharp, has kind of a funky look. Why is this? Am I doing something wrong? Do you use the larger f-stops much? What f-stops do you use when shooting large groups to make sure everyone is in focus? (any other tricks for this?)

2. What’s a good starting point for sharpening in RAW. I haven’t figured that one out yet. I still just use Unsharp Mask.

3. Any tips on using curves? I never use it, know I probably should, but can’t seem to work it right.

4. Flash tips are always appreciated.

4. And lastly, how do you get such eye-popping photos? The colors just POP! Do you always use plug-ins like Nik Effects? That’s what drew me to your website in the beginning – your photos look so glossy and gorgeous.

Address whatever of these you think are interesting. :-) And maybe at some point I’ll have the guts to have you critique a photo!

Thanks, Ryan. You rock!
Rachel

Sounds awesome Ryan! Alright… you asked for it ;) Would love to hear more about shooting technique, lighting (do you use reflectors? flashes? anything to help with lighting? In what circumstances? What’s the highest ISO you use to keep from getting grainy?), what lenses you’re using for which shots and why, typical apertures/shutter speeds for … See Morecertain types of shots…workflow- what are your typical steps once you upload your shots, the process of meeting with new clients, determining needs (what questions do you ask), selecting locations..etc etc ;) Thanks Ryan!

Hi Carla,

Great Questions. Give me a few days on these. I will answer all of them except the last one. Mostly because it is a very very long answer. ;-)

I will be giving a workshop this summer with a some exciting partners and I would cover something like that in the workshop. It will be International though ;-) To Be Announced…

Thanks so much Ryan, love reading your answers/tips! One more ques…I shoot with a 40D and have 2 lenses…50mm 1.8 and 28-135mm. Really want to increase the quality of my photos but unfortunately have a limited budget. Thinking about upgrading to the 50D and adding a really good lens…OR just getting the 50D mark II and waiting on lenses. Is there enough of a diff b/t the two bodies, or you think it better to just do the lesser one (50D) and a new lens? What are your fav lenses? Also want a lens which is wide and will allow me to create a bit of the fish eye look…any suggestions? Will the 16-50 do that? Thanks again!

Thank you for fielding our questions. I’ve been following your blog for a long time now and I love all of your work. So here are some of my questions. (1). How do you meter your ambient light? Handheld? In-Camera? Histogram?
(2). How often do you shoot in a program mode vs. manual mode? Do you have any tips for exposure compensation?
(3). For family portraits, how much time do you spend getting to know the family before the shoot?
(4). Do you always have an assistant with you during a family shoot or at a wedding? If so, how many assistants? Thanks!