Hey quick question, can you model for me today? I can't, I'm driving my toenails. That for the whole day. It's the long time. Okay, thanks. Models Toronto. Russian women in your area want what? Oh my god. Hi there, I'm calling to see if you guys have any supermodels available. What do you mean Costco doesn't sell supermodels? Hey there. Yeah, a long time no talk. Yeah, happy been. Good. Listen, I'm just calling because I wanted to see if you were down to model for me. Hey, Mod, you want a model for me? No! You are right, I never called you back. No, it was a fun night. Can you model for me today? No, I can't. I'm busy getting stretched by a pet's or a pet's or a manicure. Okay, that seems completely reasonable. So, where do we stand on the modeling thing? You're down? I mean, technically this counts as a call back, doesn't it? Hello? Hello? Hello? We've all been there. You know, shooting a portrait, you have a great idea, and the star's a line. And you have no model. It happens to the best of us. So, today we're talking about some self-portrait tips, techniques, and even why you should be taking self-portraits, it'll make you a little bit better. The only thing is, now I need some ideas for myself portraits. Hmm. I think I can go something. Got it. Alright, so for the first shot, I'm going to do something pretty simple, just kind of like warm up, right by the window. Just get some nice natural window lighting, maybe looking out, maybe looking at the camera. I don't know, we'll play around with it. But this leads me to my first point about taking self-portraits. The hardest thing to do during the whole process is focus the camera. For example, my 1DX has amazing auto focus, but the problem is, you'll have to set it to manual focus when you're shooting, because nobody's there to press that button to make it focus on the subject. So you'll have to play around with it. It's going to take quite a bit of walking back and forth until you find that perfect focus. Then you can adjust it here and there, and another thing you have to take into consideration is where you're standing. So what I like to do is have a marker. So if you can see here, I've got this little window opening thing in my jig to mark my spot. Another tip that I use also for marking my spot, or where to focus the camera more specifically, is I'll grab an object and put it where I think I'm going to be standing. So for example, I have this mic stand. Now I'm going to grab this mic stand, put it here, set the manual focus, and you'll notice I've kind of lined it up with the window opener. So I know, stand by the window opener, that's where the camera's focused. That's where you should be doing too. Grab an object, focus on that object, set it to manual, and then get in position, and then obviously set the timer, because unless you're stretching Armstrong, you can't really press the button and get in position. So do those things. Okay, so here's a setup for the shot. I'm going to be, like I said, right by the window. I've got this like prop light in the background. I'm going to keep that on. I don't know. I'll try it on and off, see what the difference is, even if it even makes it into the shot. I'm shooting on a tripod in the corner of my office. Now the office is not huge, and I want to shoot with the 85 millimeter to get that shallow depth of field. So it's going to be a little bit tight. Hopefully I can get like a little bit of the bar from the shelf in there to just create some depth on the shot. And this is how the picture turns out. For my next shot, for my next shot, it's not like a bad magician. For my next shot, I'm going to do something outside, you know, in the bushes behind me, I'm going to sort of like sink into the bushes, maybe shoot with this plant and create some depth in my shot using that shallow depth of field, which brings up another good point. When you're shooting by yourself and taking self portraits, it's a great time to test out things. If you want to do crazy poses or wrap your head around your thing and do the macarena, go for it because A, you don't embarrass yourself in front of the model if you don't know what you're doing or something ends up looking stupid. And B, if it does end up looking stupid, nobody has to see these pictures. So let's go make a fool of myself. Alright, now for the last self portrait I'm going to take, I'm going to use some actual strobe lights and set up the lighting and control it the way I want. This is a perfect time to do it. If you're shooting by yourself, you can move the lights around, play with it. You're not wasting anybody's time and it's a great learning experience. Think about it this way. If you can master all these techniques while trying to maintain the focus and running back and forth through your own camera, not only are you going to get some self portrait bangers, but when you have to do it with someone else with an actual model in front of you, it's going to be 10 times easier, 10 times quicker and it's just another way that you can practice. So let's get these lights set up. Here's a setup for the final shot here we've got. The strobe, one single light strobe coming from like a 45 degree angle pointing downward. I want those really harsh shadows, very contrasty photo. I put a snoot on the light and by the way, snoot is my favorite photography word, snoot. And for those of you who don't know what a snoot is, it's just like a cone that goes over the actual flash bulb and it really concentrates the light on only one area, which is what I want. I don't want the background lit, I don't want the foreground. I don't even want that much of my self lit. I'm just going to sit down, we'll take the picture. And the reason I saved this picture for last is because it's the most difficult. Now, not only do I have to run back and forth to the camera, focus the actual photo, the right depth of field, but now I have to manage the light as well. So I'm going to have to move the light, make sure it's in the right spot, make sure I'm in the right spot, make sure the camera's focused in the right spot, it takes a lot, but the results should be cool if I get it right. This is what the photo ends up looking like. There you have it ladies and gents. Quick video with some tips and tricks on how to make some six self portraits. That was a good, that could be like in a rat. Next time your model bails on you or you can't find a model, don't waste the day, you know, use the opportunity to sit around and crushing a bag of chips, take what you've learned and use it. I'd actually love to see some of your self portraits. So if you want to tag me on Instagram, I'd underscore DM creative. I would love to see what you guys come up with. Make sure you hit that subscribe button and I will catch you guys in the next video. Love you. Oh man, you can't shoot today, that's too bad. Yeah, no, for sure, we'll work together next time. Yeah, looking forward to it. All right, bye.