Global  Support  for  Professionals

Technical Solutions | Z 7II/Z 6II TIPS

The Studio Workflow

This section takes you through the workflow for in-studio portrait and wedding photography.

Composing and Posing

Before composing shots and requesting your subjects to take their places, tell them the sort of pictures and poses you have in mind. Communication is the key.

Lighting the Shot

Light the scene for the pictures and poses you have in mind.

Lighting Tips for Indoor Portrait Shots

  • Small (point) light sources create sharp, deep shadows. For softer shadows like those often seen in women's portraits, make the lighting more diffuse by adding ceiling lighting or adjusting flash units to bounce light off the ceiling.
  • If you're renting a studio, it might be a good idea to bring along diffusers or other light-diffusing accessories.

Test Shots

Take test shots before the main event to see if the look and colors match what you have in mind.

Colors

  • Check colors using studio lighting equipment, incandescent and fluorescent bulbs, light from windows (natural light), and mixed lighting.
  • For more striking colors, switch from [Auto] white balance to [Choose color temperature] and select the color temperature manually.
  • Color temperature can be viewed in the playback photo info display.
  • Low color temperatures add a bluer, "cold" cast while higher values make pictures redder.
  • Shift white balance toward magenta (M) to reduce green casts or toward green (G) when faced with unnatural-looking reds.

Capturing the Original Colors

For colors closely matching those of the original scene, try using preset manual white balance. Preset manual meters white balance directly from a white or gray object lit the same way as your actual subject. It can be accessed using [White balance] > PRE ([Preset manual]) in the menu. For more information, see the camera Reference Manual, available via the Nikon Download Center (https://downloadcenter.nikonimglib.com/).

Fine-Tuning Picture Controls

Those who enjoy tweaking Picture Controls will find custom Picture Controls a useful tool (see this section). You can name and save them as you choose or copy them to memory cards for use with compatible software or other cameras of the same type.

Customizing Picture Controls

Raising [Sharpening] or [Contrast] too high may make portraits look harsh.

Taking Pictures

Now on to the main event: taking the actual pictures.

What If…

…I Need to Preserve Details in Highlights?

To preserve details in highlights or in light-colored objects (such as white wedding dresses), select [Highlight-weighted metering].

…My Model Tends to Blink?

If conditions are making it hard for your model not to blink, try shooting bursts with [Continuous L] or [Continuous H] selected for release mode and picking the best shots.

…I Want to Photograph a Group in Profifile?

If your subjects are at different distances from the camera (as may be the case, for example, when you're photographing the newlyweds together in profile), try stopping aperture down to increase depth of field.

Retouching Pictures

NX Field Icon

This section introduces you to the art of retouching pictures using Nikon's NX Studio computer software. Available only from Nikon, NX Studio can be used to view and edit pictures and process NEF (RAW) photos. An installer is available from the Nikon Download Center (https://downloadcenter.nikonimglib.com/).

Color Control Points: Targeted Changes to Brightness and Color

Color control points can be used for targeted adjustments to brightness, color, or the like.

Color Booster: Making Colors More Vivid

The color booster tool optimizes saturation to make colors more vivid.

"People"

Choose [People] to boost colors without affecting the look of portrait subjects.

"Nature"

Choose [Nature] to boost the colors of all elements in the frame, including portrait subjects.