For portraits, it's better to go with a 50mm or higher to avoid unflattering distortion. If you've ever seen them do portraits, it's usually with a long lens with the photographer about 8-10 feet away. Faster lenses with large apertures obviously make it easier, but tele lenses with constant large apertures are usually pricey. DOF and bokeh can also be achieved by controlling the distances between the subject and what you want blurred. I've used this calculator in the past to give me a general idea. You can also do the blur in post, but its better to do it with the lens.

Turn the aperture as large as possible and zoom it as much as possible, that will create a very very good depth of field.

For portrait, I will suggest a range of 50mm to 105mm with constant f/2.8, the aperture could be larger with a prime lens.

What is the brand of SLR you are using??

Nice
 

You have a nice Euro look. Exotic.:pics:

Translation: you're a white chick!


:roflpuke2::roflpuke2::roflpuke2:

Im using a canon T2i with the kit lense. I really want a 50mm f/2.8 prime. The kit lense just doesnt get the desired DOF for either my car shots or my portraits. All of those shots, save 1, used whatever the largest aperture was for the zoom length.

:bowrofl:

Yeah, most kit lens only drop down to f/3.5@18mm or f/5.6 @ 55mm. think Canon sells a relatively inexpensive 50mm f/1.8 or 'normal' lens that's supposed to be pretty good. I want to say it's around $100-200. It get's tricky when shooting cars though, since you usually have to be pretty far back to get everything in the frame. Not a big deal if you're doing a shoot, but it's limiting when you're at a meet or car show.

yeah, I never do any meets or shows.

I love the cheapo 50 f 1.8!

Warning, 5.0 content.

Very nice Steve!

Opening up your aperture will definitely create the softness (DOF, bokeh, background blur) that makes for nice portraiture, but remember that it will let a ton more light in. In direct sun like the shots above, you'll need a super-fast shutter speed, even at ISO 100... faster than the 1/250s that your camera can synch with an external flash.
I love my 50mm f/1.4, but I don't get to use it as often as I like because I cant always get far away enough from my subject when shooting indoors. I think I'm going to add a 28mm prime to my bag very soon.

I'm pretty new to all this stuff myself, but I'm finding that good lighting starts to become formulaic or instinctive after a while (I can pretty much guess what my light meter is going to say before I test the flashes) and then from there, you can start getting creative with it.
The hardest part about shooting "models" for me is the posing. I've shot girls who actually model, and they just know what to do in front of the camera and they respond well to direction. Pretty girls in real life often get awkward when it comes time to get in front of the camera.
At the end of the day, it's still fun!

There is actually a way to sync the flash faster than 1/250. It's a setting in some cameras have called FP (Focal Plane). There are drawbacks and it's only usefull in certain situtations however. That's why reflectors are so great for situtations like this, no need to worry about sync speeds.

...and shooting with anything under 50mm for portraits distorts faces way too much (makes them look fat :p).

Tell me more!

go to your camera's flash sync setting and select "FP" or high speed sync. Check your manual, since it varies. On Canon's, I think it might even be on the flash itself. It basically tells the flash to cover the front & rear curtain duration. The drawback is you need more light by using more power and/or a larger aperture. You lose about 1 stop or more depending on shutter speed. The flash fires more "burst" in fractions of a second creating an almost continuous beam. It drains batteries, but most cameras/flashes revert back to normal mode if you stay below the max sync speed of 1/250 for most cameras.