I don't often get a chance to take photos of people. The reality is that with little practice I'm quite bad at it. A friend from out of state is coming to visit and I think she'll let me take her photo. I hope the weather will permit going to the park, otherwise it will be indoors. Sooo...
1.) Show me portraits you've taken that you are proud of
2.) If you would be so kind, offer me any advise you have.
Sometimes I take 100 photos for one or two to really work out. I try to get people doing something, or in a relaxed mood so they are not nervous or uptight.
I lean towards natural or surrounding light
I also like to get a non-traditional part but captures their spirit.
I'm no where near perfected at this, and my only subject is my daughter. I've found that natural light is my best friend. All three of these were taken by our large patio doors.
Look at Robin Warner's work. (@robinwarner) She is my go to for portrait inspiration.
@musicguy1982 Love your portraits. I don't have a speedlight, but if I'm taking indoor portraits. I can probably move a lamp. Thank you.
@brumbe Love that you take photos of people doing things. I especially like the ones that one wouldn't think of as traditional portrait (the feet are great). Thank you for the ideas.
@lolanae I love the light in these. I'll have to remember that windows are great light sources as well. Thank you.
Here are a couple of my favorite. I like to take pictures of people doing things - distracted from the camera. I think you get a more authentic feel as people aren't posing or even paying attention to the camera. You get a more natural reaction or a relaxed subject.
1. Focus on the eyes
2. Use your available light to your advantage. I tell them to stand somewhere, and then I walk a circle around them until I find a pleasing angle of light.
3. The wider aperture (f stop) you use, the creamier your background will be. The wider apertures are the smallest numbers. Just remember if you use an aperture wider than f/3.0, the focus needs to spot on!
i'll be honest, i'm not a "portrait photographer" (i'll snap anything), but i do take loads of photos of my (in my opinion) photogenic boyfriend and i've realised that the best portraits are the completely natural ones - not faked smiles etc. one of my faves is this:
also, i think a good lens can help, like if you have a f/1.8 lens then it will show your subject really well while giving you a blurred background. hope that helps!
@asrai Thanks Lee. I love your portraits, especially the ones that really show thye character of the person.
@sweett Beautiful portraits. I'm beginning a list of advise. What you said is helpful.
@grimbo Thank you Amy. That does help. I like the natural thing. I think if I figure out how to relax, maybe it will help the other person relax and have fun.
I think that most of my pictures could be considered portraits technically...not saying they are great examples, but I have several in my project. I recently read this great article that I think you will find helpful... http://www.digital-photography-school.com/13-tips-for-improving-outdoor-portraits
Here is one example that was a posed portrait of my daughter...
I'm a big fan of natural light for portraits, but I sometimes do studio work when there's a need.
Natural light uses the same principles as does artificial lighting but, of course, you can't much control the light output. That is to say, you still have a primary light source, and a secondary light source, and often tertiary sources. Generally, you want the primary (strongest) light at least slightly to one side, and away from the camera. That means, if your subject is slightly angled and not facing directly into your lens, the light should be falling on the side of their face that you can see less of. This is called short lighting technique, and is the most suitable for most subjects.
If you are using a lamp inside your house, put your subject between the lamp and a white(ish) wall, so that the lamp reflects off the wall and fills in the shadows on the other side (the wall becomes the secondary light source). Have the subject turned slightly towards the lamp, so that the slightly darker side of their face is more exposed to the camera. If you are using natural light (window, or just outside), you can do the same thing. Outdoors, everything reflects to a degree, so you can just look around to see your primary light source (sun) and secondary source (wall, lawn, sea etc).
Of course, if you want a low-key (high contrast) look, where part of your subject is hiding in strong shadow, you want to limit that secondary source. You can use a black "reflector" for this, to increase depth of shadows. Anything black will do the trick, and the closer it is to your subject the more it will absorb light on that side of them.
Here are a couple of my natural light portraits:
Here are a couple of artificial light portraits:
And a couple using both natural and artificial lighting mixed together:
@vikdaddy Thank you for illustrating how light looks from different angles. I'm just learning about that with still life and wondered how it works with portraits. Thanks again.
@cohare Thank you very much. I will check out that article.
@wahyusp Interesting effect with one side of the face in darkness-- ads intensity. Thanks.
@cfitzgerald 1. Show their personality; 2. The eyes are important
Got it. I'm adding your tips to my list. Thank you :)
@maaikel Love how you've captured people as they are. Thank you for showing so many examples.
@webfoot Love your photos. I think I'm seeing that the light is so important. Thank you.
@coolgirlsar Thank you. Through all the examples I'm seeing how important light is. The second photo makes me laugh when I see it.
@jinximages Thank you so much for the specific advice. I'm going to go through it again to make sure I've got the principles. Of course getting to practice would help too. I love your portraits. They are inspiring. Thank you again.
Be Fearless. Remember, sometimes THE BEST portraits happen by happy accident. Also, your subject matter does not have to always be centered. I find the more asymmetry in a photo, the more interesting it is, truly. Good luck!
Thank you. These are all great portaits in their own ways. I'm seeing how character can be shown through pose, composition, or context.
@artworkbylacey I may have to make that a motto for my camera in genera "Be Fearless". In truth fear holds me back in photography more than I'd like to admit. Great advice.
Write a Reply
Sign up for a free account or Sign in to post a comment.
Tweets ahoy!
Join the Group
Pin With Me
Blank walls are your friend.
I lean towards natural or surrounding light
I also like to get a non-traditional part but captures their spirit.
I'm no where near perfected at this, and my only subject is my daughter. I've found that natural light is my best friend. All three of these were taken by our large patio doors.
Look at Robin Warner's work. (@robinwarner) She is my go to for portrait inspiration.
@brumbe Love that you take photos of people doing things. I especially like the ones that one wouldn't think of as traditional portrait (the feet are great). Thank you for the ideas.
@lolanae I love the light in these. I'll have to remember that windows are great light sources as well. Thank you.
@eileenmabalot I can see what you mean. The lighting in your photos is great. I see you keep the light behind the person. Is that right?
1. Focus on the eyes
2. Use your available light to your advantage. I tell them to stand somewhere, and then I walk a circle around them until I find a pleasing angle of light.
3. The wider aperture (f stop) you use, the creamier your background will be. The wider apertures are the smallest numbers. Just remember if you use an aperture wider than f/3.0, the focus needs to spot on!
also, i think a good lens can help, like if you have a f/1.8 lens then it will show your subject really well while giving you a blurred background. hope that helps!
@sweett Beautiful portraits. I'm beginning a list of advise. What you said is helpful.
@grimbo Thank you Amy. That does help. I like the natural thing. I think if I figure out how to relax, maybe it will help the other person relax and have fun.
External flash bouncing off to one side:
Symmetry:
Weak flash and spot metering:
Here is one example that was a posed portrait of my daughter...
A self portrait
Here's just one that I got from using flashback as I found it hard to pick a selection of photos:
I've also learnt you don't always have to have a smile to get:
:D lol
Natural light uses the same principles as does artificial lighting but, of course, you can't much control the light output. That is to say, you still have a primary light source, and a secondary light source, and often tertiary sources. Generally, you want the primary (strongest) light at least slightly to one side, and away from the camera. That means, if your subject is slightly angled and not facing directly into your lens, the light should be falling on the side of their face that you can see less of. This is called short lighting technique, and is the most suitable for most subjects.
If you are using a lamp inside your house, put your subject between the lamp and a white(ish) wall, so that the lamp reflects off the wall and fills in the shadows on the other side (the wall becomes the secondary light source). Have the subject turned slightly towards the lamp, so that the slightly darker side of their face is more exposed to the camera. If you are using natural light (window, or just outside), you can do the same thing. Outdoors, everything reflects to a degree, so you can just look around to see your primary light source (sun) and secondary source (wall, lawn, sea etc).
Of course, if you want a low-key (high contrast) look, where part of your subject is hiding in strong shadow, you want to limit that secondary source. You can use a black "reflector" for this, to increase depth of shadows. Anything black will do the trick, and the closer it is to your subject the more it will absorb light on that side of them.
Here are a couple of my natural light portraits:
Here are a couple of artificial light portraits:
And a couple using both natural and artificial lighting mixed together:
@cohare Thank you very much. I will check out that article.
@wahyusp Interesting effect with one side of the face in darkness-- ads intensity. Thanks.
@cfitzgerald 1. Show their personality; 2. The eyes are important
Got it. I'm adding your tips to my list. Thank you :)
@maaikel Love how you've captured people as they are. Thank you for showing so many examples.
@webfoot Love your photos. I think I'm seeing that the light is so important. Thank you.
@egad Thank you. I will check her work out.
@coolgirlsar Thank you. Through all the examples I'm seeing how important light is. The second photo makes me laugh when I see it.
@jinximages Thank you so much for the specific advice. I'm going to go through it again to make sure I've got the principles. Of course getting to practice would help too. I love your portraits. They are inspiring. Thank you again.
Thank you. These are all great portaits in their own ways. I'm seeing how character can be shown through pose, composition, or context.
@artworkbylacey I may have to make that a motto for my camera in genera "Be Fearless". In truth fear holds me back in photography more than I'd like to admit. Great advice.