How to do Real Professional Portrait Photography - 20 tips.
ONE. Get the light right
The most important thing to portrait photography is the light. It dictates not just what kind of feel your image will have, but also if it will be good at all. Are you going for bright and cheery? Light it from the front with a diffuser or in the shade. Look for full spots of shade with no leaves or shafts of light inturupting your photo. Looking for dark and ominous you may want a harsh flash or direct sunlight. It’s all up to you.
TWO. Use the shade to your advantage
One reason people shoot during the magic hour is to catch the sunlight hitting people just right. Another is to catch the longer shadows of a building, house or whatever is around. One of the best most consistent lighting situations you can look for is when the sun is still out with you in the shade.
THREE. Nail the focus on the eyes if you can
Stylistically you can have an out of focus shot from time to time. It’s important to break the rules of photography to learn what you are capable of. But it’s always safe to nail the focus directly on the windows to the soul my friend Billy Shakespeare once put it while writing a whole bunch of sonnets. (Also, this is an inside joke specifically for LFO fans thank you very much)
FOUR. Try a wide lens
Nothing slows down portrait photography like using the same lens, doing the same thing and getting the same pose every time. Go somewhere important to the person and capture the background for a few. Variety is the spice of portraits, but we’ll get to that later.
FIVE. Have fun with your subject
If you’re not enjoying yourself then you’re in the wrong profession. There are plenty of ways to make money. Have fun and connect with people. There’s no other way to get to the core of who someone is. Anyone can hold up a phone and take a photo of themselves. As a photographer our last magic power is capturing people as who they are who they want to remember themselves as.
SIX. Capture the moments in between the moments
Wait until every one lets their guard down. The second they are done posing, now it’s time to snap some photos.
SEVEN. Choose your lighting sources based on your desired outcome
The photo below I captured at night in the woods with a portable ring light I made myself. Some photos are going to require a standard 3 light set up. You might be looking for an on camera flash bounced off the ceiling or pointed straight at your subject. Learn the looks you get from your camera, your editing settings and your subjects. No one is going to know the right answer except you. And you’re not going to know until you’ve got the experience with your own unique eye.
EIGHT. Research prisms and creative photography gear
I shoot a lot of band photography, so I get to play around a lot more. But, that’s besides the point. Look into freelensing, tilt shift, prisms, gels, projectors or whatever gets you thinking outside the box. There are enough photographers standing in fields getting the same shot.
NINE. Learn by osmosis
I can always tell when I’m starting to slow down creativly and it never helps when I’m consuming too much outside media. I have an instagram account where I only follow photographers and it’s one of the most useful things to getting me in the zone. Follow as many photographers that inspire you as you can and just absorb the what they post.
TEN. Capture the magic no matter how long it takes
Plenty of people can take a picture. Very few people can bring out or let that special thing out of people that makes them who they are. To keep looking for lighting and expressions until you get the shot you need. This can be hard in a short session, but you’ve only got what you’ve got to work with. So, never stop shooting.
ELEVEN. Location is everything
Everyone has a place that is special to them. It may or may not be the place they want thier photos done, but I always like to ask. If it’s not the spot then you better know your surroundings or have a studio space you know like the back of your hand.
TWELVE. Variety is the spice of life. And portraits.
A lot of poeple nail a style and stick to it. I try to hit as many styles as I can in one shoot. Sometimes thats just 20 minutes. The best thing to do is switch lenses, cameras, angles locations inside of locations, outfits or whatever keeps the person on their toes as you can. A photoshoot should never be boring.
13. Capture who the person is
“It's one thing to make a picture of what a person looks like, it's another thing to make a portrait of who they are.” – Paul Caponigro.
14. Switch to a longer lens
Once you’ve got your shots, scoot back. You never know what kind of subtle things like your distance to the subject, the bokeh or focal range will matter. Some people are more comfortable with the photographer closer and some farther away. The reason I shoot as much as I can is because you never know what the best final product will be until you’ve got the pics in lightroom and you’re going through them. That’s when it comes clear and you realize the one last pose you did for 20 seconds at the end of the shoot gave you the best pics all day.
FIFTEEN. Shoot RAW. File format and Metaphorically
There are plenty of full articles on this, but shooting raw allows you more creativity with your final product in editing because it captures more data. Also, we are at a point in history when more photos are being taken every year than have ever existed. They are mostly posed pics and selfies. Don’t be afraid to get pictures that truly encapsolate a scene and help you remember people. That’s it. Shoot RAW. Always. RAWAYS.
SIXTEEN. Move around
Nothing kills your final batch of photos after the shoot when you look back and realize you just stood in one place. The more you move the better. The more you move the better the well you are going to have to pull great photos from.
SEVENTEEN. Be aware of the visual effects of your editing process
Stylizing your photos in a certain way is an easy crutch to lean on. You can overdo or under do a certain editing style and it’s easy to get lost in the process. While you are working it’s important and ask yourself if your editing style is helping or hurting tell the particular story at hand. I have a lot of photos that are enhanced by the years I have spent on post processing and stylization. But sometimes the emotion of the photo can be overshadowed by a cool filter and that’s not what you want.
EIGHTEEN. Know your settings but don’t get stuck on one
Once you’ve got your shots, scoot back. You never know what kind of subtle things like your distance to the subject, the bokeh or focal range will matter. Some people are more comfortable with the photographer closer and some farther away. The reason I shoot as much as I can is because you never know what the best final product will be until you’ve got the pics in lightroom and you’re going through them. That’s when it comes clear and you realize the one last pose you did for 20 seconds at the end of the shoot gave you the best pics all day.
NINETEEN. Think about how your subjects feel
Whether you want your subjects to be bored looking or having fun and in the middle of an adventure is up to you. For most of my shoots I prepare the setting and background so well that they don’t have time to think about how they are posing. We shoot for 3 minutes here and 2 minutes here and they never have time to stop and overthink. If the vibe I am going for is jaded band that’s tired of the road then we need to hang for longer until they are bored and not thinking about the photos anymore. You can’t fake the look on someones face.
TWENTY. When the hand is trained the mind is free
At the end of the day, the most important thing is to shoot literally tens of thousands of photos in various situations until you don’t have to think about what you are doing. None of you brain power should be focused on figuring out what you do with your camera. Once you know your settings to the point where they are second nature you can watch your subjects move and capture the emotion in their eyes and body language while inadvertently telling the story with the background.