Beginners Photography Basics - Portrait Photo Taking Tips and Guide

People are easily the number 1 subject forLighting in portrait photography can be as complicated
photographs. From party snaps, to photos of childrenas you like. Professional portrait photography is
and travel shots of family members in front ofalmost always done in a studio, where the lighting can
famous monuments, millions upon millions of peoplebe 100% controlled. If you’re reading this,
photographs are taken every single say of the year.chances are you don’t have your own
Portrait photography is a little different to generalphotography studio, so let’s discuss a simple
people photography. The intent of portraitlighting scheme you can set up at home.
photography is capture and display something of theFirst, position your model at a window. The light
‘essence’ of a person; to say somethingcoming from the window should be bright, but not
about their character, personality, or life.direct (i.e. not coming directly from the sun). You
The three most important things to get right inmodel should be facing you, side on to the window.
portrait photography are camera settings, lighting,Light from the window light will obviously light up the
and your relationship with your model.side of their face that is closest to it. Then, position
# Camera settings for portrait photographysomething on the other side of your model that will
Because portrait photography is all about abounce reflected light from the window onto the
person’s face (or if it’s a wider shot, theirother side of their face. Anything white or reflective
head-and-shoulders), classic portrait photographywill do, for example a piece of white cardboard or a
settings seek to remove anything distracting fromsheet of aluminum.
the background of the shot. This mimics the effectNow you have a basic, flattering light scheme, with
of looking at someone’s face from very closethe main light source on one side of your
up, and makes the subject ‘pop’ (this ismodel’s face, and ‘fill’ light from the
photographer-speak for ‘stand out and capturereflector on the other. Don’t forget that you
attention’).should frame the shot close enough that the
The way to achieve a distraction-free portrait photoreflector is not in the shot.
is to use a wide aperture, often as wide as possible# Interacting with your subject
(f/2.8 or f/4 are popular choices). Wide aperturesPortrait photography inevitably says something about
produce a shallow depth-of-field, which rendersthe relationship between photographer and subject.
anything far from the plane of best focus – i.e.Unless you’re shooting professional models, the
the background – as a soft blur.hardest thing about portrait photography is not in
Aside from a wide aperture, the only other importantfact camera settings or lighting, but ensuring that
setting is ISO. This should be as low a number asyour model is comfortable and relaxed enough to
possible (e.g. ISO 100), as higher ISOs will lead togive you good results. A model who feels awkward,
digital noise, which is particularly ugly in a portrait.uncomfortable or self-conscious will not photograph
There’s one offshoot of portrait photographywell.
where the recommended settings are different, andOften the best strategy to relax your model is
that’s environmental portrait photography.simply to engage them in conversation, as this will
Environmental portrait photography seeks to show atake their mind off the camera. They’ll probably
person in their ‘natural habitat’, which isget more comfortable with the process after
often their workplace. Here you want to show theyou’ve rattled off a few shots, so schedule a
background, so a smaller aperture is appropriate.decent amount of time and plan on taking your best
# Lighting for portrait photographyshots towards the end of the session.