| Taking pictures of individual people is often the | | | | you |
| mainstay of general PR and editorial work. But there | | | | If you shoot the person head on it will look like a |
| is a right way and a wrong way to do it. | | | | police mug shot. Get them to sit at an angle of 45 |
| What I am going to look at it how to take a classic | | | | degrees to you and then turn their heads to look |
| portrait shot, suitable for use as a PR image. | | | | square on to the camera. The result will be much |
| Before you go on to try more elaborate or way-out | | | | better. |
| methods of photographing people at least manage to | | | | 6. Don't use direct flash |
| try and perfect the classic portrait. | | | | Direct flash (or flash on camera) is not flattering and |
| There are a number of hints and tips for this one, so | | | | will give severe shadows and flare off the sitter's |
| let's get going | | | | nose, forehead and chin. Better to use bounce flash if |
| 1.Make sure your camera is vertical not horizontal | | | | you have a external flashgun and bounce the light off |
| For the classic portrait shot you want your camera | | | | the ceiling. This can work well if you have a white (or |
| to be oriented vertically. This suits the image much | | | | light coloured) ceiling that is about eight feet high. |
| better and avoids you having to crop off large | | | | Don't attempt it if you are in a hall or somewhere |
| amounts of wasteful image to the left and right of | | | | where the ceiling is 20-30 feet high - it won't work. |
| the subject's head. | | | | 7. Or use available light |
| 2.Make sure that the subject is not up against a wall | | | | If you haven't got an external flashgun turn your |
| I always believe that if the background adds | | | | flash off by pressing the button with the small |
| something to an image keep it in. If it doesn't then | | | | lightning symbol on your camera until you get the |
| get rid of it. The problem with a lot of digital cameras | | | | symbol that looks like a lightning with a line through it. |
| nowadays, especially the smaller compact ones, is | | | | This means the flash will NEVER go off. Now mount |
| that they have tremendous depth of field. That is, a | | | | the camera on a tripod and use the available light (if |
| heck of a lot is in focus. If your subject is near to | | | | in a bright room) or use light coming through a |
| their background the chances are that it will be sharp | | | | window. Don't use direct sunlight as it is too harsh - |
| too, which is very distracting. So keep them at least | | | | light on a cloudy day or light from a north-facing |
| eight feet away from their background and DON'T | | | | window is best. To avoid harsh shadows you can use |
| use a brick wall either - it always looks like a mug | | | | a reflector to bounce some light back. |
| shot from "Prisoner cell Block H"! | | | | You can buy commercial reflectors, like the ones |
| 3. Shoot at their eye level | | | | from Lastolite, or you can make your own from a |
| This is the best option - I usually put a chair in place | | | | large piece of cardboard covered in aluminium foil. |
| for the sitter and then set my camera up on a tripod | | | | The secret is to get it quite close to your subject's |
| or hold it so that I am at their eye level. This gives | | | | face, but not so close that it appears in the shot. At |
| the best perspective. | | | | a push you can use a large sheet of white paper or a |
| 4. Don't use a wide-angle lens | | | | white bin liner - try it it works! Please note you must |
| Most compact digital cameras automatically default to | | | | use a tripod - the shutter speed will be quite slow |
| their wide-angle settings when you first switch them | | | | and you will probably get camera shake if you don't. |
| on. This is the worst possible setting for a portrait. | | | | 8. Make sure you "Fill the Frame" |
| For a start you have to get way to close to the | | | | Don't place the sitter's head in the middle of the |
| person you are photographing to fill the frame. | | | | frame. Make sure you use the whole frame and |
| Secondly, you then get terrible distortion - like looking | | | | position their head towards the top. |
| into the back of a spoon. | | | | 9. Look with your eye first |
| The solution is to go back until you are about six | | | | Take a look at your subject first. Are you happy |
| feet away from the person and then zoom in to fill | | | | with what you can see. Is their hair OK? Is their tie |
| the frame. This will give more flattering perspective | | | | straight? If it isn't sort it out before you take the |
| and help to make the background more blurred. It will | | | | picture. |
| also help to get rid of distracting elements in the | | | | So there you have it. The sure-fire way of taking a |
| background. | | | | first class classic portrait shot. |
| 5. Get your sitter to sit at an angle of 45 degrees to | | | | |