3 Easy Ways to Master Your Portrait Game
If there’s anything photographers love more than shooting, it’s bickering about how they do it.
Now first off I mean bickering in the most positive, awesome way. Every photographer has their own secret ingredient to making their images unique. I like to keep edits quick and simple for the most part, while other photographers will really focus on small features of a picture for hours.
But if you put an image I took four years ago in front of me and told me to assess its quality, I’d probably cringe.
I’ve learn so much in the past seven years and even more recently in the past year. For those of you who are just trying their hand at portrait photography (specifically traditional, lifestyle) I have a few tips that might save you the hair-pulling, teeth-gritting process of trying to get the perfect image. I really hope you enjoy!
1. Shoot in Manual
If you know anything about me you know I am obnoxiously obsessed with getting everything right IN CAMERA before trying to do post production edits. The number one way you can make a perfect image is by shooting in manual. Auto settings…just don’t. Don’t do it. It might be tempting but trust me, it makes a very noticeable difference. I believe in you! Switch that dial back to M!
Now this might mean you are going to have to invest in a photography class or start learning more about your camera online. If you are just starting off, photography classes are an awesome way to master your camera’s settings. There are also numerous amazing online resources for beginners. I would recommend doing a Google search of terms like ISO, shutter speed, white balance and depth of field.
Additionally, many digital cameras nowadays have light meters that will tell you if an image is too under or overexposed while you are shooting. This is awesome, because that means that if you are like me and you’d rather just figure it all out yourself you can! Play around with your ISO/shutterspeed dials and pay attention to the light meter as you do so. It looks like a series of small lines with one thick one in the middle. That middle line is perfect exposure. Adjust accordingly!
2. Go for a shallow depth of field
This one always seems to be a big hit with my clients, so if you are shooting senior portraits, family Christmas cards or head shots you might find this one to be an awesome weapon to get your clients coming back.
For a lot of photographers, this is a known fact. It’s a tried and true way to make your subject pop out of the photo. So this may not be anything new for some of you. Ah, well.
For those of you who aren’t as familiar, I’ll boil it down to this:
Shallow depth of field = Blurrier background behind your subject
Deeper depth of field = More objects in focus
And since achieving this deserves its own tutorial, I’ll leave you with this article to guide you for now.
I recommend investing in a lens that gives you some freedom to shoot in shallow and deeper depths of field. I use a 70-300mm most of the time and it works great. You can find these usually for cheaper than their fancier cousins. I would also recommend researching things like “good lenses for wedding/portrait photography for [insert your camera brand].” Wedding photographers really play around with their lenses, so any lens advice from them is super useful!
3. Pay attention to the background
This one is a very small detail, but boy it can really ruin the perfect photograph. I’m going to boil this down to a few rules of thumb:
Avoid backgrounds that have bright, annoying, unnatural objects like construction signs, etc. Unless you’re going for that look, of course
If your subject is in a busy background like in the woods, try using a lower depth of field to really focus in on your subject’s face. They are what the picture is about, not that jagged tree branch.
Make sure the background isn’t weirdly clashing with your subject’s clothes. I often ignore this rule myself, but paying attention to this detail really does deliver a cleaner image. I’d also generally avoid having your subject dress in anything too patterned if they are looking for professional/corporate portraits or headshots. Additionally…
Use backgrounds that complement your subject’s outfit. If your subject is wearing dark/monotone colors, try using a white or cream background like I did for miss Julie in the above pictures. I’ve also noticed sunsets really compliment white-colored outfits. When in doubt, monotone outfits photograph really well in my experience because they match with a lot of different backgrounds, but play around with it.
Well, that does it! Three super easy ways to up your portrait game. As always, remember to play around with it. Break the rules, follow them. It’s all about your style.
I will be launching a FREE series of easy, step-by-step tutorials for beginners soon. I will be bringing on guest writers, including photographers who have mastered the game way more than me—so it’s going to be an exciting 2016! If you are interested in learning more, please email [email protected]. I am open to one-on-one editing/camera help so feel free to drop me a line if you are ever unsure about something.
Love and light,
