For me the key to good portraiture is having the ability to get your subject(s) very comfortable with you and themselves. Relaxed and in a good humorous mood....having a good time. Enjoying the experience. It will show in the images. For me this is the hardest part. The photographer's personality is far more important than his/her technical knowledge. If I had a better, outgoing personality I would be a much better "picture taker." All the rest can be learned. I love taking portraits when I get the opportunity. I find this genre more challenging than the others.
Rolk
Loc: South Central PA
Like Sharpshooter, I really like "tight" shots that emphasis the eyes of the person. Unlike Sharpshooter, all of my "portraits" are taken in a more natural setting, which can add a variety of issues, such as lighting, backgrounds, etc.
I did professional wedding photography for years, working for three different photography studios in the York, PA area as well as Philadelphia. (I hate that drive.) During that time, I also did "professional" studio work, but found that I didn't enjoy that quite as much.
I've been criticized for too tight of a crop, but I think in some cases it can play well.
I recognize that I have to do a better job with lighting, and being able to tone down some backgrounds in post processing.
I hope these examples fit the scope of this "discussion." Comments and suggestions are always welcome.
My wife, taken on Sanibel Island in bright sun.
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My son and daughter-in-law
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This "portrait" of my #3 granddaughter has been criticized for being too tightly cropped. I think it emphasizes her eyes and innocence.
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Granddaughter #2, taken indoors with bounce flash.
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Granddaughter #4, taken indoors with strong outside sunlight. Definitely should have used white card for fill on right side of her face. And the background, very distracting.
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Rolk
Loc: South Central PA
bengbeng wrote:
Thank you so much , really !!
So this is the pop up thingy. Camera lens pokes through and shoe mount flash inside. About $20 or $30 I think. Bit of fun
I can see that would be fun to use, but I guarantee, I would mess that up in a heartbeat!
I really don't think these are out of the box, but my grandkids are finally submitting to my camera and I, used to be i had to reward them with some treats or something.
SharpShooter wrote:
I'm posting 3 portraits that I've done recently.
I like to do tight portraits that are engaging. I like to use props help to grab attention and add some creativity.
I'm not looking for critique but it's always welcome.
Lets roll this along as a learning tool for all levels.
So post away!!!
Very good pictures. Where did you find them
I like the concept of the pop-up macro light disc. Thanks for showing. It has a ring-light effect on specular highlights, I see though.
I am a traditional portrait photographer- have been at it, professionally, for a long time. Although my work is comparatively conservative, I am always interested in other approaches. This is what attracted me to this thread, that is, the “out of the box” preface.
Thing is, I waited for more folks to contribute to see what it up but I haven't seen that much that is all that “out of the box”. In fact, most of it rather traditional even classical. Some of it is kinda old fashioned or retro- nothin' wrong with that! There are a few images that are novel and some that are more in the category of candid family shots. I don't think that masks and cutouts make for particularity effective portraits- just my opinion.
Composition is composition regardless of the theme or content of the image, whether the subject is traditional, exotic, sensual, cute, or even bizarre. There are elements of posing, lighting and composition that always work well and others that are not as effective, distorted or awkward- regards of style or theme. Oftentimes, breaking a traditional concept makes an image more exciting or adds an element of tension.
So...when you say “out of the box” what is the comparison to “staying within the box”? What is the BOX? Is traditional portraiture perceived as boring, stiff, artificial, cookie-cutter or thought of as work like mass produced school pictures? Does it have to be that way? I am not asking theses questions be confrontational or start an unpleasant exchange. I feel theses are legitimate questions in a thread like this.
Thanks SharpShooter for introducing a great subject, especially for those of us who mostly shoot portraits. I very rarely plan to shoot a portrait. I take my camera to family-friends events and look out for moments to record. Sometimes they even look posed when they're not. I also usually prefer black and white portraits, as you can see, I like to get in close. Here's of few of my photos.
SharpShooter wrote:
Yes, it's time for another installment on Composition.
Lets talk about how to shoot portraits, especially those that are out of the ordinary.
I've been complaining that we never talk about actual photography, so Lets do that.
I know there are a lot of portraits shooters here and plenty that shoot them professionally, so lets dive in.
As always, this is for the benefit of those that are not portrait shooters but maybe would like to learn more. Maybe it will make you brave enough to shoot everybody in your family till they start running when they see you coming! LoL
This is NOT another snapshot vs photograph post.
It's meant to help other less knowledgeable shooters to move to the next level or those at the next level to go beyond that.
Ask questions or answer them. Post a creative or unusual composition, lets see if we can get a 100 pages of good info! LoL
I'm not here to moderate this, just to get the ball rolling. I'm certainly not an expert. So feel free to contribute if you have experience, as some of you do, like Ed S, The Captain or Pale.
So here goes!!!
Don't respond till after my second post where I'll add some pics. Give me a few minutes to Post them so this doesn't get Auto-moved.
Thanks
SS
Yes, it's time for another installment on Composit... (
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Fotoartist wrote:
I like the concept of the pop-up macro light disc. Thanks for showing. It has a ring-light effect on specular highlights, I see though.
Cheers, Yes exactly, its ring light like but not perfectly round. I need to try it for macro which is what it was intended for.
E.L.. Shapiro wrote:
I am a traditional portrait photographer- have been at it, professionally, for a long time. Although my work is comparatively conservative, I am always interested in other approaches. This is what attracted me to this thread, that is, the âout of the boxâ preface.
Thing is, I waited for more folks to contribute to see what it up but I haven't seen that much that is all that âout of the boxâ. In fact, most of it rather traditional even classical. Some of it is kinda old fashioned or retro- nothin' wrong with that! There are a few images that are novel and some that are more in the category of candid family shots. I don't think that masks and cutouts make for particularity effective portraits- just my opinion.
Composition is composition regardless of the theme or content of the image, whether the subject is traditional, exotic, sensual, cute, or even bizarre. There are elements of posing, lighting and composition that always work well and others that are not as effective, distorted or awkward- regards of style or theme. Oftentimes, breaking a traditional concept makes an image more exciting or adds an element of tension.
So...when you say âout of the boxâ what is the comparison to âstaying within the boxâ? What is the BOX? Is traditional portraiture perceived as boring, stiff, artificial, cookie-cutter or thought of as work like mass produced school pictures? Does it have to be that way? I am not asking theses questions be confrontational or start an unpleasant exchange. I feel theses are legitimate questions in a thread like this.
I am a traditional portrait photographer- have bee... (
show quote)
I'm not a professional photographer , but working on it, and always value comments from time-served pros. Not going to attempt to define the box for now.
Here's another of cut out type portraits that maybe works better (and I think this one shows more of the personality of the subject).
Excuse the watermark / signature, older pic and I've stopped adding that now.
Very interesting topic. Out of the box to me denotes beyond the confines of the typical studio and traditional set ups and poses. Kind of like street photography but having a specific goal in mind or perhaps a random catch.
I shot a wedding and it was random but saw a perfect subject and used both opportunity, lighting, composition and personality to capture this shot. Sorry it is low res from my cell phone file, but it was shot with a D810.
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