sploppert Loc: Rochester, NY

what does it take to be a great portrait photographer and take great portraits?

fourg1b2006 Loc: Long Island New York

I can't give you any technical info but the best i can tell you is practice practice & practice. If you want to be great at anything it takes a lot of time and patience. Good luck.

rmalarz Loc: Tempe, Arizona

First, the obvious, one must be totally knowledgeable of their equipment and lighting. Then, one must 'know' the person they are photographing.
--Bob

Silverman Loc: Michigan

There are so many Books, Videos, etc. that will assist you in your Portrait Photography journey. Practice is the best way of learning, see what mistakes you make, strive to correct them from what you have learned, Family and Friends would be your best practice subjects. Listen to their comments, being humble is an important aspect of learning.

pstar

The old saying experience is the best teacher .

billnourse Loc: Bloomfield, NM

Technically just knowing your lighting and your camera will get you good shots, but portraits go beyond that I think. You have to develop an ability to bring out the personality of the person/persons you are shooting and capture that moment when the personality or the true person shows through.

I take a lot of senior pics and other portraits, and sometimes I can get it and a lot of times I can't. Talk a lot to your subject (banter) to try and find that just right shot.

Bill

sploppert Loc: Rochester, NY

Bill, so far you have given the best answer. The question I asked was not for me. I was hoping to draw out responses for those who want to be portrait photographers and think it's just knowing how to set up their lights and the rest is easy. I've been a professional photographer for over 45 years. Yes, you must know your equipment and how to use it but more importantly is to know about how to pose people so they look their best and then you must talk to them to find out who they are, what they like and what they are looking for from you. You must be able to get them to relax in front of a camera, if you don't all you'll get is a blank stare and a fake smile. People don't know what to do with their hands or how to shift their weight or how to sit or stand for the best results. Just because you have good equipment that's only a small first step. I've given many seminaries here in Rochester NY where everybody with a camera call themselves a photographer. I remember one young man who graduated from RIT, a college that has turned out many great photographers but this one young man gave a list of all he learned and it was very impressive indeed. After introducing himself he said I have only one question. How do I take a good picture? I see this all the time, the answer is experience. It's not what you know but how you use what you know.

Joe Blow

Find out what they like. What is their favorite musician or band. Where do they want to go to college. Are they in sports, band, or other activity.

And always, bring a hair brush and some bobby pins. Hair ties, change of clothes (even a jacket), make up, and other props can help. I always insist on either a parent, aunt, big sister, or other responsible adult come along. For both wardrobe adjustment and a mature damper on juvenile exuberance.

Senior pictures have been some of my favorite shoots.

CO

I have four books on studio lighting by photographer Christopher Grey and some books on posing. I have my own studio photography meetup group. We meet once a month and set up backdrops, studio strobes, and use softboxes, umbrellas, beauty dishes, strip softboxes, and reflectors. I'm not a professional photographer - just an enthusiast. I think working with many photographers is the best way to learn.

I saw that photographer Annie Leibovitz has a masterclass online now. It's $90 for a single class and $180 for all of the classes. I was wondering if it's worthwhile to take that online class.

Acountry330 Loc: Dothan,Ala USA

Lighting makes or breaks you. Happy shooting.

LoneRangeFinder Loc: Left field

Understanding lighting & understanding people.

SharpShooter Loc: NorCal

S, sorry, but I disagree. Too many are looking for a formula that will make their photography look like someone else's photography that they admire, and for many, THAT is the goal. Yes, blazing your own trail can be scary!

1, Is the goal always to make people look their best? Or produce good and unique work? I think this is where I get the lecture about what we get paid to shoot and make the customer happy. If one is GOOD, the customer will be happy!

2, We will NEVER know who our customers are unless we live with them or they are family. It's not necessary to know who they are to produce good work!

3, By design, all formal studio portraits are FAKE. No one live there or eats there or sleeps there. Our jobs are to take a sliver of time in a persons life outside of their life, that's why it's in a studio. Otherwise we should be taking environmental portraits in the subjects actual environment, not the studio.

4, Do you think Joey L ever asked how to take a good picture??? Good pics are taken by TALENTED photographers, They don't ask how to take pictures. OTHERS ask THEM, "how did you do that"! No amount of technical understanding of light or camera will replace TALENT. Talent is not trained into you, you have it or you don't. A very talented photographer will take better shots than almost any untalented photographer no matter how good that untalented photographer thinks they are. It's how the mind works.

5, The answer is not experience. As I already said, the answer is TALENT. But yes, a TALENTED photographer with experience only makes them better and better.

Don't confuse a guy with a set of lights and a stool in the middle of them with talent. It might be the way to make money and people might be happy, but again, don't confuse talent with salesmanship.
SS

tdekany Loc: Oregon

Hey SS! This post should be a sticky for everyone to read. That is all I’m going to say.

SharpShooter Loc: NorCal

I’ve always been a bit of a problem child, and that’s all that I’m going to say!! LoL
SS

tdekany Loc: Oregon