10 Ways to Take Stunning Portraits [photography]

I want to look at some ways to break out of the mold and take striking portraits by breaking (or at least bending) the rules and adding a little randomness into your portrait photography. I’ll share ten of these tips today and a further ten tomorrow (update: you can see the 2nd part here).
1. Alter Your Perspective

Most portraits are taken with the camera at (or around) the eye level of the subject. While this is good common sense – completely changing the angle that you shoot from can give your portrait a real WOW factor. [read]

 

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3 Penguins Photography

Lighting 102: 1.2 – Position | Distance [photography]

Okay, the 1.1 section had what was admittedly a pretty rudimentary exercise. Which maybe explains why many of you didn’t uh, actually do it.

This stuff is the equivalent of “wax on, wax off” in the beginning of Karate Kid, and you really want to explore these things in an environment where you are not also trying to make a real photo at the same time.

The point of this exercise is not so much to stretch yourself, but to just go and do it. Walk before you run. Start building an easy comfort zone and then stretch it.

For those who want to check out the results, you can see the tagged and posted results here. And it is good to see that most of you are navigating the Flickr posting and tagging issues just fine. [read]

Small Flashes for Big Job [Photograhy]

Well, this is just neat.

What would you do if someone called to ask you to shoot your President’s official portrait on a few days’ notice?

(I’d try to figure out which one of my buds was trying to pwn me, is what I’d do…)

But that’s exactly what happened to Strobist reader Karel Donk, who lives in the small South American country of Suriname.

Check this out…

On-Camera Flash Techniques for Digital Wedding and Portrait Photography [Paperback]

by Neil van Niekerk – With this guidebook, photographers learn how to create stunning, professional images while avoiding the common pitfalls of using an on-camera flash. Techniques for using simple accessories—such as bounce cards and diffusers as well as how to improve a lighting scenario by enhancing it rather than overwhelming it—show photographers how to master this challenging aspect of portraiture. For wedding and environmental portrait photographers who must work in ever-changing lighting scenarios, executing these tips to evade flat, lifeless images with harsh shadows, washed-out skin tones, cavernous black backgrounds, and other unappealing visual characteristics results in not only better images, but happier clients and more sales.

Purchase – On-Camera Flash Techniques for Digital Wedding and Portrait Photography

Interfit Strobies Small On Camera Diffuser [photography]

Small investment and good results.

This Interfit Strobies small on camera diffuser is ideal for use with your on board cameras flash or with a small to medium sized flash guns. Easy to fold and store in your kit bag and fits most standard and zoom lens up to a 90mm it simple pushes over the lens. You will quickly realize the benefits of this diffuser, which is ideal when going on holiday or traveling as it does not take up much space, its easy to wipe clean. size 30cm (12″) x 22.5cm (8¾”).

Purchase from Amazon – Interfit Strobies Small On Camera Diffuser

The Classic Portrait: How to Build and Use Your Own Portable Portrait Studio

In photography, there are few things as compelling as a classic portrait created with a single main light source. One could theorize that we innately perceive a single light source (such as the sun) as looking more natural and believable than, say, multiple artificial sources. Put that together with the fact that looking at another human face activates several areas of the brain, quite literally turning it on. The subject doesn’t have to be young with flawless features for the portrait to be fascinating. But well placed light will make all the difference.

All you need to begin creating classic portraits anywhere is a single light. Although various light sources will produce different effects, the type of light source is not as important as the position of the light in relation to the subject. Any light will do, even a household lamp. [read]