Photographing Portraits : 7 Things You Must Know and Do

while i love to focus on candid moments and often don’t have my subjects looking at my camera, i am also intentional about capturing portraits from time to time with my family and at least once during a client session.  when it comes to photographing portraits, there are several things you will want to keep in mind in order to be successful with portraiture.  the next time you pick up your camera with the goal of taking a portrait, be sure you consider the following 7 things.

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Photographing Portraits : 7 Things You Must Know and Do

1. Display Personality and Emotion

the main purpose of a portrait is to introduce a subject to a viewer and have that viewer understand more of who they are.  a good portrait shows off their personality and allows the viewer to get to know them a little better.  don’t shy away from allowing your subject to demonstrate who they are, whether that is through a serious expression or a belly laugh.  a portrait should express and capture some sort of expression, in one way or another.

2. Subject Should Be Looking At The Camera

when photographing portraits, your goal should be to have your subject looking at the camera.  while this is something that is not natural to me since i focus on candid/lifestyle photography, i am also intentional about getting a great portrait of my subject looking at me.  i try to do this at least once during a client session and from time to time with my family, such as during important age milestones for nostalgia keepsakes.

3. Catchlights

catchlights are when light in reflected off of the eye and are created when you turn your subject just so towards the light.  when photographing portraits, catchlights are a small detail that can take your portrait from good to great.  catchlights add life to the eye and, therefore, add light to the subject.  be sure to consider how you place your subject in relation to the light in order to create beautiful catchlights in their eyes.

4. Be Mindful of Composition

when photographing portraits, it is important to keep your composition in mind.  things you may want to consider would be: should i include the background or it is distracting?  is a center composition appropriate or should i compose using the rule of thirds?  should i fill the frame with my subject or take a step back and include negative space?  by quickly asking yourself these questions before photographing portraits, you will ensure that you are mindful of what composition will create the strongest portrait.

5. Typically From the Shoulder Area Up

while not always, portraits are usually composed to include the shoulder area and the face.  other times, more of the body is included in the portrait.  if you are considering a portrait that is more close up to your subject, consider photographing your subject from the shoulder up to create a portrait that is pleasing to the eye and looks to be cropped intentionally.

6. Watch Your Aperture

it’s important that you watch your aperture when photographing portraits to ensure that both of your subject’s eyes are in focus.  one of the most common and beginner mistakes is only achieving focus on one eye and it is important that portraits achieve focus in both eyes.  for portraits, i like to keep my aperture at least at f/2.8.

7. It’s Okay To Get Creative

sometimes a good portrait is one that breaks the rules.  it’s okay to get creative from time to time with portraits and, when done correctly, it can be very powerful.  in the self portrait above, i did not include my face, included more of my body and chose a center composition.  i also allowed a slower shutter speed to blur my moving hair, in order to portray movement.

for help on creating self portraits, be sure to read how to take a self portrait with a DSLR.

photographing portraits is very easy, you just need to know the rules for creating a good portrait.  by being mindful of your composition, monitoring your aperture, allowing yourself some wiggle room for creativity, incorporating catchlights, and focusing on capturing personality, you have all the things you need to create a strong portrait.

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