Tips for a portrait series

[finitud]

Hi All,

I have been shooting mainly street and candid portraits for a while, but have decided to do a portrait series with actual people posing (friends and FoF mainly for now). Now, this is pretty much the first time I try something like this, so I am a bit lost on how to approach the project, both in terms of how to interact with the models and in terms of choosing settings, etc.

I would like to do the best job I can, but at the same time I would like to have an idea of what to go for, to avoid upsetting the models. Also, I have no idea on how to get a good interaction with the models or direct them, for obvious reasons 🙂

So, would you have any tips or suggestions on how to approach the project and get the best of the models?

Anything I might be forgetting especially welcome 🙂

Thanks in advance for any answers!

 

[FrankS]

Be familiar with your gear, and have exposure preset and lights ready to go. Fumbling with gear is not confidence inspiring for the model.

One needs to do this a few times to gain experience. There is no short-cut or alternative to this. Just accept that the first few times will be nerve-racking for you.

 

[Gumby]

also:

... be prepared to give the model clear and concise direction, yet remain flexible to integrate the model's own opinion or personal style

and

plan on shooting far more images than you anticipated, with far more "bad images" than you could ever imagine.

 

[FrankS]

Also start shooting right away, even if you don't think it will result in a good image. Maybe even start without film in the camera. Just to get things rolling.

 

[jonasv]

Just some of the top of my head...

1. If they can feel you are insecure about what you're doing, they'll be less comfortable and it'll show in the pictures. Act accordingly. If you're not sure what pose/composition to do next, don't say so. Just say "Let me check the light / I'm going to do some different settings, hang on / ..." or something like that, to buy yourself some time. Or just take random pictures while gathering your thoughts, kind of like Frank says above.

2. Try directing them as far as pose, composition etc goes, but not too much beyond that, certainly not at the beginning of the shoot. If you start telling them immediately what sort of expression they need to have, they'll be looking at your for that for the rest of the shoot. Tell them they can decide for themselves, what works for them, what they feel comfortable with (it's what Gumby calls integrating their personal style). You can still ask them to do something different later on. It helps to keep your options open. You'll notice right away whether they feel comfortable trying out things themselves (always gives the best results!) of if they need more direction from you.

3. Have some compositions/poses in mind in advance. Look at photos that you love or whatever inspires you, and see how you can work from there. I sometimes sketch out some poses and take the sketches with me.

4. Take some 'safe' shots at the beginning of the shoot. Classic head-and-shoulders etc. Once you have those, you can experiment all you want later on.

5. Know the person you are photographing and make sure the photo/pose/expression/context/composition fits the subject.

Example: when I photographed Abdelkader Benali, he was the newest literary/theatre sensation in town. Everything about him was... drama, for lack of a better word. So I tried to go for a dramatic photo as well.

Hope this helps!

 

[finitud]

Thanks a lot for all the useful advice. I will start the series on digital, but might switch to film once I'm confident in what I am doing 🙂

I don't know some of the people that have volunteered that well, so I'm thinking of meeting them in some cool cafes/pubs the first few times, and do a few test shots there -- it will be easier to get the communication flowing smoothly 🙂 plus, some of them make for very nice settings.

Also, my plan is to use the X100 as main camera (so not exactly "classical" shots), but will carry a longer focal length as well, can be a good idea to "warm-up" with more usual stuff.

Thanks again for the valuable tips, I'll keep informed!

 

[vnukov_pk]

x100 can distort the portrait. the lens is good but it flares easily against light.

 

[Dektol Dan]

Beginning Portraiture

Beginning Portraiture

1. At the start only use window light.
2. Choose a lens with shallow depth of field. Modern sharp lenses make women and children old and down right ugly.
3. Learn to be a conversationalist, find the child in your subject and speak to it. Shoot while conversing.
4. Pre-focus and learn to stay close to that distance. Sadly, wide angle lenses have a broader depth of field but are the most unflattering.
5. Focus 1/3 in, 2/3 out.
6. Never shoot in the bright sun, but in shade, and always keep the light source over your shoulder.

 

[drew.saunders]

This hour-long video is specifically about studio head shots with controlled light, but still has a lot of useful information.

http://youtu.be/j-NKdOMtldM

A few key points:

Have as much set up beforehand as possible. Fiddling with settings, etc. will make your subject uncomfortable or bored, and that won't help.

His "hand as suction cup" is a brilliant idea for helping people move their face exactly as you want them. Saying "move left" will get them confused with "my left or your left?" but directing them with a visual aid removes confusion. Watch the video, it's about 2/3 or later into it, it's hard to explain in words.

Never chimp! That just makes the subject wonder why you're playing with your toy and not paying attention to them.

Anyway, it's worth watching.

 

[user237428934]

Go to the flickr group search and look for "portrait natural light" for example. Lot's of groups where you might find some inspiration for lighting, location, posing. It's easier if you have an idea about the location and pose.

 

[lynnb]

How's it going? Have you had any sessions yet? It would be nice if you could post some samples in this thread.

The more you talk to your subjects both before and during shooting (and encourage them; and flatter how they look, if that's appropriate) the more relaxed they'll be and the better your portraits will be. Being friendly, un-pushy and quietly confident (even if you don't really feel that way inside) will help build rapport and trust and bring out their best.

Often the best pictures come at the end of a shoot when you are just about to pack up. The subject is usually more relaxed at that point, having got to know you, and letting their guard down as any stress they felt at the idea of a portrait session melts away.

 

[charjohncarter]

If you will not use additional lighting, then windows, late in the day, or night with street lights. But if you are amendable to added light work with a single added flash at first and then jump to two. With two flashes, each set at (indoors) 45 degrees from center, you set one at half the power of the first. This is classic portraiture, with one flash you will get a dramatic effect, and with ringflash you will get not shadow.

This is three flashes but one was for the 'film noir' effect on the background:

This is one flash (with umbrella) but lots of light from the left side window:

Outdoor ringflash, very hard to do without a leaf shutter camera. But you get the idea of no shadows.

 

[lynnb]

When I'm choosing a setting for portraits I look for
1. good light (what's good depends on what style I'm aiming for) - light direction, hardness/softness, colour temperature, reflective surfaces, shadows
2. a background that complements the subject or theme I'm working with (subject e.g. beach or alley), graphic qualities, colour, texture (e.g. smooth wall, sand, brick), what it looks like OOF.
3. A location where the subject will not feel uncomfortable, e.g. too public, noisy, etc

Hope this helps.

Cheers,

 

[jordanstarr]

....for god's sake, please do something different and approach it differently than "industry standard". I hope you're not looking at examples to mimic and instead, expanding on something unique. Portraiture, just due to the nature of shooting strangers, tends to lend itself to "usual" and "comfortable" and I have not seen very many portraits that impress me (including my own) because people just shoot what they have seen before.

But like FrankS said, be confident. If you aren't, at least fake it. Make the model feel comfortable and get crazy with the shoot like it's something you do everyday.

 

[airfrogusmc]

In my opinion I guess you should first figure out how you are going to approach the portraits. Either commercially which try's to make people look better than what they really do. Pretty pictures I call them or are you going to try and approach them in a more honest way and try and communicate who they are. Warts and all and also maybe throw in some clues as to who they are as you see them. One photographer who's work jumps to my mind is Arnold Newman.

 

[msbarnes]

Don't think too much.

I'm no expert but I've been really into portraits lately--they're fun. I've shot in many lighting conditions so I don't even worry about the light. I work around limitations of the environment.

Under the sun,

Untitled by Michael_Sergio_Barnes, on Flickr

In the shade,

10 by Michael_Sergio_Barnes, on Flickr

Indoors incandescent,


Untitled by Michael_Sergio_Barnes, on Flickr

Window light,


Untitled by Michael_Sergio_Barnes, on Flickr

I usually just use my Rollei and that's it.

 

[msbarnes]

Oh and be attentive because sometimes the best pictures are in-between,


kris013 by Michael_Sergio_Barnes, on Flickr

My approach is to talk to them so that the attention is on me--not my camera. Nobody that I shoot is a "model" but the ones that are more experienced have told me that some photographers are fatiguing because they are constantly shooting. So I guess it depends on what you are going after.

 

[koven]

Thanks a lot for all the useful advice. I will start the series on digital, but might switch to film once I'm confident in what I am doing 🙂

I don't know some of the people that have volunteered that well, so I'm thinking of meeting them in some cool cafes/pubs the first few times, and do a few test shots there -- it will be easier to get the communication flowing smoothly 🙂 plus, some of them make for very nice settings.

Also, my plan is to use the X100 as main camera (so not exactly "classical" shots), but will carry a longer focal length as well, can be a good idea to "warm-up" with more usual stuff.

Thanks again for the valuable tips, I'll keep informed!

all these portraits were taken with the x100



http://elllis.de/tagged/portrait

 

[Jamie123]

A lot of advice in this thread that I don't quite agree with. There's just no one-size-fits-all solution for this.
The first thing you have to realize is that in one way or another the portrait will reflect your process. Being confident is always good but that does not necessarily mean you won't have to fiddle around with equipment. I have found that the slower the equipment you use is, the calmer the portrait will look. If I'm shooting 4x5 there's no way to avoid fiddling around. That's not a problem because more often than not the time it takes you to get the settings right will let your subject be more at ease since they don't feel like they're the center of attention.
However, there's also nothing wrong with a bit of awkwardness and shyness in the air when you make a portrait. An awkward, distanced portrait can be just as interesting as an intimate one. It all depends on what you're going for. If you take portraits long enough you will find that there's certain things you can do and certain things you can't. I've found out long ago that I'm not a small talker. I don't say a lot when I take pictures other than telling the subject where to look, how to turn their head, etc. etc.

If there is one cardinal rule about taking portraits it's this one: DO NOT SHOW THEM A BAD PICTURE. The reason is that the one thing you can do to destroy any kind of trust is to show them a picture that confirms the worst fears they have about what they look like.
If you shoot digital the best thing is not to have them look at any images at all until you're done.

 

[user237428934]

Maybe you should undress in front of your model. Wait...only Terry Richardson is allowed to do that. 🙂