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Better People Pictures
The camera seems to love some people ~ they are just naturally photogenic! It isn't because they are young or beautiful; it s because they have "character" whatever that is! Well, the reality is that we all have character, and what defines a good people picture is the way it shows that character. If you wanted to know about someone you would you want to know what they looked like but you would want to talk about their personality and that is best understood by the way they relate to other people. Any photo will show you what they look like; to make a photograph that says more, there has to be some suggestion of relationship with the viewer: an emotional connection. Manage the connection. Where is that connection most likely to be found? In the "windows of the soul". Your subject's body might be important for some photos, but for the most part you should focus on the face. The eyes and mouth are the most important features, so start there and only add more if you need to do so to tell us more about the them as an individual(s). Crop tightly. Manage the light . The most common lighting is with the sun (or other light source) behind and to the side of the camera - over your shoulder. That's O.K. As far as it goes, but it will make them squint, and won't give much form to the face. You can do better without any fancy lighting setups just by moving into a shady area with a shadowed background. Overcast days are usually better for portraits, and indoors, diffuse window light gives a similar advantage. Use the flash ('fill-flash' or 'daylight flash') to add light to the face, soften shadows and add a highlight to the eyes. Areflector can be even more useful. Manage your Focal Length. Use a longer lens (90mm or 135mm are co0nsidered very good portrait lenses).If you get in close enough to fill the frame with a normal lens (50mm on a 35mm camera) forces you to get in too close and crowd your subject. On top of that the wide angle lens will distort the face, broadening the nose. The short telephoto, on the othert hand, flatters the features and keeps you out of your subject's face - literally. Manage the background. Choose a simple, neutral background and set your aperture to f3.5 or f2.5 (use aperture prioity). That will blur the background and help focus attention on your subject. Focus on the eyes and place them on one of the points where the lines of an imaginary noughts and crosses grid would cross (the intersection of thirds). If the subject is low, shoot from a low angle unless you are trying for a special effect; that applies especially to kids...get down to their eye-level. Manage the setting. If you are not shooting casual or candids, try to set-up your camera ahead of time. If that isn't possible, use the time to chat with the people, maybe invoplve them in the process of setting up. Your aim is to help them relax. Having a bit of a laugh is a great start. One advantage of digital photography is that yopui can look at te pictures with the subjects and review them with as you go, talking through what you all like and what you don't - engaging with the subject in this way helps to engage in others, and that is what good peoiple pictures is about. |
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This intel was contributed by David Rich
David Rich
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May, 2012
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