How Hard Is It To Take Portraits?
With a sharp eye, attention to detail and a bit of creativity, almost anyone can become a photographer because the majority of us have the capacity to identify something that is visually stunning. The difficult thing about learning photography is to understand why something is visually stunning. Of course, as a nature or even a nightlife photographer, the point and shoot method is very common and all it takes is an eye. But, good photography is more than just capturing a candid moment, it’s also about creating the environment and a situation and most importantly, learning the technical aspects of lighting and perspective especially when you want to capture a portrait. Here are some ideas on how to take great portraits.
1) As a photographer you will be interacting with a lot of people who want their pictures taken. One thing to do is to learn how to make your subjects comfortable so that they can “let loose.” This will take some practice and hard work, but you can start by mastering within yourself the ability to bring up an emotion that you want the subject to also portray. Work on eye contact and think about finding ways to make the photograph more visually attractive by using props that subjects can use or play with.
2) Learn about lighting. Most of the time, its the lighting that makes the picture. To learn about lighting you must know your camera and so study the manual and talk to different photographers about their camera settings and styles. Also, experiment with lenses. Camera lenses can be very expensive, but there are various different websites and businesses that provide lens rental services. Spend the money and the time to learn about lenses. This will help you to become a more knowledgeable photographer.
3) Pick up a book of photographs, look at magazines that have picture portraits and study the different angles, perspectives and lighting techniques that these professional photographers use. In addition, think about why you like a certain portrait or picture. By doing so, you can replicate this picture or add to it when creating your own photographic art work.
