What is the difference between portrait and headshot photography?
Portrait Photography tends to be a much more intimate experience, between the photographer and the person, where an experienced photographer will capture the person’s essence and personality in their best angle and light. Generally, there are no set rules laid down for portrait photography, as the person may be sitting or standing, full length, or cropped tightly.
Portrait Photography is also known to have great emphasis on the background, whether it be using props or furniture. Headshot photography is usually performed in a studio setting whereas portrait photography could be done as an interior or exterior shot. Portrait Photography is more creative than headshot photography as you can experiment with different hairstyles, make-up, and wardrobe changes.
What backgrounds work best for portrait photography?
For portrait photography, I have always been a massive fan of black-and-white images, as I believe it can show the true character of the person being photographed without the distraction of colour, and the image can be manipulated to give different effects, for example, harsh and grainy, or dark and contrast, which is not as easy to achieve with colour photography as the colour can over-saturate when you start editing the image with the contrast.
For portrait photography, the background can literally be anything, whether it be a studio backdrop, which doesn’t have to be plain and could have some interesting lighting on it. With portrait photography. I tend to light the background separately from the person. I am always happy to suggest whether the portrait be taken as an interior or exterior shot. Personally, I would always try to keep the background quite soft, unless there is a reason for it being in sharp focus.
How do I prepare myself for portrait photography?
Portrait photography has many uses, personal, for our partner or family, where you would probably do your own hair, make-up, and styling. Discussing your shoot in advance would prepare me for what equipment to bring.
Those of you who need portrait photography for professional use, such as your website, blog, or social media, may opt to have a professional hair and make-up artist. You may even consider a specific location or have a mood board in mind. I am happy to discuss your project with you and even offer one of my preferred business contacts.
Planning your look in advance and being ready on the day of the shot would allow more time for variety.
How long does portrait photography take?
If it’s a proper portrait photo session with just one person, It could run into one or two hours, and there would usually be a couple of background changes, and maybe two or three changes of outfits, it just really depends on what you want, maybe you want to do some shots in the studio and some on location.
What about retouching?
What do portrait photographers do?
Portrait photographers produce an artistic study, which portrays a person’s appearance, and if done well conveys an insight into their personality.
What is the meaning of portrait photography?
Portrait photography is to produce a realistic likeness of the sitter, it doesn’t necessarily have to be a photograph, but can be a painting, sculpture, sketch, or engraving, before photography all portraits were created in these ways.
Who is the famous British portrait photographer?
There are many famous portrait photographers, starting with Julia Margaret Cameron in the 1800s but also Arnold Newman, David Bailey, Herb Ritts, Bill Brandt, and many more.
What is the best setting for portrait photography?
I think this really depends on the context that the picture is being used in, whether it should be in a studio, where the background is some kind of backdrop, or it could be in a favourite room in the sitter’s house, in their workplace, or outside in the environment.
What do I need to take into account when commissioning a portrait?
Firstly decide what the portrait photograph is for, and does it has a particular purpose, for example, an author may commission a portrait photograph to be printed on the dust cover of a book that they have written, and this may well dictate the style of the photograph, or it could be as simple as a family keepsake.
Secondly, when trying to decide on the style of the photograph, I would always suggest that the sitter does some research online, looking at portrait images, and finds some images that they really like, this gives the photographer a starting point, and can be narrowed down further, by the availability of backgrounds or locations, and any props required.
Is it better to have colour or Black and White?
This again is a subjective decision, but the good thing is that with today’s digital cameras, everything is usually shot in colour, and converted to black and white if that is what is required. Personally, I prefer black and white portraits, as I think the colours can distract from the sitter’s personality, also black and white can be manipulated more in post-production, to lighten or darken areas, and adjust the contrast. this is not so easy in colour as it can distort the colours and saturation.
What should I wear for portrait photography?
I would always suggest you wear something that you feel comfortable in, and suits your normal lifestyle, for example I wouldn’t suggest wearing a suit and tie if you would never do so in reality, I think portraits have become a lot more informal these days, and even when I go into large companies to do staff pictures, they quite often have a policy of no jacket and tie, as it can make the staff look more approachable.
I would however always suggest that you have two or three different outfits to ring the changes.
What is the best background for portrait photography?
In the studio I usually use only about three backgrounds on a regular basis, that is white, black, and a mid grey, the black and grey can be modified by lighting them separately from the sitter, it could be a glow or a pool of light from a spotlight or some kind of graduation. There used to be a trend for painted backdrops, which had textured or cloud-like effects painted on them, but I think this tends to look dated these days.
Exterior backgrounds can work really well too, personally, I like to shoot on a long lens, with a wide aperture, that renders the background soft and out of focus.
How should I prepare myself for portrait photography?
You would probably want to make sure your hair looks good and tidy on the day, for women, I would suggest that you keep the makeup quite minimal and natural, as there is a huge amount that can be done in retouching these days, if the makeup is too heavy, it makes it very difficult to get a natural effect.
You need to assemble two or three different outfits that you like and feel comfortable in, as it’s always best to have alternative choices, plus not all outfits, work with all backgrounds.
Will the images be retouched?
Generally, all images will benefit from some retouching, even if it is just to even up the skin colour, which can sometimes go a little red and uneven under photographic lights.
