Portrait photography skills

Lead: Top professional photographers Brett Harkness and Jeff Meyer shared some basic skills of perfect portrait photography with us.

Let's take a look at the equipment of photographer Brett first.

When shooting portraits, Brett used a Canon EOS- 1Ds Mark III, equipped with Canon EF 16-35mm f/2.8L II USM, Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L USM, and Canon EF 50mm f/ 1.2L USM. In addition, he is equipped with several Lastolite reflectors, two Canon Speedlite flashlights and a belt kit for creative tanks, which can be used to install various devices of different sizes like Batman's belt.

1, break through the limit

Practical conditions such as space and light may limit our creativity in taking group photos. When taking group photos, we also need to consider everyone's tastes in composition. First, let everyone's face be clearly visible, then be creative and try to show everyone's personality.

When taking a group photo, you can divide people into several groups to show different personalities, but make sure that you have reached an agreement before doing so. If customers want some safe works, it is best not to try clever composition methods.

Before taking a group photo, try to ask everyone's opinion, their position, action and some props.

2. Snapshot when taking a group photo

Taking a group photo is a good opportunity to train the level of snapshot.

It is not easy for a large group of people to pose, especially when there are children and babies, and they will soon lose patience. To take a perfect picture, you need to be sensitive to everyone's state and get rid of them.

Brett mentioned his recent experience of taking pictures of his family at the beach. Their oldest is 85 years old and the youngest is only 7 years old.

Because the grandmother at home didn't have enough energy to stand for a long time, Brett chose to put a chair in the middle of the picture, with grandma sitting on it and other family members around her.

This attention to each theme can usually bring you some extra creative ways to take very attractive photos.

3. Humor makes people relax

Someone was twenty minutes late for the group photo. A little teasing the latecomers will make everyone more relaxed. When everyone is amused by you, staring at the latecomers and laughing, it is a good opportunity to take a snapshot. Doing so can close the distance between you and the subject, and also help you to take excellent photos.

Step 4 pay attention to composition

Some families are prosperous and have a large number of people, so it is really difficult for them to stand together and take photos without making the picture crowded.

In this case, you can try to use fences, gates, etc. As a constituent element. Let the children sit in the front and the adults stand in the back to increase the level of the picture. At the same time, these extra elements can also be used as a frame in the picture.

5. Get the role moving

Whether taking a group photo or a single photo, a creative and good way is to put the subjects in a suitable environment and let them decide what to do.

Take Brett's recent shooting as an example. There is a French door at the shooting scene. He opened the door and cleaned the things behind it. Then he put a small wooden chair in the middle of the porch and focused the camera on the chair.

He told the two little boys who were photographed secretly that they could play in the chair at will while filming. At first, two little boys wanted to sit in the chair, but later they changed their minds and wanted to sit in front of the chair. ? The chair became the focus of the shoot. Brett said. ? The pictures look the same, but each one is different. It feels like looking through an animated book. ?

6, the performance of the relationship between people

Photographs of subjects and puppies reflect more content than simple portrait photography.

When taking a single photo, consider how to deal with the composition if a second person appears in the picture. Taking pictures of two people means that there is a second point of interest in the picture. At this time, the focus of consideration becomes how to reflect the relationship between the two.

Photographs of subjects and puppies reflect more content than simple portrait photography. When shooting, try to make the subject more relaxed. It's a good idea to shoot close to the subject with a focal lens. At this distance, the subject can already see his own shadow reflected in the lens. Especially children, prefer this effect, which can shorten the distance. They may sit down and stare at the camera, which is a good opportunity to catch their big eyes. Such photos can better reflect the true character of the subject.

7. A little closer

? 8. Tell stories

The grouping of men left and women right is too simple. Think about how to arrange the characters in the picture to tell their stories. For example, as mentioned just now, if you want to highlight someone's position in the family, you can let him sit in the chair in the center of the picture and let other family members sit around him.

9. Choose the focus

Taking a group photo in bad weather is the most difficult thing. At least f/8 aperture is needed for group photo shooting to get enough depth of field. However, in winter when the lighting conditions are not ideal, if you want to shoot with such an aperture, you must improve the sensitivity setting of the camera.

If the lighting conditions make you helpless, try to arrange everyone in the same focal plane, so that you don't have to turn off the aperture so small to ensure the depth of field.

10, select the most suitable shooting angle.

When taking group photos, it is inevitable that different tall and thin people will be put together. Shooting from a lower angle can satisfy everyone, but if there are elderly people in the subject, that is another matter. When taking pictures of people of different ages, we should choose different angles and ways according to people's characteristics. For example, when shooting the elderly, the composition of the photos needs to be more stable.

Expert opinion

? When taking a single photo, you can put the characters in the middle of the picture or on both sides of the picture. Brett said,? But when dealing with the background, I either shoot from a height so that the horizon is higher than the figure, or lie on the grass and shoot up. How many portraits have you seen from a normal angle? The photos taken with the sky as a high-profile background can satisfy everyone. I hope my photos can be different. ?