Composition skills of portrait photography

What is portrait photography? What are the composition techniques? Portrait photography is a form of photography with characters as the main creative object. Below I have sorted out the portrait photography skills for your reference!

Composition skills of portrait photography

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Portrait close-up refers to a picture that only includes the head of the subject (or most of the head has eyes), and its main purpose is to show the facial features of the subject. At this time, because the facial image of the subject occupies the whole picture, the visual impression to the audience is particularly strong, and the requirements for the selection of shooting angle, the use of light, the mastery of expression and the expression of texture are more stringent. In particular, photographers should carefully study all artistic means related to photographic modeling.

Whether it is a 35 mm camera or a 120 camera, it is difficult and incorrect to take close-ups with standard lenses. Because the close-up of the head must be very close to the subject, the distance from the nose to the camera is shorter than the distance from the forehead, chin and ears to the camera when shooting a portrait at close range, and the nose appears very large in the photo, which is easy to distort the facial image of the subject. At the same time, if the subject bows his head slightly, his forehead will look big and his chin will look short; Looking up slightly, the chin will look long and the forehead will look small. So it's best to shoot with a medium-long focal length lens. In that case, the distance between the camera and the subject can be a little farther to avoid perspective deformation.

Nearby scenery

Close-range portraits include the images of the head and chest of the recipients, which mainly show the facial features of the characters. The background environment only accounts for a very small part of the picture and only plays a role in setting off the characters. Close-up portraits can also make the image of the subject give a strong impression on the audience. At the same time, close-range portraits can also contain a little background in the picture than close-ups, which can often play a role in explaining the environment and beautifying the picture. Of course, it is best to take a close-up shot with a medium-long focal length lens.

When shooting close-range portraits, you should also carefully choose the shooting angle. The direction of light projection, the softness and hardness of light properties, and pay attention to the attitude of the subject to master the appropriate shooting moment.

One side of the body

Busts usually go from the subject's head to the waist, or below the waist and above the knee. In addition to facial features, they usually include hand movements. Bust has more space than close-up or close-up portrait, so it can show more background environment and make the composition more changeable. At the same time, because the picture contains the hand of the subject, it can help to express the inner state of the subject with the help of hand movements. Experienced portrait photographers pay great attention to the posture and movements of the subject's hands.

Because the bust can be shot at or below the waist of the person, the posture change of the subject is much richer, which brings great convenience to the composition of the picture and enables us to shoot the subject more vividly.

whole body

The full-length image includes the whole figure and appearance of the subject, and at the same time accommodates a considerable environment, so that the image of the character and the characteristics of the background environment are combined with each other to get proper performance.

When shooting a full-length portrait, we should pay special attention to the combination of characters and backgrounds, as well as the handling of the subject's posture.