The Art of Taking Candid Portraits

Location: Where the photography is going to take place? Is it indoors or outdoors? If it is indoors, is it a residential setup or a corporate office? How much light is available and what types of lights are these, tungsten, fluorescent or combination of both?

Also, keep in mind that when you are required to travel outside city, carrying additional equipment will be cumbersome and you may have to incur additional costs in transporting it.

Outdoor location photo-shoots are more challenging as the local weather conditions may throw some new surprise elements. What time of the day you will shoot depends on the subject or model's comfort level, attire and your own expertise in handling the situations. Most of the professional photographs, shoot on locations that are popular like beaches and in front of famous monuments like Taj Mahal, Leaning Tower of Pisa etc. In order, to avoid excessive glare of the sun, many professionals shoot in the 'golden hours'. The hour after sunrise and before sunset are considered good, as there are no hard shadows and the temperature also more soothing.

During noon time, with the sun blazing overhead, you can experiment with large diffusers available commercially or you can get them custom-made as per your requirements and specifications.

Light: Photography is all about light. Whether you are shooting indoors or outdoors, the light will play a crucial role in the final results. There is a limitation to the amount of post production manipulation that you can undertake in editing software like Adobe Photo Shop. One of the best sources is the natural light: Sun. The best of the portrait photographs can be taken in natural light with couple of reflectors and maybe diffusers. How the reflectors and the diffusers are used, depends entirely on your creativity and the results expected from the photo-shoot.

Artificial lights can be tungsten or fluorescent. You will have to transport the lights and may require assistance from your friend or hired helping hands.

Another, manner in which portraits are shot is using a dedicated external flash unit, either mounted on the hot-shoe of the camera or off the camera using a trigger. The direction of the light will make lot of impact on the final result. In most of the cases, you can bounce the light from the white ceiling or in some cases, from a white sheet of plastic or board.

Subject: A lot depends on the subject who will be photographed. Are you clicking formal photographs or informal ones? Are you shooting a man, woman or a child? What mood are you trying to capture? There are many points and issues that have to be addressed, before you can embark on portrait photography.

Capturing the mood is the key to good portrait photography. One of the key points is to communicate openly with the model or person who is going to be photographed. There are entire books written on this subject and investing in some of them will be a good move.

Portrait photography is rewarding monetarily as well as creatively. You can explore, the various styles of other renowned photographers and develop your own unique style to create visually arresting images, that are cherished by your subjects as well as you feel proud to add to your portfolio.

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Using Your Digital SLR To Take Professional Quality Portraits

Portrait photography can be one of the most satisfying forms for an enthusiastic amateur. The tips below can be of use whether you are using a digital compact, a digital SLR camera or fully manual SLR.

Simplicity
Background clutter will interfere with a good portrait. Similarly, use natural light where you can and if you must use artificial lighting, use as few as possible.

Preparation
So you don't keep your subject waiting, know which your location you're using or, if in a studio have the lighting set up and the camera ready. Do some test shots before your subject arrives so that when they do turn up they won't have to wait while you fiddle around.

Composition
It is important to be master the rules before you choose to break them and one of the primary ones governing composition is the rule of thirds, which deals with where focal points, or the points of interest, should be placed in a photograph.

In portrait photography, the primary area of interest is the eyes. Experiment by putting the eyes in the middle and then off centre to see for yourself. It can help if you imagine drawing a grid across your photograph, i.e. two vertical lines down and two horizontal drawn across the image, dividing it into nine squares. The four corners of the middle square in the grid are better locations for your areas of interest than within the square itself.

Again, experiment. In some shots, it might be best to place your subject dead centre, in others, on one edge.

Eye contact
The direction of a subject's eyes has an enormous effect on a photograph. Having the subject return the gaze of the photographer can give a sense of connection for those viewing the image. Equally, however, focusing on something else can give a sense of mystery and engages the viewer in speculating as to what they are looking at, and what it is that is interesting them, amusing them or surprising them. An alternative is to have your subject looking at someone or something within the shot, which sets up a relationship or a story within the image and gives a second point of interest.

Perspective
Portraits are most commonly taken at the same eye level as the subject. Playing around with the angle can give a completely perspective, literally and metaphorically, on the subject. For example, shooting down on your subject from above, or up at them from ground level can affect the viewer's perceptions of the subject's power or vulnerability.

Lighting
It's worth experimenting with this as there are boundless possibilities when it comes to lighting your subject. Silhouetting, back-lighting and side-lighting can enhance the atmosphere you are trying to create by enhancing or hiding your subject's features.

In action
Posed portraiture can look very unnatural. Photographing a subject doing something they love, or spending time with friends or family can result in a much more natural image, especially if you can lurk in the background using a powerful zoom lens. This works well with people who are particularly self conscious and with children.

Props
Adding a prop can both add an insight to the subject and give the eye another point of interest within the image.

Close ups
A close up on a body part can be a powerful way of photographing a subject. A section of the face, the hands or the feet can speak volumes about what has been left out.

Covering up
Obscuring part of your subject's face or body is another way to draw attention to or away from parts of your subject.

Continuous shooting
Firing a number of shots at a time gives you either a series of images or can help you achieve one which is natural when you are photographing somebody engaged in an activity or fidgety children.

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