30 tips for improving portrait photography

Portrait photography is often more captivating than other genres of photography because it often tells a story with just a glance.

Even if there are those who prefer naturalistic or landscape photography, I love photographing people, even if I realize that it is extremely difficult to "immortalize" the true story behind a subject in one shot.

This is the reason that prompted me to write this article in which I tried to put together some tips , applicable to most situations, which can put us on the right path to obtaining excellent photographic portraits . Let's see them together.

1 - The light

Light is everything and it is the most important thing in a photograph. The perfect location, pose or interesting composition is nothing without light! There is always a need for light to be able to photograph and one of the most difficult things in photography is finding a good light, an interesting light, not too strong but not too dim, warm but not too much. A good photo always starts with good light.

When you begin to understand the differences between “normal” and “good” light, your photographs and photographic portraits will noticeably improve. Don't worry if they will make fun of you when they hear you say “Here, this is the light I was looking for! Let's shoot…” or similar phrases, it is the normal behavior of every photographer to look for the “perfect” light.

2 - Time of day

One way to capture good light and obtain excellent photographic portraits is to shoot when the sun is low on the horizon, i.e. from 1 hour before sunset or up to 1 hour after sunrise. Photographers like to refer to this hour as the "golden hour ". The sun is low, the light is not as strong as during the day and the light temperature is warm and perfect for portraits.

You will hardly take photo sessions at dawn , 99% of the time you will shoot at sunset but I guarantee you that the dawn is perfect for photographing. First of all you won't have to run because the sun rises and doesn't set so you won't be in a hurry to shoot, at most the light will become clearer and stronger but you certainly won't be left in the dark. Another advantage of dawn is that in certain periods of the year you can find a light haze (somewhere even fog) which will give a sort of magic to your portraits. Seeing is believing!

3 - Taken after the rain

Another very interesting situation for taking excellent photographic portraits and finding a unique light is after the rain . When the clouds start to clear, you'll find a soft, diffused light, perfect for capturing your subject. If there's a storm forecast, don't cancel your photo session. Wait for the storm to end and for the first rays of the sun to go out and shoot, it will certainly be worth it. Of course, if the weather announces rain for a week it's better to stay at home and drink a cup of hot chocolate!

4 - Stay "tight"

I often do photographic portraits that have too much space around the subject and I'm forced in post-production to cut the image to remove unnecessary space. My advice is to stay close to the subject to capture more details of his gaze and to create a decidedly more intimate and seductive portrait. Resist the temptation to back away and capture only the interested subject as much as possible.

5 - Let "breath" beyond the gaze

If you are photographing your subject in profile or slightly to the side, don't place the face exactly in the center of the frame, put it slightly to one side trying to follow the rule of thirds. Furthermore, the eye must go towards the part of the image that remains empty in order not to "choke" the image. Let "breath" beyond the gaze to give a sense of depth to the image.

6 - Help yourself with the natural frames and guidelines

To help the observer focus his vision on your subject, help yourself with the elements you find in the environment in order to create a sort of natural " frame " in which you will position the subject. Use basic elements such as doors or windows to direct the viewer's gaze inside where your subject will be.

In the middle of nature you can use an opening in the bushes or a branch at the end of which we will find the subject. They are called guidelines precisely because they guide the viewer's gaze to what really matters in the image. You can use roads, sidewalks, branches, or anything else that takes your eye directly to the subject.

7 - Use a long focal length lens

Portrait photography usually suggests the use of a lens with a long focal length, at least 85mm, preferably 100mm or more. Many fashion photographers use the 70-200 telephoto lens zoomed to 200mm almost all the time. Unlike the wide angle, a telephoto lens does not distort the features of the face, which is certainly not appreciated by our subject.

Lenses with a long focal length also blur the background of the image, giving more importance to your subject. Even with a cheap KIT lens, with an aperture of F/5.6 at 200mm you can achieve this effect, you don't necessarily need an expensive lens. But be careful to always keep your subject in focus otherwise the blur in the background would no longer matter.

8 - …or even a short focal length lens but not too much!

If you find yourself in the situation where you have to photograph people inside a house or an office, the telephoto lens is obviously not usable. For this reason you can also use shorter focal lengths such as 50mm or at most 35mm. Do not go below this value and in any case, try not to get too close to the subject. These lenses tend to squash the subject and make him plump, which is not pleasant to see.

9 - Use the aperture wide open

In portrait photography, using a wide aperture with an aperture of f/1.2 or f/1.4 (if your lens allows it), not only will it let in a lot of light into the camera, reducing shutter speed and consequently the blur effect, but it will limit the depth of field to a minimum, also creating a pleasant “bokeh” effect in which you will see the background completely out of focus, highlighting the subject.

Just be careful what you focus on because with a wide aperture the depth of field is limited to a few centimetres! Always focus on the eye closest to you.

10 - Look for a large window

Photographers love windows ! The windows spread the sunlight beautifully. If you have a window facing north or south, it's even better because you'll have more light throughout the day. Keep the subject not too close to the window so that the shadows are not too sharp and the light is not too harsh, possibly you can use a light white curtain to create a natural diffuser. Natural light from windows is a photographers best friend!

11 - Simplify the background

In photographic portraits your subject is the only and main element of the photograph, everything else is just distracting. Whenever you find yourself taking a portrait, always look at how and where to position it so as to have as few things in the background as possible. You don't need to look for a blank wall and it would probably be trivial, just try not to include too many elements. Your subject is the protagonist, not the environment around him. In this case the motto " less is more " is absolutely valid.

12 - Pay attention to the position of the sun

If you are photographing outdoors it is natural to position your subject so that the sun is in front of him and that he is completely enveloped in light. However, this will make your subject close their eyes and the portraits will not look natural, the sunlight is too strong and it is normal to squint when facing sunlight. My advice is to put the sun on the side of the subject (or even behind), but you will need to use a reflector panel that will help you "bounce" the light on the subject, illuminating it without blinding it. In addition to facilitating the gaze of the subject, the reflective panel will illuminate any hard shadows that are usually created when there is too much sun in the central hours of the day.

13 - Make the subject the brightest part of the photo

To draw the viewer's eye to your subject, try to make it the lightest and brightest part of the image . Carefully choose a background that is dark enough and not too colorful, you don't need to go into a cave, just pay a little attention to what surrounds you to surely find the background that's right for you.

14 - In photographic portraits the eyes ARE always in focus

The eyes are the most important part of a photographic portrait. Eyes are expressive and speak for themselves, which is why they need to be the sharpest and most focused part of your portrait. If you place the subject slightly in profile, the focus should be placed on the eye closest to you, never on the one further away. If you don't like a portrait with only one eye perfectly in focus, turn your subject slightly or stop down more for more depth of field. Watch out for the shutter speed though!

15 - Crouch down to portray the children

If you have to photograph children, do not stand but lower yourself to their level by kneeling or sitting. In this way you will have 2 advantages: you will be able to include the horizon behind the subject and not only the land which is not exactly pleasant to see but above all you will be able to take a picture from their point of view giving the subject more strength within the photography.

16 - Use a tripod and remote shooting

Try capturing portraits by putting your camera on a tripod and using a wireless remote control to shoot. This technique will not only stabilize your camera, it will ensure a perfectly sharp image and above all it will allow you to "step out" from behind the camera and interact with your subject in a natural way.

This technique is often used for photographic portraits of children. You can make them laugh and interact directly with them while you take pictures without their knowledge, immortalizing extremely natural smiles and expressions. Seeing is believing.

17 - Turn off the lights

If you are photographing inside a building, turn off all artificial lights and use only the light from the window or, if there is no natural light, the light from your flash. In this way you will solve the problem of the multiple color temperatures that usually occur with the lights of the chandeliers (tungsten) which tend to be very warm and saturate your subject with red.

With natural light or flash, the effect will be more natural and you won't have to struggle too much in post-production.

18 - Use a fast shutter speed

Whenever possible, use a shutter speed as fast as possible, especially if you are photographing children. Unless you want to look for a creative blur, which is also pleasant in photos of children, the shutter speed to be used should be at least 1/200 sec. or even faster.

Even if they seem stationary they can move at any moment and with a long shutter speed I guarantee you that you won't even be able to take a decently focused shot.

19 - Don't be afraid to increase the ISO sensitivity

If you've followed the previous tip but can't get a relatively fast shutter speed even though the aperture is wide open, increase the ISO sensitivity. Many photographers are afraid to increase this value because they are afraid of ruining the photograph due to noise.

Don't be afraid, in case of low light increase the ISO sensitivity even up to 3200 or 6400 in order to have a fast shot and for this reason perfectly in focus. It's always better to have a sharp shot with noise than not having the shot because it is completely blurry and unrecognizable!

20 - Try black and white

Changing the color of your black and white photograph is a good way to focus more on the expression of the subject. Whenever I take a good portrait I also always try to convert it to black and white and I often prefer that. In particular, the photographic portraits of elderly people, with faces dug by the fatigue of life, are much more emphasized if converted to black and white. This conversion is also very useful if you have used a very high ISO sensitivity because it "disguises" the noise created.

21 - Shot from different angles

A step or two to the right or left can completely change a photograph. Walk around your subject and capture them from different angles, don't stop to photograph them in front. You will realize that each subject is different, who looks better in profile, who faces. Always look for different perspectives, move and experiment with different positions.

22 - Bokeh balls

If you are shooting in low light, pay attention to all the small light sources around the subject you are photographing. Lampposts, headlights, car stop lights and any other little lights can be transformed into a nice effect called “bokeh balls” that can give a creative touch to your portrait. You will only get this effect if the light sources are far from your subject, furthermore you need a good out of focus background therefore try to keep the aperture open as much as possible to obtain this effect.

23 - Always have an external flash ready

It is obvious that natural light is always preferable in photographic portraits, but when we are faced with situations of low light (I am referring, for example, to photographs at home) we always keep an external flash ready and charged. I'm referring to an external flash and not the one included with the camera because built-in flashes are completely out of control. It's true, sometimes they save our photography and they can help us but they don't have the possibility of being controlled manually or even positioned as we want, they shoot a light (not even that powerful) and that's it.

The external flash, on the other hand, has the possibility of being controlled 100% manually, we can reduce the light thrown but the best thing is that we can tilt it by directing the light beam towards a wall or ceiling. Light reflected off the walls is much softer than light shot directly at your subject's face and will make for a more enjoyable portrait. Additionally, external flashes can be detached from the camera and controlled wirelessly, giving the photographer the ability to place them anywhere around the subject to create unique effects. Always keep one ready and loaded in the drawer!

24 - Shoot every day for practice

In order to learn new techniques and understand how you can improve your portrait photography, shoot and experiment every day with friends and family. Change the settings, open the aperture, increase the ISO and keep the shutter speed short, then change everything and see how the photos change as your camera settings change. Only by experimenting will you learn faster and remember…you learn by making mistakes!!!

25 - Capture natural expressions

This is one of the more difficult tips to follow in a portrait photography session. Try to capture as natural an expression in your subjects as possible. Asking people to smile will lead you to capture a fake smile. Try to interact with the subject making him relax and feel at ease, talk, make him laugh and try to distract him from your camera.

In portrait photography, putting the subject at ease is not something everyone can achieve. It takes patience and a good skill in interacting with people, the usual "cheese" is not enough. Try it and you will see that your portraits will take on an incredible naturalness.

26 - Look beyond the viewfinder

This tip is especially true if you are shooting portrait photography in a busy environment such as a square or busy street. Don't just look inside the camera's viewfinder, before shooting and after interacting with the subject making him feel at ease, take a quick look at everything around the subject so you don't find yourself shooting with disturbing elements they enter the image at the last instant.

For example, I am referring to cars crossing the road or other people who suddenly appear out of nowhere ruining your photograph. Always have a look all around you and don't focus only on the subject. Also keep an eye on the objects behind the subject, it's not nice to see a light pole or a tree appearing behind the head of the person you are capturing.

27 - Also look for the shadows

Photography needs light, in most of these suggestions we only talk about light and light sources but know that for a good portrait you also need shadow. Shadow gives dimension, shape and depth to your subject, without it your portrait will look flat and uninteresting. Don't eliminate it completely, the shadow in portraits can do as much, if not more, than the light!

28 - Pay attention to clothing

If possible, have your subject wear neutral or dark clothes to avoid the dress stealing the show from the gaze and to ensure that colored reflections in the eyes of the person immortalized are avoided. It is the look that must speak and the color of the eyes must be as natural as possible, avoiding being influenced by bright colors worn by the subject.

29 - Use a post-production as natural as possible

We live in the era of photoshop and often exaggerated post-production, I see more and more portraits in magazines with matte, faded, vintage filters and with all the most creative filters possible. My advice is to post-produce your portrait in the most natural way possible, make a good white balance to make the skin natural but don't go too far with the creativity of the processing. A beautiful face is beautiful natural, not too retouched.

30 - Take care of the relationship with the subject

Last but not least advice, indeed perhaps it is the most important, is to take care of your relationship with the subject you are photographing as much as possible. In photographic portraits, as in all genres, the technique is very important but it is the relationship that is created with the subject that will make your portrait much more interesting by bringing out all the naturalness possible in the person you are immortalizing.

Your relationship with the subject should begin well before the shutter is released and continue well after the photo session. The best portrait photographers are masters of entertaining their subjects. It's not easy, but don't underestimate the power of a personal connection with your subject in order to get a much better portrait.