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A collection of stories. We are all about photography for those who are crazy in love and education for photographers who love capturing the madly in love.

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Photography Tips

10 Tips For Taking Beautiful & Interesting Portrait Photography

10 Tips For Taking Beautiful & Interesting Portrait Photography

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I often get asked, “How did you take that photo!?”  It’s something I haven’t really thought about until now. For me, taking a great bridal portrait is second nature. In the beginning however, consistent practice was key. Trying new subjects, setting, lighting, and ideas were all part of the process. Here are ten very quick tips for you to think about and utilize in your next photoshoot, whether it be a bridal portrait session, lifestyle session, or engagement shoot.

Tips For Taking Beautiful Portrait Photography Start With the Following:

1. Just be Yourself!
…Unless yourself is socially awkward, and harbours a dislike for the general public. Then I would suggest a blog on “finding a new career choice.” Joking aside, being myself is the most critical component to achieving a great photograph. Why? Because when I am myself, I am happy. I am outgoing and cheerful, and that helps me to connect with people. When you are taking a portrait, it’s not just a photograph. It’s a moment that is intended to capture the true ephemeral moment of joy, encapsulated in your subject’s personality! Being yourself allows people to relax and feel the real you, so you can capture the real them. It also makes for really fun photoshoots and the possibility of new friendships.  
2. Aperture 
It’s easy. Bigger the hole, the more light. The smaller the hole, less light. Shooting wide open apertures (like 1.2-2.8) allows for beautiful, shallow depth of field, focusing directly on your subject. As long as your subject is alone. If you have two subjects, try to make sure they are on the same line of height, so they are both in focus. If one subject is taller, you will need to move them back, or increase your aperture for a sharper image. Low apertures not only focus on the subject, but create intensely cool foreground blur and bokeh. (Bokeh: Re: little blobs of floaty things and background objects that become radiant balls of light)
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3. Backlighting is your friend! 
This takes a while to master. Heck, I still screw it up. Place your objects with the sun behind them. Nobody likes raccoon eyes. I mean, unless you do….This creates buttery soft backgrounds and just glows. Perfect for warming up an image or evoking a lovely, warm, romantic feel. 
4. Location Location Location! 
It’s true for real estate, and it’s true for photography. Your location could be an industrial yard. But…would that work with a couple who love horses & farming? Maybe not so much. Consider your subject and their interest. Try to incorporate something of interest or similarity. If it’s a practice session or creative session, think about the message you are trying to send. Dead twigs in the background say something different than vibrant, green grass. That can be good as well, but it is something to make note of. Some wonderful examples of how location can help tell the story of your couple and make your photos beautiful, look through some of my best work. 
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5. WardrobeAgain, try to coordinate your subject’s outfits. No, that doesn’t mean ask everyone to show up in a Canadian Tuxedo (If you don’t know what that is, that’s probably a good thing).

Try to incorporate their personalities, but have some tonal family matching as well.

6. Take Your Time

Nobody likes a photographer who rushes. When you get on scene, if you are having trouble getting the right image or exposure. Ask your subjects to just chat among themselves while you figure out what the hell you are doing. (I do it all the time!) Environments and lighting situations are always changing. Take a quick moment to adjust your settings and snap a few pictures. Once you get it right, you may come away with a few candids of your subjects just being their relaxed selves.

7. Find an Activity

Do something fun! Do your subjects like picnics? Horseback riding? Soccer? Embroidery? I don’t know. Find out who they are and try to incorporate a quick activity. This allows you to start the session by just hanging out doing something fun as a group. This will relax your subjects and also capture the real essence of who they are.

 

 

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8. Have a story to tell

If your session is a creative or practice session, don’t just snap pictures of a person. Put a theme and some conceptual thought into your session. Get some props. Maybe your theme is bohemian love, or country, whatever floats your boat, or theirs.

 

 

 

 

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9. Use the landscape around you to bounce light

Use the pavement if it’s light concrete, or a white wall to bounce the light back onto your subject. This helps expose their face evenly, particularly in more architectural or urban areas where the sun seems to disappear little sooner.

10. Expose for the subjects skin

Try to expose for your subject’s skin tone. This will help you when you are editing the images later. It’s tough to bring back skin tones unless they’ve been blown out or severely underexposed.

Other Sources That Offer Tips To Taking Beautiful Portraits:

  1. Kodak.com for many reliable ideas and a variety of sources
  2. PetaPixel for a more general approach
  3. Nikon for actual image references

Now get out there and practice until that trigger finger hurts!

xo

Nicole Sarah

www.nicolesarah.com 

Nicole Sarah Calgary Wedding Photography is a luxury wedding, engagement, and lifestyle photography studio.
While she shoots primarily in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, she is also based out of Los Angeles, California and Vancouver, as well as the United Kingdom.

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