Self Portrait and Portaits Part I

Shoot Candidly

Sometimes posed shots can look somewhat…. posed. Some people don’t look good in a posed environment and so switching to a candid type approach can work.

Photograph your subject at work, with family or doing something that they love. This will put them more at ease and you can end up getting some special shots with them reacting naturally to the situation that they are in. You might even want to grab a longer zoom lens to take you out of their immediate zone and get really paparazzi with them.

I find that this can particularly work when photographing children. (http://digital-photography-school.com/10-ways-to-take-stunning-portraits)

Experiment with Lighting

Another element of randomness that you can introduce to your portraits is the way that you light them. There are almost unlimited possibilities when it comes to using light in portraits.

Side-lighting can create mood, backlighting and silhouetting your subject to hide their features can be powerful. (http://digital-photography-school.com/10-ways-to-take-stunning-portraits)

Find an Interesting Subject

I have a friend who regularly goes out on the streets around Melbourne looking for interesting people to photograph.

When he finds someone that he finds interesting he approaches them, asks if they’d pose for him, he quickly finds a suitable background and then shoots off a handful of shots quickly (if they give him permission of course).

The result is that he has the most wonderful collection of photographs of people of all ages, ethnicities and backgrounds.

While many of us spend most of our time photographing our loved ones – perhaps it’d be an interesting exercise to shoot interesting strangers once in a while? (http://digital-photography-school.com/tips-portrait-photography)

I like these pictures because the background is very nice and i like how there is a lot of repetition. I chose them because the first man is doing is work and there are button up shirts in the back, which is probably his job and the second man is sipping his wine in front of some wine barrels. They both look really nice and interesting. I like how the background is an important part of the picture.

I like these pictures because its a neutral background and it brings more attention to the subject. It also makes the picture easier to look at which is why I chose these pictures.

I chose this picture because I like the colors and how rule of thirds is used. I also like how the subject isn't looking directly at the camera.

I also like the colors in the picture and I like how the subject is posed.

I will try to take photos of my friends probably and I will take them outside of school. I will make sure that the ISO, aperture and shutter speed are all good before I take a picture and I will incorporate the rules of photography.