Three (and a half) Tips for Posing Your Subject for Portrait Shots
Based on a conversation with professional photographer Bob Thomson
If you have ever been asked to take photos of people, be it for friends or family, or even for a wedding or other more formal occasion, these tips will improve your images with outstanding results. Knowing how to pose your subject is half the battle. Once you are comfortable with what shots to take and getting your model to do what you want, you can then focus on getting your lighting and camera settings right.
No matter how amateur or professional you are, I’m almost certain Bob Thomson will be able to demonstrate to you something that you had not heard before! I had the pleasure of interviewing Bob and getting down to the nitty gritty and he gave me his top 3 tips on the subject. I have had many conversations with Bob in the past and I can assure you that he has given me more practical help with my photography than any other person or medium. (He is a member of my Camera Club, and always willing to help).
Bob was more than willing to share a few great tips (including ‘get a good looking model’ ha!) so that all of your people shots, whether professional models, glamour shots or family portraits are the best that they can be.
1. Let’s Be a Team and Get Close
If you want to make the most of your portrait shots, it is imperative that your model is comfortable with what you are doing and knows how to work with you as part of the team. You will need to be the director of the shoot and stay confident but keep the model relaxed. The best way to achieve this is to explain what you want from the image for the final outcome, including what the images are to be used for. This may vary from set to set, and it means explaining the mood and style of each image. If you want to use an image for a magazine article about abused women, then let them know. Just saying look sad, dark and sombre may not give them the true look you are after. They will often come up with their own pose that you had not thought of and this could improve your results dramatically. Your models, whether paid or volunteering, need to be treated with respect as they are working just as hard as you and will give you much better results if you work as a team and make them feel part of the shoot.
If the subjects are posing for their family portrait, you need to ask them what their goals are and how they will be displaying the images. If it is for their wall, what is the theme of the room? A formal room might require some standard formal shots, and a rumpus room or bar might call for some fun shots. The use of Cue Cards or Sheets is a great way to help your subject pose in addition to lending you a helping hand in remembering the poses you want to achieve. Remember it is up to you to give the person who is paying you exactly what they want, regardless of whether or not they are your favourite poses.
If you want your subject to be interesting to the viewer, then it is important to shoot close, eliminating the clutter that can distract from the main subject, the model. To do this you need to fill the viewfinder and don’t leave unnecessary background in the frame. Use your image to fill the frame with your subject and only leave in background when you want to include the surroundings or other props to tell a story, such as an environmental portrait. If necessary, you may need to bring your model forward, away from the clutter, and use a larger f/stop to ensure the background is slightly blurred and this will enhance the model.
2. Use Your Camera and See the Light
I know…I know…your thinking “Well of course I’m going to use my camera”. The difference here is that we mean take control and use all the functions that your camera has to make it the best possible shot. Are you adjusting your ISO, white balance and metering? Do you know how? You really need to get to know your camera and how it works so that you are in control of the shot you want to take, and not just leaving it up to the designer of your camera.
Once you have your model understanding the type of shots you want, including the final outcome and you know how to use your camera, you are almost there. Now you need to set your model up with the best lighting. “Find the light and put the people into it” is one well known way of saying it. You either need to find a great outdoor spot with great lighting (and this is another topic for another time), or you need to find/make artificial light and use this to the best of your ability. For outdoor posing, if you have a bright sunny day, then you will have unavoidable harsh shadows. A simple piece of tin foil out of the picnic basket or a white sheet of paper is all you need to use as a reflector to fill those shadows and give some detail to that side of the face. For indoor shots you may need to use your flash, although you never want to direct it at the subjects face. Always point it above or to the side of the face and better still, use your flash ‘off camera’ if possible with a remote trigger.
Altf16.com.au has some great workshops on the Central Coast NSW and these will soon be available online as well as live to enable you to really get to know your equipment and ‘off camera lighting’ to go out and practice these techniques.
3. Don’t Get Too Nosey
You can inappropriately distort features by using the wrong lens. If you’re using a 28mm lens and your in close, the nose can look large, the face can look like it is coming out at you and out of shape. The simple answer is that by using a 50mm to 80mm range it should prevent most of your distortion and most portrait photographers would stick within this range. You want your images to enhance your subject, not make them look like they are exploding off the page at you.
3 ½. Shoot them but don’t cut them up
When you are taking shots from the waist up, make sure you don’t crop them at a point that ‘cuts anything off’. You need to consider where you will crop each photo. Some of this can be done on your computer, but it is always better to aim for the perfect shot while you are framing the model at the shoot, rather than spending hours in front of the computer. Don’t crop them by making them look like they have been chopped in half or had an arm cut off. Take into account any clothing, accessories or jewellery and if you are not sure where to crop, then move around and take a few different angles and you are sure to get one that is able to be cropped in the right position.
If the subjects are posing for their family portrait, you need to ask them what their goals are and how they will be displaying the images. If it is for their wall, what is the theme of the room? A formal room might require some standard formal shots, and a rumpus room or bar might call for some fun shots. The use of Cue Cards or Sheets is a great way to help your subject pose in addition to lending you a helping hand in remembering the poses you want to achieve. Remember it is up to you to give the person who is paying you exactly what they want, regardless of whether or not they are your favourite poses.
If you want your subject to be interesting to the viewer, then it is important to shoot close, eliminating the clutter that can distract from the main subject, the model. To do this you need to fill the viewfinder and don’t leave unnecessary background in the frame. Use your image to fill the frame with your subject and only leave in background when you want to include the surroundings or other props to tell a story, such as an environmental portrait. If necessary, you may need to bring your model forward, away from the clutter, and use a larger f/stop to ensure the background is slightly blurred and this will enhance the model.
2. Use Your Camera and See the Light
I know…I know…your thinking “Well of course I’m going to use my camera”. The difference here is that we mean take control and use all the functions that your camera has to make it the best possible shot. Are you adjusting your ISO, white balance and metering? Do you know how? You really need to get to know your camera and how it works so that you are in control of the shot you want to take, and not just leaving it up to the designer of your camera.
Once you have your model understanding the type of shots you want, including the final outcome and you know how to use your camera, you are almost there. Now you need to set your model up with the best lighting. “Find the light and put the people into it” is one well known way of saying it. You either need to find a great outdoor spot with great lighting (and this is another topic for another time), or you need to find/make artificial light and use this to the best of your ability. For outdoor posing, if you have a bright sunny day, then you will have unavoidable harsh shadows. A simple piece of tin foil out of the picnic basket or a white sheet of paper is all you need to use as a reflector to fill those shadows and give some detail to that side of the face. For indoor shots you may need to use your flash, although you never want to direct it at the subjects face. Always point it above or to the side of the face and better still, use your flash ‘off camera’ if possible with a remote trigger.
Altf16.com.au has some great workshops on the Central Coast NSW and these will soon be available online as well as live to enable you to really get to know your equipment and ‘off camera lighting’ to go out and practice these techniques.
3. Don’t Get Too Nosey
You can inappropriately distort features by using the wrong lens. If you’re using a 28mm lens and your in close, the nose can look large, the face can look like it is coming out at you and out of shape. The simple answer is that by using a 50mm to 80mm range it should prevent most of your distortion and most portrait photographers would stick within this range. You want your images to enhance your subject, not make them look like they are exploding off the page at you.
3 ½. Shoot them but don’t cut them up
When you are taking shots from the waist up, make sure you don’t crop them at a point that ‘cuts anything off’. You need to consider where you will crop each photo. Some of this can be done on your computer, but it is always better to aim for the perfect shot while you are framing the model at the shoot, rather than spending hours in front of the computer. Don’t crop them by making them look like they have been chopped in half or had an arm cut off. Take into account any clothing, accessories or jewellery and if you are not sure where to crop, then move around and take a few different angles and you are sure to get one that is able to be cropped in the right position.
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