Photography News Issue 51

Photography News | Issue 51 | photographynews.co.uk

Technique 16

Five easy steps to better people pictures Portrait basics Want to improve your portrait photography this year? Here are five simple ways in which you can do it – as well as tips on breaking the tried-and-tested rules when situations allow

Words and pictures by Kingsley Singleton

1. Pick up some portrait gear

2. Keep it sharp

You can shoot very good portraits with a typical 18-55mm kit lens, but investing in portrait-specific glass will pay off in the long run, so the first thing you should look at is getting a portrait lens. Portrait lenses tend to offer focal lengths from 85mm to 135mm on full-frame cameras, or 50mm to 90mm on cameras with a cropped sensor. These focal lengths feature very little distortion meaning facial features look natural and they commonly have very wide maximum apertures, such as f/1.4, f/1.8 or f/2, making it easier to blur the background. Using a longer lens, like a 150mm or 200mm for example, will give a good look, too, but you’re likely to need to stand further from the subject, so there’s not such an easy connection with your model. You’ll also want to take some steps to control lighting, either improving on what’s in the scene or adding your own. For the former all you need is a collapsible reflector, such as Pixapro’s 100x150cm 5-in-1 Reflector with Grip Handles (£32). This will help you create even, shadow-free lighting and fill in shadows by bouncing the light back onto the subject. 5-in-1 reflectors will also include a diffuser that can be used to soften direct light. If you need to add your own light, it can be done with flash or continuous lighting gear, both indoors and on location as you’ll find out in this month’s Buyers’ Guide, starting on page 32. Used correctly, a single flashgun can improve portrait shots enormously; and for very little outlay you can get a kit with two or more flash heads that will give you complete control of illumination.

Control the depth-of-field

One of the things that often marks out a successful portrait is precise control over depth-of-field – the amount of the scene that’s kept sharp. There’s no magic aperture for portraits, but it can often help to shoot ‘wide open’, using a large aperture or a low f/number. This setting will create a shallow depth- of-field in the picture and if you focus accurately on the subject, they will in turn stand out clearly from a blurred background. Using a shallow depth-of-field is particularly useful when the backdrop is distracting. Setting a wide aperture also lets more light into the camera, and that means it’s easier to use a fast shutter speed, thereby helping you to keep the subject sharp and free from motion blur. For full control of aperture it’s best to shoot in aperture- priority (A or Av). If you’re using a lens with a variable aperture, like an 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 or 18- 105mm f/3.5-5.6, you’ll be restricted in what aperture you can use as you zoom in, but f/5.6 will still allow you to create lots of

blur when the lens is used at its longest focal length setting. The same goes for any lens; the longer the focal length, the shallower the depth-of-field will appear to be. BREAK THE RULE Of course, when the scenery is important in framing the subject, or when you’re shooting an environmental portrait, you may want to use smaller apertures (higher f/numbers) and/or shorter focal lengths for a wider view that shows more of your subject’s surroundings, giving them some context. There’s no magic aperture for portraits, but it can often help to shoot ‘wide open’, using a large aperture

Above Depth-of-field is very important in portraits; blurring the background isolates the subject and removes distractions – but sometimes you’ll want to keep the backdrop in focus, especially if the subject is interacting with it. Shoot in aperture- priority mode (A or Av) for full control.

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