How to Take Better Portraits

Portraits are often the most treasured photos people take with their camera, yet they often look like informal snapshots and may fail to meet print quality standards. Though superior portrait photography involves both a large measure of skill and art, with these tips you can learn how to take better portraits.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Digital camera with SLR-like features optimal
• Flash and/or lighting as needed

1. Take better portraits by moving closer to your subject. A minimum amount of background will allow your subject to shine. Otherwise, too much distraction may overwhelm the photo's composition.
2. Visualize the camera viewer screen, LCD or view finder, divided into thirds,like a tick-tack-toe board. Aim your shot so that the subject's head is two-thirds high or higher in view. For a different effect focus the shot so that the subject fills two-thirds of the screen from either side, otherwise use a center focus for your portrait.
3. Open up the aperture, by lowering the f-stop setting, to take better portraits.This will blur the background while allowing the portrait subject to remain in focus. Refer to your camera manual on how to change this setting, if it is available, though often it is labeled with an “A” on digital cameras. A common example of a low f-stop is f2.8.
4. Be natural.Though you may wish to pose subjects try to take portraits in natural settings.This allows for greatly improved facial expressions, especially if the subject is engaged in activities they enjoy.
5. Remain aware of poor lighting conditions and either avoid them or learn corrective measures to take better portraits. A camera equipped with a histogram is useful to ascertain lighting conditions. Note that a camera is more sensitive to dark shadows than the human eye. Typical poor lighting conditions include midday sun or when bright light is shinning on the subject via a window or bright bulb. Back lighting or fill lighting, including flash bounced off of white reflective backgrounds, can make for great portraits even in poor conditions.
6. Take better group shots by providing a variety of poses: sitting, standing and knelling, such that the subjects heads do not make up straight rows of lines. Additionally, keep the subjects proportionately spaced away from flash to enable a more balanced exposure.
7. Keep learning.Though newer digital cameras and photo editing software enables amateurs to take better portraits, practicing good photography techniques will show in improved photos. Practice taking photos of inanimate objects in a variety of lighting conditions and with different camera settings.

Tips & Warnings

• Set camera resolution to the finest compression setting in JPEG or use RAW format.
• Take better portraits by improving focus, composition and lighting rather than relying on cropping and photo editing software.

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