Portrait Photo Techniques
I’ve been photographing people for years and was recently asked by Patrick Smith at ON1 about my technique for creating portraits of strangers for newspapers, magazines, et al.
(Note: a really condensed version of my answer appeared on the ON1 blog entry about using their Resize software for some greatly enlarged photographs used for a UNESCO exhibit. The blog url is: https://www.on1.com/blog/photo-enlargement-software-on1-resize-ai/)
I’m not a studio photographer, which means, in my case, I create what might be referred to as “environmental portraits.”
The word environmental, or environment, is important. It’s showing your subject in her or his environment. In many of my portraits that environment is the studio of an artist, but I try to show additional information about the subject via their environment in virtually every portrait I take. I’ve seen studio portraits that are strong and evocative, but I’ve never felt compelled to shoot in a studio, preferring showing subject in locations (environments) where they live and work.
There is a difference in photographing strangers and those of close friends and family and the main difference with strangers is establishing a rapport with someone you have never met before.
Before I actually begin working on the portrait I try to establish a connection with the person I’m photographing.
I enjoy leaning about people and what they do, so I simply start by asking questions about the person and their life.
I know some photographers who really don’t care about the person they are photographing and they ask a few perfunctory questions or simply sit the person down, pose them and start photographing. All they want to do is get a photo and get out.
That isn’t my style.
My interest in people is genuine, it’s authentic and you can’t fake that authenticity. I enjoy leaning about people; their likes, hobbies, family, occupation etc., and that authentic interest comes through and helps establish the needed rapport.
In trying to establish rapport I try to find common interests, so while I’m talking I look around the person’s house or studio for things that genuinely interest me and ask about those.
People like talking about things that are special to them, so this simple technique begins to relax the atmosphere and create a bond.
While we are talking about these things I usually bring out my camera and take a few photos of the object of interest. These images may or may not be used in the article I’m working on but they serve a more important use, by introducing my camera in a non-threatening manner. It let’s the person know in a subtle way that the camera will be a part of our conversation and interview.
By introducing the camera in this manner, when I slowly move to taking photos of the person, they are often more relaxed than they would have been otherwise.
I also try to include things in the photograph that will help tell a story about the person I am photographing. It might me one of those objects we originally talked about when establishing rapport. In case of an artist, it might be them working on a piece or holding, or talking about, a finished piece.
In the case of Camilla Trujillo (above), her working on a micaceous piece of pottery in her backyard in Espanola, New Mexico, worked well and the addition of her dog in the background was a bonus.
Since I don’t work in a studio, and I prefer to use natural light instead of artificial light, I am keenly aware of natural light sources in the rooms we are in. Windows are one of the main sources of lighting I rely on although when I said I don’t use artificial light I will occasionally augment the window light with a lamp or ceiling light, which is in the subject’s home.
Be that as it may, I try to keep the lighting as simple, and as real, as possible.
Obviously if the portrait is being taken outdoors, again like the one of Camilla Trujillo, the lighting choices are different.
I’ll try to avoid mid-day sun if possible, unless there is a place that is in shade. Early morning or late afternoon light is preferable, and I’ve had good luck with overcast when photographing outdoors, although you need to watch the image becoming too “flat” in overcast light.
How body language or posture and gestures affect an image’s success.
When your subject is comfortable and relaxed, that comes through in a photograph. Rapport with the subject helps, but being aware of subtle things that make your subject look more natural and relaxed is important.
Take Camilla Trujillo’s image as an example again. She’s working on something she loves, which is natural for her. Her dog is in the rear, and although he’s not the main subject, his being relaxed adds to the feeling, and it tells the viewer that Camilla’s relationship with her dog is also a relaxed one.
Eppie Martinez shown leaning against the doorway of his garage is certainly more relaxed-looking than if he were standing there with his arms hanging down by his sides. I’ve found that arms hanging down, being inactive if you will, always appear stilted and stiff. having your subject doing something his his or her arms is important, which brings us to the portrait of Jeff Brock.
Brock, who recently died, was an jewelry artist (Rocketheads jewelry) and self-admitted speed freak; designing motorcycles and cars. He holds a world speed record set on the Bonneville Salt Flats and is shown with a successor to Bombshell Betty, the car in which he set the speed record; The Evil Twin, which he was working on at the time of the portrait.
The portrait shows his workshop, but what I felt made the work successful were Brock’s arms crossed across his chest. That posture showed Brock’s fortitude and seriousness about his work. The fact that he’s sitting on the front of The Evil Twin evokes a very relaxed feel letting the viewer know he’s very comfortable in his automotive world.
Those are just a few thoughts, but if you are really interested in taking a portrait that reveals something about your subject, I feel these suggestions might be of some help.
Below are a few other portrait examples I felt successful.
(Note: a really condensed version of my answer appeared on the ON1 blog entry about using their Resize software for some greatly enlarged photographs used for a UNESCO exhibit. The blog url is: https://www.on1.com/blog/photo-enlargement-software-on1-resize-ai/)
I’m not a studio photographer, which means, in my case, I create what might be referred to as “environmental portraits.”
The word environmental, or environment, is important. It’s showing your subject in her or his environment. In many of my portraits that environment is the studio of an artist, but I try to show additional information about the subject via their environment in virtually every portrait I take. I’ve seen studio portraits that are strong and evocative, but I’ve never felt compelled to shoot in a studio, preferring showing subject in locations (environments) where they live and work.
There is a difference in photographing strangers and those of close friends and family and the main difference with strangers is establishing a rapport with someone you have never met before.
Before I actually begin working on the portrait I try to establish a connection with the person I’m photographing.
I enjoy leaning about people and what they do, so I simply start by asking questions about the person and their life.
I know some photographers who really don’t care about the person they are photographing and they ask a few perfunctory questions or simply sit the person down, pose them and start photographing. All they want to do is get a photo and get out.
That isn’t my style.
My interest in people is genuine, it’s authentic and you can’t fake that authenticity. I enjoy leaning about people; their likes, hobbies, family, occupation etc., and that authentic interest comes through and helps establish the needed rapport.
In trying to establish rapport I try to find common interests, so while I’m talking I look around the person’s house or studio for things that genuinely interest me and ask about those.
People like talking about things that are special to them, so this simple technique begins to relax the atmosphere and create a bond.
While we are talking about these things I usually bring out my camera and take a few photos of the object of interest. These images may or may not be used in the article I’m working on but they serve a more important use, by introducing my camera in a non-threatening manner. It let’s the person know in a subtle way that the camera will be a part of our conversation and interview.
By introducing the camera in this manner, when I slowly move to taking photos of the person, they are often more relaxed than they would have been otherwise.
I also try to include things in the photograph that will help tell a story about the person I am photographing. It might me one of those objects we originally talked about when establishing rapport. In case of an artist, it might be them working on a piece or holding, or talking about, a finished piece.
In the case of Camilla Trujillo (above), her working on a micaceous piece of pottery in her backyard in Espanola, New Mexico, worked well and the addition of her dog in the background was a bonus.
Since I don’t work in a studio, and I prefer to use natural light instead of artificial light, I am keenly aware of natural light sources in the rooms we are in. Windows are one of the main sources of lighting I rely on although when I said I don’t use artificial light I will occasionally augment the window light with a lamp or ceiling light, which is in the subject’s home.
Be that as it may, I try to keep the lighting as simple, and as real, as possible.
Obviously if the portrait is being taken outdoors, again like the one of Camilla Trujillo, the lighting choices are different.
I’ll try to avoid mid-day sun if possible, unless there is a place that is in shade. Early morning or late afternoon light is preferable, and I’ve had good luck with overcast when photographing outdoors, although you need to watch the image becoming too “flat” in overcast light.
How body language or posture and gestures affect an image’s success.
When your subject is comfortable and relaxed, that comes through in a photograph. Rapport with the subject helps, but being aware of subtle things that make your subject look more natural and relaxed is important.
Take Camilla Trujillo’s image as an example again. She’s working on something she loves, which is natural for her. Her dog is in the rear, and although he’s not the main subject, his being relaxed adds to the feeling, and it tells the viewer that Camilla’s relationship with her dog is also a relaxed one.
Eppie Martinez shown leaning against the doorway of his garage is certainly more relaxed-looking than if he were standing there with his arms hanging down by his sides. I’ve found that arms hanging down, being inactive if you will, always appear stilted and stiff. having your subject doing something his his or her arms is important, which brings us to the portrait of Jeff Brock.
Brock, who recently died, was an jewelry artist (Rocketheads jewelry) and self-admitted speed freak; designing motorcycles and cars. He holds a world speed record set on the Bonneville Salt Flats and is shown with a successor to Bombshell Betty, the car in which he set the speed record; The Evil Twin, which he was working on at the time of the portrait.
The portrait shows his workshop, but what I felt made the work successful were Brock’s arms crossed across his chest. That posture showed Brock’s fortitude and seriousness about his work. The fact that he’s sitting on the front of The Evil Twin evokes a very relaxed feel letting the viewer know he’s very comfortable in his automotive world.
Those are just a few thoughts, but if you are really interested in taking a portrait that reveals something about your subject, I feel these suggestions might be of some help.
Below are a few other portrait examples I felt successful.
Eppie Martinez at Red's Old School in Albuquerque, NM
Jeff Brock sits on the hood of The Evil Twin, Espanola, New Mexico
Photographer Gary Pikarsky in his Abiquiu, NM, darkroom
David Cudney
Doug Coffin, sculptor in Abiquiu, NM
Nicco Randall in his 1956 Roadmaster outside the Park N Eat Drive In, Espanola, NM
John Lea and his painted truck and trailer
Steve Dunlap at the Sax Stonecarving Workshop, Rinconada, New Mexico
Bob Trujillo and his trusty excavator, Abiquiu, NM
Angel Chacon in one of her father's lowriders, Espanola, NM
Street vendors, Old Town Albuquerque, New Mexico
Fred Espinoza, Santa Fe Plaza, Santa Fe, NM
Breanna Martinez, Matachines de Alcalde, Alcalde, NM
Arthur Pacheco
Abiquiu, NM, artist Lori Faye Bock who specializes in paintings that feature animals with one of her many feline friends
Potter Betsy Williams with a load of cups ready to be fired, Dixon, New Mexico
Leroy Lopez relaxing in Los Ojos, Northern New Mexico
Tim Seaman checks on a new batch of hard cider made from apples picked from his Abiquiu, NM, orchard
Johnnie de Schweinitz, director of a food kitchen in Espanola, New Mexico, during dinner prep for homeless
To contact Bob Eckert for assignments, consultations or workshops, please email [email protected]
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