Andrew Hennigan Conseil - Secrets of Photographing People

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Secrets of photographing People

The best way to take a picture of someone is to pay a professional to do it. But when that’s not possible here are three secrets to make your pictures better.

Most people underestimate the importance of a good quality photo. Most people will only know you from your picture and they will judge you purely on the way the picture looks. If you have something like a police mugshot from TheSmokingGun.com then they will not have a high opinion of you. On the other hand if you invest a little money to have a pro photographer take the picture they will have a much higher opinion both of your abilities and character. It may be unfair but that's the way it works.

But maybe you work at the South Pole or somewhere else where pro photographers are hard to find, or maybe your budget really is too tight to pay for one. In that case, if you really really have to take the photos yourself then here are three vital secrets to help you get a more professional look.

First of all you need to make sure the light is ok . A professional photographer has fancy lighting equipment that lets them do this stuff indoors, but using just available light or a small flash you will never get good results. The cheap and easy solution is to take the pictures outdoors, preferably on a cloudy day when the light is softer. If you live in a tropical paradise with harsh direct sunlight all year round you can try finding somewhere in the shade, or in the worst case have some friends hold a white sheet above the subject’s head the way you’ve seen movie crews do it.

Next you need to make sure you are using a long lens – equivalent to something around 100mm or more on a classic 35mm camera -- or move back a few steps and zoom in to frame the subject. Never get too close because the effect of a wide angle lens is to distort faces, making the nose too big and the ears too small. People always look better with a longer lens. You'll also find that most people are less nervous when the camera is further away.

Finally you need to get the right kind of smile . Unless you are a professional model you will find it hard to keep a good smile for more than a few seconds. The many muscles of the face tire at different times so when you hold a smile a long time it starts looking natural then degrades to something more like a grimace. The way to work around this is to tell the subject to just relax while you get ready then ask them to "put their face on" just before you take the picture.But don't just take one picture, shoot plenty and choose the best one later. Taking many different shots makes the subject more relaxed and makes it more likely you'll find one you like.

So now I told you how you might be able to do it yourself, but remember I still think you should be paying a professional photographer to do this stuff. They have the equipment, they have the skills, they have the experience and they know that they need to get good results every time.

Copyright Andrew Hennigan 2006.

© Copyright 2007 Andrew Hennigan Conseil SARL.

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Home \| Biography \| Articles \| Podcasts \| Contact \| Blog (external)

Secrets of photographing People The best way to take a picture of someone is to pay a professional to do it. But when that’s not possible here are three secrets to make your pictures better. Most people underestimate the importance of a good quality photo. Most people will only know you from your picture and they will judge you purely on the way the picture looks. If you have something like a police mugshot from TheSmokingGun.com then they will not have a high opinion of you. On the other hand if you invest a little money to have a pro photographer take the picture they will have a much higher opinion both of your abilities and character. It may be unfair but that's the way it works. But maybe you work at the South Pole or somewhere else where pro photographers are hard to find, or maybe your budget really is too tight to pay for one. In that case, if you really really have to take the photos yourself then here are three vital secrets to help you get a more professional look. First of all you need to make sure the light is ok . A professional photographer has fancy lighting equipment that lets them do this stuff indoors, but using just available light or a small flash you will never get good results. The cheap and easy solution is to take the pictures outdoors, preferably on a cloudy day when the light is softer. If you live in a tropical paradise with harsh direct sunlight all year round you can try finding somewhere in the shade, or in the worst case have some friends hold a white sheet above the subject’s head the way you’ve seen movie crews do it. Next you need to make sure you are using a long lens – equivalent to something around 100mm or more on a classic 35mm camera -- or move back a few steps and zoom in to frame the subject. Never get too close because the effect of a wide angle lens is to distort faces, making the nose too big and the ears too small. People always look better with a longer lens. You'll also find that most people are less nervous when the camera is further away. Finally you need to get the right kind of smile . Unless you are a professional model you will find it hard to keep a good smile for more than a few seconds. The many muscles of the face tire at different times so when you hold a smile a long time it starts looking natural then degrades to something more like a grimace. The way to work around this is to tell the subject to just relax while you get ready then ask them to "put their face on" just before you take the picture.But don't just take one picture, shoot plenty and choose the best one later. Taking many different shots makes the subject more relaxed and makes it more likely you'll find one you like. So now I told you how you might be able to do it yourself, but remember I still think you should be paying a professional photographer to do this stuff. They have the equipment, they have the skills, they have the experience and they know that they need to get good results every time.
Copyright Andrew Hennigan 2006.
© Copyright 2007 Andrew Hennigan Conseil SARL.