A portrait photographer’s primary job is to make their subject feel good about themselves. Sure, you also have to do flattering photos. But if the subject doesn’t feel confident about themselves, they won’t like the photo results.
Why might they not like the finished pictures? They might think their nose is too big, their jaw is crooked, their eyes uneven, their hair not right, their smile not good enough, or any of a hundred other things.
A person doesn’t see themselves the same way as others see them. This is partly due to lateralization of emotion: a photograph shows the real us and not the reversed mirror reflection that we’re used to.
It’s also due to expectation and hope. We expect to look as young as we feel and we hope to look like a movie star. We expect to look better than average and we hope no one can see our flaws.
Portrait photographers know how to use lighting to minimize facial wrinkles, add life to the eyes, and make a face appear wider or thinner. Photographers also know how to use camera angle to minimize a double chin, to compensate for a too-long or too-short nose, and how to highlight some features while hiding others.
Photo Technique Is Not Enough
But photo technique alone may not be good enough. Some portrait subjects may not see what they see when they look at pictures of themselves. Instead, they see what they remember. And what they remember is that someone once told them they had a big nose, a crooked smile, a tired face or sad eyes. They remember what’s wrong, not what’s right.
People tend to be more self-conscious and self-aware when in front of a camera. A good portrait photographer has to be a bit of a psychologist. You have to enhance your subject’s self-confidence and make them less self-aware. Put them in a good state of mind.
They say that eyes are the window to the soul. If that’s true, and it seems to be [original 2007 study here], then good portrait photography has to show what’s behind that window.
A portrait photographer, like a psychologist, has to notice, understand, and deal with any anxiety, self-awareness issues or self-deprecating behaviour in their subjects. This can be done by always talking with them and keeping them involved in the photography process.
Remember that portrait photography is not still life photography.
