portraits

Talking a good picture

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Most portrait photography advice is technical such as what lens to use, how to position lights, what pose to use, etc. This is the easiest advice to offer but it’s also the least valuable.

You can do a good portrait with almost any lens in almost any type of light. The reason is that the content of a portrait always trumps the technical aspects of the photo.

Viewers don’t look at a portrait and say, “Wow, look at that lens choice!” or “I really like that 3:1 light ratio.” If a viewer notices the technique before the subject then the photographer has failed.

The most important factor in creating a good portrait is the ability to capture the moment when the subject’s character, personality or, to be overly dramatic, their soul, is reflected in their face.
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The importance of good public relations photography

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The Globe and Mail took a look at some of the photographs that Canada’s top three political leaders use in their social media. The newspaper asked a neutral third party, a US photo editor and consultant, to review the pictures.

Without knowing the leaders, their political parties or any other backstory, photo consultant Mike Davis gave his opinions of the pictures.

Stephen Harper photos:

“It’s very linear, very simplistic, not at all dynamic or deep. … It’s all very similar, it’s very distant, very removed from the person. It kind of represents him as an entity who does official things, and that’s about all you get. … These are just official records of events.”

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Best Face Forward

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It’s often been reported (more examples here and here) that employers often check a job applicant’s background by viewing the applicant’s social media presence. I always thought these news articles were exaggerated.

While photographing an event today, a group of guests motioned me over. They wanted to talk about cameras and photography. The conversation turned to how they use photos in their jobs.

Their jobs: one person does the Canadian hiring for an international engineering company; another does the hiring for a technology company; the third does the hiring for a department of a major Canadian bank.
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Photo Psychology

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A McGill University psychiatry graduate student, Jay Olson, and his fellow researchers last month published a study titled Influencing Choice Without Awareness which examined the psychology of magic. Olson is also a professional magician. The research showed how various psychological factors are used to influence someone’s decision making especially when it comes to magic.

The use of persuasion extends far beyond magic. In fact, some photographers already know this and they use psychology to influence their customers.

1) Some wedding and portrait photographers know how to properly list their photo packages. Never start or end with the lowest priced package unless you’re trying to sell that low-priced package.
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Do you suffer from PAS?

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PAS – Picture Avoidance Syndrome

In a 13-1/2 minute talk, portrait photographer Peter Hurley and psychologist Anna Rowley speak about PAS, which many of us may have. They suggest how someone can overcome their fear of being in front of a camera by changing their relationship with their physical appearance.

There’s often a divide between the way we see ourselves and the way the world sees us. This division can be magnified when a camera is pointed at us. When sitting for a business headshot or any other type of portrait, we may think of who we’re not rather than who we are.

Self-perception defines our level of self-worth which can affect how others see us, or at least how we think they see us, which can create a fear of being photographed. It starts with what, or who, we see in a mirror and how we respond to that mirror.

 

Privacy and Model Releases

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A ridiculously long, meandering post but first, the disclaimer:

I’m not a lawyer and one look at my bank account will confirm that. You’d be foolish to take my advice without further thought. Although laws are written in black and white, they are anything but. No matter what the situation, there will always be a lawyer who will argue the opposite. Remember that civil laws can vary from province to province.

The short version of this post: Do you need a model release? Yes, no, maybe.

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Privacy laws and model releases go hand in hand. The federal government and most provinces have privacy laws.
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Hello, this is me

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It should be no surprise to anyone that many celebrities and politicians don’t actually make their own tweets on Twitter. They either have an assistant, an employee, a small staff, or a PR company, who write and send each message.

It might come as a surprise to some that not every “selfie” posted online is actually a self-portrait taken by that person. A new(?) trend is having someone else shoot one’s “self-portrait” as this provides for more picture possibilities. This probably defeats the concept of a selfie.

Some folks will even use a professional photographer to shoot their selfie. But this is now a portrait rather than a selfie, unless you define “selfie” as being a picture of yourself.

If a professional portrait photographer does a self-portrait, is it a selfie or a portrait? Some of Yousuf Karsh’s most well-known portraits are self-portraits (also here, here and here).

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