I think when most people start off in photography, they tend to point their camera at simple everyday objects and that’s completely fine. Over time, some people become quite skilled at still life photography, landscape photography, wildlife photography, etc. For some, there comes a point when they consider the idea of pointing their camera at a person. Believe it or not, portrait photography can be very intimidating. For those of you out there that enjoy photography and have considered taking people pics but just haven’t, for a myriad of reasons, let me attempt to help you get past some common fears and stumbling blocks and hopefully get you engaged in the wonderful world of portrait photography! But I have to warn you, once you start, you’ll probably find it very addictive. Concern 1: I Don't Think I Will Be Able To Find Willing Models.Finding models is easier than most people think. For more ideas on cultivating a list of go-to models, head over to my other blog which has some great ideas for finding models. In short, start off simple. Ask family members and close friends. The more practice you can get with those you are comfortable with, the more that will help build up your confidence to start photographing friends of friends and complete strangers. If you’re anything like me, after a while you’ll simply start asking strangers if they have any interest in modeling for you. If you do it long enough and get your work out there, people will start contacting you for portraits. I now have a decent sized list of individuals I bug from time to time for my ideas. Just work on getting your first model! Concern 2: I Fear If I Ask Someone To Model For Me, They Might Say No.Some will, guaranteed! Or just plain ignore you. Don’t take this as a personal attack on you. Some people are so extremely nervous about being in front of a camera that the idea alone is enough for them to turn down any possibility of being photographed; even by a family member or friend. In fact, the more you get rejected, the less of a big deal it becomes. Simply move on and ask someone else. However, I think you’ll find most people are willing to be photographed. A little trick I found that works more often than not is to ask friends that tend to take and post a lot of selfies. If you’re lucky, you’ll find someone that loves being in front of the camera and is always willing to model for you. If you find someone like this, practice with them as much as you can. I was very fortunate to find a model that enjoyed modeling just as much as I liked photography and we did tons of ideas. Concern 3: I Fear If I Ask Someone To Model For Me, They Might Say Yes!As an introvert, this was truly my biggest fear. When you first start asking people to model for you, there can be a sense of relief when they say ‘no’. You’re simply back at square one and at least you can say you tried. But what do you do when you get that first ‘yes’ or two? Now the balls in your court again and it all falls back on you. That’s okay! If you’re just starting out, let them know that. Let them know you want to get some simple pictures of them in the park or some other setting that you think might make for some decent images. Research images online and find some ideas that appeal to you then try and see if you can duplicate the look. Don’t start out with some grandiose idea that will take hours to setup and shoot. Maybe have the first session be fairly brief, 15 minutes or so, or more if they are willing. Start simple. In all honesty, I still get nervous before each and every portrait shoot regardless if I’ve worked with the model before or not. It’s that adrenaline rush that can make this hobby addictive. Add to that getting one or two amazing images, and you’ll probably be hooked for life! Concern 4: I'm Afraid My Images Won't Be Any Good.No one is a pro the first go around. I look back now at some of my first portrait images and I cringe. The funny thing is, I thought a few of them were fairly decent back then. In all honesty, I still think the vast majority of my images are not good but that's okay. That's what keeps me picking up my camera. Like anything in life, practice makes perfect. The more you do it, the better you’ll get. If you’re expecting a stunning image that will go viral as soon as you post it, think again. Photography is a continuous learning process with no real ‘end goal’ – at least for me. Generally speaking, the image you take next should be better than the image you just took. Just keep shooting. Don’t get discouraged if the resulting images aren’t perfect but also don’t over criticize yourself either. We all tend to be our own worse critics so allow yourself some slack. You learn more from your failures than you do your successes. The images will get better over time as long as you continue to try, I guarantee! Nothing beats a failure but a try! Concern 5: I Have No Idea How To Pose A Model.Then don’t! Simply have the model sit or stand and do whatever comes naturally to them. If you have researched some ideas that you like, have a copy of the image on your phone or printed out and simply show them. They will see how the person is posed and will attempt to duplicate that for you. If you want to get better at posing your models, there are several online tutorials that cover that very topic. I tend to pose my models very little with most of my shoots. For the shoots where I desire a lot of very specific poses, I will either show the model an example or simply take the time to talk them through my idea. Most models will want to make sure you are getting the images you want so if they’re not quite in the right pose, work with them until they are in the right pose. Posing models takes practice. If you are not working with a professional model, telling someone to turn just a bit to their left will usually result in them turning way too much to their left. That’s okay. Simple tell them ‘that was too much’ or ‘turn back just a bit’. Don’t start out trying to pose your model too much. Unless that’s the look you’re after, some images look over-posed and can take away from what would otherwise have been a great image. Simple natural poses are a great place to start. You will also find that if you shoot with the same individual repeatedly, they will tend to become more comfortable in front of the camera and will start posing on their own. Run with it! Just like you, the more they practice it, the better they become as well. Concern 6: I Don't Have Expensive Portrait Equipment.Nonsense! All you need is a camera. Now you may find photographers out there yammering on and on about the best lenses and camera bodies for portrait photography but don’t believe for a second that you can’t get great images with a basic camera. Sure, some lenses may be better suited than others, but I have literally worn out my kit lens, one of the cheaper lenses in my manufacturer’s lineup, and have achieved some amazing images with it. I would challenge anyone to tell me which images came from my kit lens and which ones came from a more expensive ‘portrait’ lens. You don’t need expensive lights, stands, umbrellas, soft boxes, etc., to do great portrait photography either. The sun is your friend, especially at sunrise and sunset. There is a reason they are referred to as the golden hours. Even if you can only shoot midday under direct sunlight, find an area with decent shading. If you’re shooting inside, simply move your model to a window or to a few bright lights and that is generally enough to start getting great images. Lack of expensive equipment should NEVER prevent you from experimenting with photography, portraiture included. Most beginning photographers are intimidated by portrait photography. I was one of those photographers. It wasn’t until a dear friend challenged me that I decided I would give it a shot. The more portraits I take, the more I like taking them. And yes, I also do prefer more unconventional portrait shoot ideas that tend to take a little more work but I didn’t start out that way. I do not consider myself a portrait photographer any more than I consider myself an astrophotographer. I love all kinds of photography and I am rather proud that my portfolio is all over the place. If you’re a photographer that hasn’t done much portrait work but would like to, hopefully this information will help you take a step in the direction of at least giving it a chance. In addition to challenging yourself and stepping outside of your comfort zone, you will invariable meet and work with some amazing people that will touch you in ways you never could have anticipated. That, for me, is the true joy of portrait photography – the amazingly wonderful people I have met!
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I have always loved brightly colored shoots that are unique and different. I’ve often wondered if my fascination with colorful shoots is tied in some way to my colorblindness. Anyway, I digress. When I first saw images of the Holi Spring Festival several years ago, I was blown away - so many bright and vivid colors. I researched images and found a few photographers that took the idea into the studio creating colorful powder/flour shoots with models. Obviously this idea was RIGHT UP MY ALLEY and I had to give it a shot. But where does one find colored powder in bulk for such a shoot?
The easiest way to do a colored powder shoot is to illuminate plain white flour with colored gels covering off camera flashes. Another method is to color the powder first and just use a regular flash to illuminate the powder and subject. A cool side effect of coloring the powder is that the vibrant colors will be visible on skin and clothing, especially white clothing. You can purchase Holi powder online but it is not cheap and for a large shoot you would need quite a bit of it. The last time I checked, a five pound bag of a single color was around $24 dollars, so roughly $5 a pound. I wanted to find a cheaper way to produce colored powder in large quantities. More research led to several online tutorials and recipes for do-it-yourself colored powder or Holi powder. I tried a recipe that involves regular flour and coloring but found it didn’t produce nearly the texture you get when using cornstarch. Although flour is cheaper, the cornstarch recipe produces a better powder that is still cheaper than the online Holi powder. I have seen corn starch as low as $2 a pound. So how do you make it? Read on!
If you are going to do this for a shoot, start making the powder several days in advance, if not a week. First, buy some cheap cornstarch. It does not need to be a fancy name brand. Next, pour the cornstarch into a large bowl and slowly add water until you get oobleck. If you don’t know what this is, watch a video or two on this fun-to-play-with substance. Try not to add too much water because eventually you are going to dry the mixture out. Don’t fret, you cannot mess up by adding too much water, it will just require more time to dry. After you have the non-Newtonian mixture made, add color to it. You can use food coloring to color the mixture as much or as little as you wish. I personally use Wilton cake decorating colors because they tend to be more saturated and I have access to it for next to nothing. For photo shoots, I suggest more saturated colors overall so use more coloring than you think you’ll need but keep in mind this is completely a personal preference. When the powder is dispersed in the air, the color tends to appear less saturated simply because it is not as condensed. Put on some gloves and mix the color thoroughly into the mixture. It will take some time and effort as the substance is a little difficult to mix.
After you have the color you’re after, spread the mixture into a large shallow pan that allows the mixture to spread out as thin as possible. The thinner you can get it, the quicker it will dry out. On hot summer days, I simply leave the pan out in the sun until it dries. If the weather is bad or particularly humid, you can place the pan in an oven at a low temperature to dry it out as well. Periodically break up and crumble the mixture during the drying period. If you dry the mixture on a countertop or outside, it may take several days to completely dry depending on the size of your batch and the pan used for drying. If you find that the mixture clumps together when you attempt to periodically break it up, it is still too wet. After the mixture is completely dry, place small portions in a blender to further reduce the mixture into a fine powder. After you have your powder, bag it up in air tight (moisture proof) bags or containers until the shoot!
Please keep in mind that the color in the powder can stain! Make your model aware of this prior to the shoot so they can get appropriate clothing. Or as the photographer, purchase something for them to wear at a thrift store you don’t mind possibly ruining. As long as the model doesn’t get wet, or sweat too much, you can fairly easily blow the dust off of them. As soon as the powder gets wet, you do run the risk of it temporarily staining the skin or clothing. Frankly, we didn’t have that much of an issue with skin staining but it is something to consider. If at all possible, do the shoot outside or in an area you don’t mind getting powder all over the place. As you can image, cleanup can be a hassle. I have two powder shoots coming up, one with colored lights and one with colored powder. I will hopefully follow up with a tutorial on the actual shoots themselves discussing setup, camera settings, positioning of lighting, etc. Stay tuned!
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