Photography is an art that involves a lot of creativity as well as technique. Apart from knowing in-depth about the camera, lighting and other gadgets used for shooting, the photographer also has to be creative and bring about some artistic elements to the photographs. Of course, photographers use photo editing services to give the photographs some finishing touches making them look out of the world!
Here are 10 ways to direct a portrait shoot like a pro:
Get Into the Right Mood
Setting the right mood to the situation is critical to portrait photoshoot. If the expectations are for fun photos, the mood should be fun enough so that the photos look naturally fun. Similarly, intense photos should be taken in the right mood. The photographer and team have to make sure that the artists are in the right mood to produce a perfect outcome.
Make the Artists Comfortable
Artists’ mood and comfort make a huge difference to the output. The more they are comfortable with the co-artists, photographer and the assistants, they will be able to offer better results. A photography director who’s always shouting and behaving rudely to the artists and other staffs in the set will only spoil everyone’s mood. It’s important to keep calm and make everyone comfortable.
Set the Scene and Space
Ideally, the photographer and his/her team should be at the location in advance to set it up according to the theme for the photoshoot. They have to set up the light-spots and figure the right spot for the model or subject.
Be Original
Photographs make a huge impact when they are original. Don’t try to imitate an already famous scene or photograph. Instead, give it your own special touch and make it original. Even if it has some minor issues, with the help of a professional portrait retouching service provider, it can be perfected.
Practice the Pose and Explain
The photographer and the team can plan and practice the poses for the portrait shoot in advance. Before the shoot begins, make sure that the team and the models know what’s expected of them. Explain the theme well to the artists so that they can also contribute their part to make the photoshoot exceptional
Visual References Work Best
If you have visual references in terms of videos, photos or sketches, the team and the artists can understand what’s the expected output and work accordingly. Remember, even the top photographers and teams require high end retouching services to come up with flawless photographs. Technology intervention gives the photos a classy finish.
Capture the Emotions and Expressions
Portrait photography is all about capturing the emotions and expressions of the subject. Good artists, when they are in the right mood, are comfortable and understand the theme well, will quickly and effortlessly give you the expected output.
Don’t miss out the Candid Shots
It’s not always about the planned frames, but also about the shots outside them that make the photographer brilliant. More often, candid shots taken between the frames come up far better than the planned ones. So, make sure that your team is covering the candid shots as well.
Take care of the Lights
Lights can make a huge difference to how the photo comes out. Over and underlighting can often spoil the whole theme. Photographers often make use of fashion photography retouching to cover up such lighting issues. The best part is to plan and try the portrait shoot with lighting with dummy models so that the main artists can be spared of lighting trials.
Try Different Angles
The same shots taken from different angles can make a huge difference to how the subject looks and the resulting photograph. Make sure that you cover multiple angles during the shoot so that the best can be chosen later.