Chapter 1: What you Must know about photographing people
Observe and Connect with People
Understand Light
Express Yourself
Before you dive headlong into your pursuit of photographing people, it’s a good idea to learn the basics about how to best approach your subject, identify and use the light to your advantage, and consider a few ideas for igniting your creativity. This chapter outlines these basics to help you get started as you begin to photograph people — whether in a candid shot or a posed portrait.
Observe and Connect with People
A person’s appearance, personality, and relationships are interesting and unique, but how do you capture any of this in a photograph? By taking the time to notice a person’s special qualities, observing how a person reacts, and making an effort to authentically connect. People want to feel respected, appreciated, and comfortable, and if you show an interest and help them feel more comfortable, they will respond to you and your camera. When you photograph people, you are in a relationship, whether it lasts for a few minutes, a few hours, or a lifetime.
Who are you photographing?
Decide what interests you about the person. Maybe the person has bright red hair and freckles, piercing green eyes, or a furrowed brow of experience. In addition to noting the unique physical attributes of your subject, ask yourself the following questions:
• What is the relationship I have with this person?
• What is the relationship between the people I am photographing?
• What message am I trying to convey?
• What is the intent of this image?
These are all questions to think about when you plan to take pictures of people. Everyone interprets the world a little differently; show the world what you see in this person. For example, in 1-1, Dylan was full of energy at the beginning of the shoot, but his serene and thoughtful side was revealed as he settled into a comfortable position on the tree branch.
1-1
ABOUT THIS PHOTO My intent was to capture an image of Dylan that revealed an authentic expression, his unique personality, and those beautiful, blue eyes. Taken at ISO 200, f/4.0, 1/500 sec. with a Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8 lens.
Capture a special moment
A moment in time — that is what a photograph captures. But what is a special moment? How do you find it, and how do you encourage it?
One of my favorite photographers, Henri Cartier-Bresson, defines the decisive moment in a photograph as “the simultaneous recognition, in a fraction of a second, of the significance of an event as well as the precise organization of forms which gives that event its proper expression.” Whew! My translation — in a nanosecond, you must identify a special moment, have an intuitive sense of composition, and express what you see by capturing it with a camera.
As the photographer, you need to decide when that moment occurs, whether it’s a glance, an emotion, or a gesture that you think is important, as shown in 1-2. You find that moment by observing what is going on around you and capturing it with technical confidence.
1-2
ABOUT THIS PHOTO The interaction between this little girl and her grandmother was captured in a fraction of a second. Taken at ISO 200, f/2.0, 1/1600 sec. with a Canon EF 50mm f/1.4 lens.
Approaches to directing people
There are two “directing” extremes when photographing people. One is to observe and be stealth-like in your approach; however, your subjects may never know you are photographing them and have no connection to you or the camera. The other extreme is to pose people and demand a certain look, which may result in an unnatural-looking photograph with no depth of character or personality. I think there are many shades of gray between these two extremes, and choosing the best approach depends on what you intend to capture. Throughout this book I share some ideas, stories, and techniques that I have used to connect with people and encourage that special moment.
The following is a story about how I directed and connected with a four-year-old named Sophia, who initially was not too happy about having her photograph taken, as shown in 1-3.
1-3
ABOUT THIS PHOTO At first, Sophia felt I was an intruder. I like this picture, because she has a real expression on her face. Taken at ISO 200, f/4.0, 1/350 sec. with a Canon EF 70-200mm f/2.8L lens.
When I arrived at Sophia’s house to photograph her family, she was intimidated by the activity, the photo equipment, and the presence of two people she didn’t know: my assistant and me. She ran from us as we walked in the door. I had my camera, lenses, a tripod, diffuser, and reflectors along with some props: bubbles, a mirror, and long swaths of fabric netting. My goal was to create special family photographs depicting relationships and capturing special moments.
I began the shoot by talking with everyone and gathering them all together for various shots where they were casually positioned, both standing and sitting. We laughed and conversed between the shots. When I was shooting the pictures, I kept talking and gave them feedback about how they looked and direction on what to do.
I moved the family to the backyard, turned on some music, and helped Sophia blow bubbles in an effort to gain her confidence. I gave her some fabric netting to play with, and, still defiant, she gave a sourpuss look off-camera. It took a while to build the trust, but eventually I was able to capture some great action shots of Sophia running around in the backyard, oblivious to being photographed, as shown in 1-4 and 1-5, capturing the kind of special moments I’d hoped for.
1-4
ABOUT THIS PHOTO Kids love action and movement. It takes their minds off bein...