Portrait Photography How To

One phrase we repeat often is, “Rules are meant to be broken.” That doesn’t mean being sloppy, but rather knowing when an unconventional approach will deliver unique and eye-catching photos.

Everyone who shoots portrait photographs knows all too well that getting the shot is only half the battle. Proper image editing is also very important for optimum results, and today’s Photoshop tutorial demonstrates how to get the job done without any complicated techniques.

Lighting your portraits properly is the key to producing a great image. Everyone knows this but not everyone knows how to do lighting right. Fortunately, there are experts like photographer Manny Ortiz who shows you how to do the ultimate lighting set-up in just two minutes.

Extreme shadows can be the kiss of death for a portrait. While feeling the sun on your face is nice, the effect of harsh shadows and bright highlights can make you look older than you are and tired.

A few days ago we posted a tutorial for making simple cutouts of hair in portrait photos using a “futuristic” Photoshop tool. Today we’re taking things a bit further, with two tricks for making more difficult clip outs in Photoshop.

There’s one challenge all portrait photographers face, whether they’re pros in the studio or a novice shooting family photos. This annoying issue is a subject’s flyaway hair that can make portraits look messy.

(Editor’s Note: Exploring Light is a monthly Shutterbug column featuring tips, tricks, and photo advice from professional photographers in Canon Explorers of Light education program. This month's column is by Krisanne Johnson with tips on documentary photography).