Although my favorite subjects have always been food and landscapes, it is also one of my wishes to learn portrait photography. I have truly benefited from the 2-day workshop; I now understand the importance of posture work. Posing is one of the key components in portrait photography as it helps to accentuate the lighting, composition and makes a 2D looks like a 3D.
Ejun gave us many guidelines on posture. In fact, we spent the entire first day mainly on this. Examples of posture works include:-
1) Ensure hands and fists are stepped. I never realized how much this could make such a big difference in a picture until Ejun did a demonstration.
2) Avoid resting on the chin as this distorts the jaw line.
3) Avoid the ‘alien eyes’ by understanding the maximum angle of shoot. I myself have always been making this mistake!
4) Avoid blocking the chin and jaw with shoulders.
5) Avoid cropping directly on joints as it gives an amputated effect.
Besides the theory session, we also spent 2 hours on practical. (Refer to my practise works below!) Kudos to the model, Christine. Can you recognise her from the Koka noodles commercial?
The five general levels of shooting portraits
(1) Head and shoulders
(2) The 1/2 body
(3) The 2/3 body
(4) The 3/4 Body
(5) The full length
Quote from Ejun : Portrait Photography is about focus, not the sharpness.
If the subject just stand with his hands by his sides, this probably will not make up a good picture.
Some suggestions on striking a pose
1) Have the subject tilt his/her head slightly.
2) Talk to the subject while you are taking his/her portraits to create natural expression.
3) Have the subject fold his/her arms or cross his/her legs
4) Have a subject bend a knee and put more weight on the back leg when standing up.
5) Place the subject off center in the frame
