Top 10 simple tips to better people photography

The top ten list of things I see that can improve people photography in every day life:

1. Pull people away from the wall, background, surroundings as it is often more flattering. Feel free to break this rule when you know how to do it well. Until then out of focus backgrounds and no shadows cast from the subjects will help you a lot.
2. Shaded, dark eyes = dead portrait. Get light in those eyes any way you can. Change positions, use a fill card, bounce some flash in there, anything. Watch for light from above as it will shadow the eyes nearly every time.
3. Straight-on flash in the face is nasty. Might be OK for a touch of fill, but beyond that use it very sparingly. Bounce that flash, get it off camera, etc. It will improve the photography immensely.
4. Learn to see face shapes and body types. The role of the portraits is to make anybody look good. A few basics can take you far.
5. Group shots can be a real pain – think simple first. Start with the obvious main characters and group the rest around them. Put smaller people up front, larger/taller behind. Layer the heads and watch so that you don’t have a lineup of eye lines. Make the grouping visually pleasant, like a bouquet of flowers. If this fails, shoot the group from above in a tight grouping, they almost always look good. Nobody gets to had their face in the crowd, but hiding (or blocking) a self-conscious body type is certainly practical and suggested.
6. Casting shadows on other people. You really need to watch this any time there are two or more people in the shot. Make sure that nobody has a shadow on their face from the head next to them. If using strobes, higher lighting is often key with larger groups.
7. Watch the background, everything in the background of a portrait is under your control. Simple is often better, control it all to great effect. Please avoid poles, branches, signs, buildings, trees coming out of peoples heads. It is very easy to look for when you pay attention to it.
8. Hands can be very distracting. Hide them if it does not amputate the hand visually. When you show them show the edge of the hand and close the fingers when possible. Watch for hands coming around shoulders and waist lines. They can be distracting and can look like “tentacles” or “tarantula legs” in a portrait. In group shots when holding kids, the big surface area of the hand holding a child can be larger than the child’s face and distracting.
9. Be in control and stay in control. Be confident and stay confident. Even if you are scared to death and don’t know what to do next, don’t show it. Keep it moving and don’t be afraid to move on if an idea is not working.
10. Have fun! If you are not having fun, if you are not “into it” or get nervous, scared or bored it will show. When you stay fun the session stays fun, even if it is not the most enjoyable session, at least enjoy your work. If you don’t enjoy photographing people, then it will show.

-Landon