It was the last summer before four very good friends said their goodbyes and parted ways. My commission was to capture the joy of their time together for them to look back on. This was taken as part of a 16th birthday shoot for Sophie (on the far right of this shot). She was one of a group of four who had been friends forever and were about to be apart for the first time as they were heading off …
Three sisters wanted a great shot of their collective pre-teen, teenage and young adult children. The kids were less than enthusiastic – how could I get them on board? This portrait was one of 20 images in my submission for the top professional qualification, a Fellowship with the Master Photographers Association. I took it during a session booked by three sisters. They were looking for a portrait of their combined offspring: ten cousins, aged between 10 and 21 years old. …
You don’t need to go far to find great locations and beautiful light for your portraits. Join us behind-the-scenes as we take a walk around the streets near the studio to capture stunning portraits of two teenagers using just one camera, one lens and Paul’s favourite light source of all, daylight. You’ll get inspired by how easy it is to find potential in everyday locations: a wall, a doorway, JOIN NOW to view this and hundreds of articles, videos, critiques …
To crop, or not to crop? For all portraits other than full-length ones, you have to decide whereabouts on your subject’s body to place the edge of the frame. There are a few places where cropping is fine, and a few you should always avoid. The nice thing about working on location is that, more often than not, you can create numerous images out of one spot, and make them look very different simply by changing your crop. I photographed …
Find out the most important thing to look for in a location, and how to create a simple, authentic and feminine portrait with a subject who isn’t a model. It’s easy to focus on the problems with a location (gutters, street signs, cables etc), but a slight change of angle or a different crop can solve all of these. As long as the lighting is good, there is usually a way to make the location work. It would have been …
Wintry Woods Portrait Rushing out to capture a snowy portrait, I took inspiration from Winnie-the-Pooh by imagining the scene as a drawing. This method can help you convey narrative. Our little village of Haddenham is iced with snow only once every few years – and even then it’s usually the lightest dusting. Its rarity makes it a novelty, so we ran from the warmth of the studio as it began to fall and headed to the woods to make the …
Of all the age groups I photograph, teenagers are by far my favourite. They are at their physical peak, and often walk in full of attitude, which translates into compelling portraits, like this one. Laura needed a headshot for her performing arts course, which could also be used for future auditions. I wanted to open up my aperture to get a really shallow depth of field, with just Laura’s nearest eye sharp and everything else in front and behind …