The Power of Professional Portrait Photography for Telling Your Story
Let’s face it, professional portrait photography can be quite expensive, and you may be asking yourself if you really need to hire a professional photographer to do your photos or not. The photos of yourself posted online are often the first thing a person sees about you. It is incredibly important that they are high quality and match your personal or business branding so that you can attract more meaningful connections.
In this article, you will learn why having professional portrait photos to market yourself or your brand is so important and how carefully selecting the correct style and setup for your photoshoot can allow you to more effectively communicate your intended message or market yourself to viewers.
What is Portrait Photography?
Portrait photos consist of a picture of a person also called a subject. These pictures can have a wide range of styles, compositions, backgrounds, lighting, poses, and props. There can also be more than one person in the photo, meaning family pictures are also considered portrait photography.
Why are Professional Photos Important?
Nowadays, everybody always has a camera in their pocket in the form of a cell phone. Just having a picture of yourself is not enough to stand out in the crowd. A lot of connections, both personal and business, are made online. Having professional photos of yourself will get you noticed more, give you more control over the message the photos deliver to the public and they will be much more effective at achieving their goals.
Not to mention, having amazing portrait photos of yourself will boost your confidence which will give you a stronger presence in your online interactions.
What is the Different Between Portrait Photos and Headshots?
There is a difference between portrait photos and headshots. Think of it like squares versus rectangles; all headshots are portrait photos, not all portrait photos are headshots. Headshot photos typically just contain the head and shoulders of the subject while portrait photos are open to many more creative possibilities and ideas.
What Makes Good Portrait Photos?
The goal of portrait photography is to capture the essence of a person or persons. These photos should represent the personality, identity, and overall “vibe” of the person. This can be achieved many different ways depending on the intended use of the photos and when done right, creates a connection between the viewer and the subject.
You should think about what message you want to send about yourself and what you are hoping to achieve with these photos. Your photographer should be able to discuss these things with you and make recommendations based on your needs.
Have a Conversation With Your Portrait Photographer
In order to create the best portrait photos possible, tell your photographer a little bit about yourself. Tell them about why you are booking a photo shoot, what the photos will be used for, and what you are hoping to achieve as a result of having these photos. These will all help your photographer plan and execute an amazing photo shoot custom-tailored to your needs that will better achieve the goal of getting a photo shoot in the first place.
Hiring a good, professional photographer can be a game-changer in upgrading your online presence.
Important Aspects of the Photoshoot to Consider
Even though portrait photos might seem simple to take, there are many aspects to consider when creating effective images that will resonate with the viewer. The location, lighting, posing, outfits, composition, intended use, intended message, and editing are all important pieces that contribute to a great photo.
Selecting a Location
The location is incredibly important for setting the overall mood of your portrait photos. They can be taken in a studio or at an outdoor location. If they are being done in a studio, you’ll want to select the proper backdrop. Color, brightness, size, detail, and texture are all things to take into consideration for this. For an outdoor setting, you’ll want to pick a location that is motivated by the intended use of the photos and you as a person.
This is a decision you and your photographer will come to together. You can provide details about yourself and your needs then the photographer will give you great recommendations for locations that will work well for you.
Crafting a Lighting Setup: Studio Lighting
The lighting used during a portrait photo session has a significant impact on the tone and mood you will project. For a studio setup, the angle, intensity, and softness of a light can change the feel of a photo from bright and airy, to dramatic very quick. Studio lighting can quickly get overly complicated when adding multiple lights, reflectors, and modifiers. A professional portrait photographer will be able to craft a lighting setup to match a given mood and tweak the lighting throughout the shoot to achieve the intended result.
Crafting a Lighting Setup: Natural Light
If your photo session is outdoors and using natural light, then positioning, location, weather, and time of day are key. Your photographer should be familiar with how to position you relative to the sun and what times of day are best. Taking pictures right before sunset is great and can result in a beautiful, dreamy, nostalgic atmosphere, but that may not always be the look you are going for so consult your photographer.
What Sort of Poses to Use for Portrait Photos
The poses you use during your session can say a lot about your attitude and personality. This includes facial expressions. This should not just consist of standing there smiling at the camera. And you definitely do not want your poses to look like they came straight out of an outdated yearbook. Little tweaks to a pose can make them go from stiff and awkward, to confident and stunning. Doing repetitive movements or actions can also simulate a great candid photo which can be very powerful.
Posing is a place where having a professional photographer with you will help a ton. They have experience posing people and can walk you through exactly what to do so that all you must do is follow their instructions.
Selecting an outfit
Selecting an outfit is another way you can send a message about yourself. Make sure to intentionally select what outfit you will wear to your photo shoot and if you are not sure what to wear ask your photographer. For example: Are you a local artist trying to appear friendly and approachable in the hopes of getting new potential customers to buy your art? Do not wear a suit during your portrait session. Will the photo shoot take place during sunset in a grassy field in autumn? Consider not wearing bright, flashy colors. Talk with your photographer to find an outfit that will work best. To get more specific tips on outfit selection, read our blog, What To Wear For Your Professional Headshots
Bonus: Use Props!
Depending on what these photos will be used for, including props that show off your interests and hobbies can take your portrait photos to the next level. They need to be incorporated in a creative, natural way and often include recreating a candid looking pose. Including props in your portrait photos
Think Outside the Box
There are no rules when it comes to portrait photography. Most of the portrait photos you will see online are a closeup of a subject doing a pose. These are great and you will want to get some pictures like that, but thinking creatively and getting pictures that are not like all the other ones out there can help you stand out and build interest. Switch things up and play with reflections, depth of field, different compositions, lighting, weird angles and unique camera settings (just to name a few examples). This is the part of the shoot where you and your photographer can brainstorm fun and interesting ideas.
Think Big Picture: Gallery Versus Photo
You can tell a story with a single picture. If you are getting professional portrait photos done with the intention of having an amazing new profile picture that captures who you are, then you want your story to be told in a single picture. If your photos are going to be used to create a dating profile, for example, then the story being told lies within the entire gallery, not just the single photo.
Still consider the message that each photo is delivering, but also think about how the photos connect/relate to one another and what the story the entire gallery tells. Do certain pictures have an overlap in message? What types of pictures are missing to complete the gallery? This is highly dependent on the intended use of the pictures and the message you want to send about yourself.
Editing Your Portraits: The Cherry on Top
Any good photographer knows that no matter how much you put into planning and completing the shoot, that is only half the battle. Editing is the special sauce that brings out the greatness ion a photo. The same photo can be edited to have countless styles and looks. Having someone who knows what they are doing when it comes to editing makes all the difference.
It’s All Connected
All the aspects of the photo shoot should be decided intentionally, and each decision will have an impact on other decisions. Make sure all aspects of your photo shoot make sense together and all work towards capturing you as a person and achieving the intended use of the photos. This is why you should Hire a professional to help you with your portrait photos. To hear my tips on having a successful portrait photo shoot from start to finish, read our blog “My Process and Tips for Portrait Photo Shoots.”
Hire a Professional Portrait Photography in Your Area
Stone’s Throw Productions is a photography studio in Denver, Colorado run by me, Will Weeks. I specialize in portraits for individuals and businesses to get you noticed and feel your best online. I can walk you through the photoshoot process covering all the bases mentioned above so that all you have to do is show up and have fun. Ready to capture your story through professional portraits? Explore my portfolio and connect!
Not located in the Denver area? Feel free to still reach out with any questions you have about anything portrait photography related.