I haven’t written any posts about portraiture in a long time. As an experiment, I’m going to try creating a few that will be focused on outdoor portraits since I have, since the first of the year, dismantled my home studio. To that end, Business Sunday is taking (at least) a month-long hiatus as I debut this new feature. Let me know if you would prefer to keep this feature going or would rather I bring back Business Sunday.
Today’s Post by Joe Farace
It’s one thing to make a picture of what a person looks like, it’s another thing to make a portrait of who they are.—Paul Caponigro
There are lots of advantages to shooting portraits in a studio, even if it’s just a temporary set-up in your basement or garage. The biggest advantage is that you have total control over the environment or as I like to paraphrase the Outer Limits voice, you can control the lighting, the background and subject. In a studio, you don’t have to worry about wind, changeable weather conditions or bugs. Yet there is something about a location portrait shoot that can’t be duplicated in the studio and that’s the location itself.
Location, Location, Location
Shooting in Cancun may be too expensive for most of us but shooting in a local park can be free and entry to state parks cost less than a few bucks a day. A few of the state parks that I’ve photographed in even had a beach, as hard as it may for you to believe considering that I live in Colorado.
If you find that shooting in a park, especially during the less crowded weekdays, works for you, I suggest you get an annual pass. Many state parks have inexpensive annual passes that cover all parks statewide.
When you take the time to look around, attractive and dramatic locations are all over the place. The search begins by looking for places that will accommodate to the requirements portrait photography and the client’s comfort as well. When I made the photograph at right, there were not many people around, maybe a few birdwatchers, so I didn’t have to worry about gawkers interrupting the session. That would probably not be the case on a weekend.
How I made this portrait: I photographed my former muse Tia Stoneman at Barr Lake State Park, on the Wildlife Refuge part of the park, that’s located away from the lake. The camera used was an Olympus E-300 Four-thirds system camera with 150mm f/2.0 lens (loved that lens) with an exposure of 1/640 sec at f/4 and ISO 200 with a plus one-third stop exposure compensation. While I later sold the E-300 because of the availability of newer technologies, the camera is now widely beloved because of its Kodak CCD sensor and the film-like look it produces. Consequently, prices for used E-300’s are holding up quite well compared to it’s contemporaries that used CMOS sensors.
If you enjoyed today’s blog post and would like to treat Joe to a cup of Earl Grey tea ($2.50), click here. And if you do, many thanks.
If you’re interested in learning how I shoot available light glamour portraits, please pick up a copy of Available Light Glamour Photography which is available new from Amazon.com for $29.95. The Kindle version is $28.45 for those preferring a digital format.