Posing subjects’ hands can be the biggest challenge for photographers. The problem is in the fact that photographers shouldn’t be “posing subjects’ hands.” When we pose subjects’ hands, we often fall ...

Adding Motion

Pictures Can Be Fake

If you think about it, posing for a picture is fake. To stand a certain way, in a specific place does not promote authenticity. The very nature of portrait phot...

Light Travels in a Straight Line

Light travels in a straight line. Light never ‘bends.’ Light never ‘wraps.’ Well, it does around black holes but that’s another book. On earth, light only goes str...

Light Height

Light Height Controls Feeling Too

Light angles that vary on a vertical axis also control the feeling of the image. Imagine an arc that starts at your subject’s feet and travels aroun...

Two for One Sunlight

When the sun is behind your subject and a reflective object is in front of your subject, the sun can behave like two lights. The sun itself is used as a hair-light and the ref...

Family Posing: Same Plane

When positioning groups, you want to be mindful of how DEEP the group is. Technically, you want everyone’s heads about the same distance from the camera. Pretend there is a ...