Essential elements of portrait photography : lighting and posing techniques to make everyone look their best

Most photographers love photographing people—but they will also readily admit that there are a lot of challenges to making great portraits. In this book, professional portrait photographer Bill Israelson explores the skills that lie at the heart of a successful approach to portrait photography. First, he helps you set your overall objectives for the image and your depiction of the subject, which will determine the equipment you’ll need. Then, he lays out a simple six-step process designed to help you achieve your objectives(from location selection through lighting and posing) and create a great-looking portrait of any subject in any situation. Delving further into the process, he presents individual chapters dedicated to meeting the unique challenges of creating portraits outdoors, in the studio, and at indoor locations. Concluding with tips for editing your images, Israelson charts a simple course to more appealing, more flattering portraits! Creating an idealized image of a subject is a portrait photographer's job. However, the approach is not quite formulaic. From one subject to the next and one day to the next, there are different goals and scenarios--on Monday, you may be tasked with photographing your subjects under cloudy skies on a beach; on Tuesday, you may need want to downplay your client's wide hips in the studio; on Wednesday, you may want to create dramatic lighting for an actor's portfolio--on-stage. Every day, there is a unique challenge to meet, often under varying conditions. So, how do you make a magically good portrait during every shoot? In this book, Bill Israelson shows you how to tackle the problem of creating a great portrait of your every client