There are three general types of portrait photography. They are: close-up shot, upper body shot and environmental portrait.

Close-Up Photo

To shoot a better close-up photography, the trick is focus on the face of the subject you would like to shoot. If you are using a Digital SLR, it is important that you turn your F number to something small, perhaps 1.8 or smaller i.e. open aperture wider. By having a wider aperture, you are focusing on the main face rather than those distracting backgound. For instance in the photo on the left, which I have taken it on my trip to central australia with friends, the chinese man on the background has a blurry face as compared to the one on the foreground.

The other tip about close-up portrait photo is to consider of the lighting angle. For instance, if you want 3-D type of look, it is important to have a lighting on the top or from sideway of the subject. If you do not have lighting equipment with you, probably use the day light to help you. Personally, I find that on a cloudy day, my portrait photo turns out better than on a sunny day.

Upper Body Shot

These type of portrait photo is less personal than the close-up since it focuses not only the facial expression but also the upper body language. It is easier to get better result from this type of portrait photography since your subject is more relax and you could include some background in it.

The lady on the left is smile widely for the camera and is appear to be in relaxation mood.

This type of portrait photography is best suitable for graduation, birthday parties and school yearbooks etc.

Environmental Portrait

These type of portrait photography is used to tell the story of the subject in place. For instance, I took a photo of the gentleman on the left who was mediating just before the sunset in Alice Spring, Australia sometimes during my trip in 2007. I want to show the whole picture of the event i.e. sunset and on the mountain.

It is used mainly for photojournalist so as to capture the whole picture of the persons and events.

In short, regardless of the type of portrait photography you are taking, it is important to note on the light, facial expression and your camera setting (the wider aperture the better).

Thanks: these photos are taking from ANU Trip website: http://www.anutrip.com

The most basic tips in every photography is the RULE of THIRD.

The idea behind the rule of third is to imagine the 2 intersection lines as     shown in the image above. The rule of third suggests that we put the most important subject into the intersection line (the dark Plus + sign in the above image).

If you watch TV news reporter daily, you may notice that the news reporter usually is positioned to the side of the screen rather on the main center of the TV screen. This in fact follows the rule of Third.

Here is an example of Rule of Thirds:

As you can see, the boat which is my important subject in this photo is placed on the lower right intersected line. Using the Rule of Third provides a pleasant to the eyes photo because the image is in balance.

In conclusion, if you wish to have a pleasant to look at image, remember to use the Rule of Third to capture your main subject. However, the rule of third is purely for guiding you and you do not have to follow it if you think you can produce better image without using this rule.

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