Portraits

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Portraits

PORTRAITS

I’ve alway both wanted to and been afraid of photographing people. Well, I’m not really afraid of it any more. But it’s a challenge to take good photos of somebody when you’re just starting out, without first scratching your head, wondering what to do with the camera settings, and the other person geting bored waiting for you. If you want to have an easy time of this, start with friends and family, who don’t expect amazing results from you.

One thing. If you see someone you like the look of, inside or out, at an event or in public, ask to photograph them. But if you do, get their email address and send them some of the best photos. It’s up to you whether to ask them to sign a model release at the time. This might be going too far.

I love side light. Shooting people by windows, from the side, is a good idea. I often use my Lumedyne portable flash system with sfoteboxes, setting up ‘crossed’ light from both sides, or maybe one either slightly in front of (2/30 or slightly behind and higher (hair light) than the other. Most of my portraits done with flash are this way, and it’s the best way to show the features of someone’s face. Plus, soft boxes (or soft natural light) are made for portraits. Look at Van Eyke’s paintings using windows.

Professionally I shoot corporate and lifestyle portraits for graphic design and editorial clients, but I really enjoy a good shoot with someone. Paraphrasing a quote from Rankin, “photographing someone is like having sex with them, You have to make them comfortable enough to give you something you want.” Simply put, it’s true. It’s an exchange; unless someone is comfortable with you, they’re not going to drop their energetic body armour enough to show you who they are. Unguarded faces are always beautiful.

Don’t forget that we have an ego-based image of what we look like, which is never true. Also, we always see our own image reflected in something, so we never actually see ourselves the way other people do.

If you want to see what it feels like to photograph someone, let someone take photos of you. it’s interesting.

My favourite series of portraits to date, are from a job I did for Jazz FM radio some years ago. All my subjects were artists, musicians or celebrities (who loved jazz), and were therefore very used to being photographed, and it was easy to work with them. My daily fee of £100 was unimportant, and the one-night solo exhibtion at the V&A museum to launch the photos, more than made up for it. It also made me realise how much I love photographing black people, whose skin has a much more interesting contrast range than caucasians…

I hope you like them.

Bernard Purdie1