Natural Looking Travel Portraits

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7 Natural LookingTravel Portraits`

TIPS for


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7 TIPS for Natural Looking Travel Portraits

Its tough to point out what makes a good travel portrait. It is, however, pretty safe to say that

there is an essential characteristic that any kind of portrait must share. The person in front of

the camera shouldnt look awkward, uncomfortable, or be visibly affected by the photographers

presence. Your portrait subject should look natural in your image.

Creating natural looking travel portraits is something that I have regularly strived to achieve

on my own photographic journeys. Throughout the years, I have developed certain ideas and

techniques which have helped me achieve my aims time and time again.

In this eBook, I will share what I feel to be seven of the most important tips for creating natural

looking travel portraits.

As a side note, I want to mention that photographing people is a sensitive area. I urge all of you

to be respectful in all of your actions. None of our photographic subjects are there for the sake

of our amusement; they are all human beings with emotions, feelings and needs. Please keep

this in mind. No matter how much you want to photograph your subjects, dont overstep certain

boundaries.

Introduction


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In portrait photography,

communication is often a must.

Some people simply wont agree to

be photographed without knowingour intentions; even those that agree

will usually feel more comfortable

with some level of interaction. A

comfortable person in front of the

camera almost always leads to a more

natural looking portrait.

The level of interaction and

communication required to make a

person comfortable differs. Sometimes

eye contact, a nod, or a smile isenough. Other times, we might need

to explain ourselves and in certain

cases, we really need to talk and to

connect with the person before we can

proceed to make images.

Communication does not need

to come directly from you. If you

cant speak the language, you can

communicate through someone who

can translate.

I find that communication can

be particularly important when

my portrait sessions take more

time. In such cases, I like to keep

communicating either by myself or

through someone else. This way

I avoid awkward silence and keep

the person in front of the camera

comfortable.

Interact andcommunicate1


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Be an observerof people3

Keen observation of people is of

utmost importance if your aim is to

make natural looking portraits.

Observe peoples body language.

There are myriad details that you

should pay attention to. Posture,

movement, and facial expressions can

all differ from culture to culture.

Through observation you build a

sort of a knowledge-base of body

language, of the way your potential

subjects behave and react to things

in general. This knowledge will help

you to make sense of what youre

seeing and will inform how you should

approach the subject.

Sometimes a subjects body language

might appear uninteresting or just not

photo-worthy to the untrained eye.

But when you have trained yourself,

you can better recognize what makes

for an interesting portrait. You will

also know when to intervene and do

something to break the ice or when to

step back and let things unfold.

A common example is when the

camera is pointed at children. Often

they squirm or twist their bodies in the

most unusual manner. Their parents

or other adults tell them to take

their hands away from their faces, to

look into the camera, or to stand up

straight.

The untrained photographer thinks

that the pose is not acceptable for

a photograph. However, if youre

a keen observer of people, these

unusual poses tell much more

about the subject. You will come

to recognize the characteristics

that make for a much more natural

looking and engaging portrait.


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Frame out awkward bodylanguage, get up close4

If youve been observing people,

youll recognize that sometimes

pointing a camera at them results in

body language which is awkward,

unnatural, and not interesting

photographically.

In some cultures, people assume

certain poses before being

photographed. In India, for example,

people in rural areas often have their

Im-being-photographed pose: body

straight, arms by sides like a soldier.

It transforms a potentially natural

looking portrait into something

contrived and stiff.

In other cases, the subjects might not

look right for reasons that are tough

to pinpoint. Previous observations

will help you decide whether the pose

is unusual, but interesting, or simply

awkward and uninspiring.

In many instances, the awkwardness

only happens below the face. The

face and the way the subject looks

into the camera are frequently still

engaging and photogenic. I focus

on these engaging qualities and

frame out the hints of awkward,

unnatural looking body language.

If youre having trouble, focusing

on the eyes is almost always a safe

option.

It pains me to exclude some of the

amazing costumes and ornaments.

Sometimes, I almost feel likethis is cheating, but when given

the choice of getting a strong

photograph or one which just

doesnt feel right, I will always

choose the former.


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Photographyour subjectsdoing somethingfamiliar to them

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When your subjects are doing

something that is familiar to them,their mindset is different from when

they are simply sitting or standing

in front of the camera. They are

less likely to pay attention to being

photographed. This factor can

ultimately lead to more natural

looking portraits.

One way to take advantage of

knowing this is when we photograph

in the streets; particularly in countrieswhere a lot of life takes place outdoors

in the public domain. You can

photograph people engaged in various

activities, doing chores, working,

playing and so on.

These kinds of portraits are likely to

look very natural, but because the

people are paying less attention to

you, there might not be the immediacy

that eye contact brings.

If you do want that immediacy, theres

a trick that can be very effective. I

briefly interrupt the person I am

photographing by saying something,

myself or through a translator. This

gets their attention so they look at me

and I take a quick photo. In such case,

the person usually reacts in a purer

way which makes for a more natural

portrait.

The ideas I mention in this tip can be

taken further. If youve established

rapport with your subject, you can

think of an activity that is familiar

to them and might make for a good

photograph. I might, for example,

suggest that the person I want to

photograph makes tea. I photograph

while they are making tea and, if

I want eye contact, the same trick

applies.

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Photographwhen the subjectis looking awayfrom the camera

For some people, looking directly intothe camera is too confrontational. It

might be much more natural for them

to look away; or they might look

much less awkwardmore comfortable

looking away.

A direct look might give a portrait a

formal, less natural feel. A look to the

side lends a kind of casualness.

Sometimes, I photograph people

looking away while they do it on their

own accord. Other times, I create a

situation where they will look in a

certain direction.

One way to get people to look in a

different direction is to simply ask

them. Often, I ask my subject to look

through a window or to look at some

object or spot. This isnt possible

all the time, as some people wont

necessarily be ready to follow your

instructions, but it is the most straight

forward method when it works.

Having another person with you will

maximize your chances of succeeding.

A translator, guide, or friend can stand

to the side of you and talk to the

subject. The subject will naturally look

in that direction so you can take the

photo.

Not having anyone with you who

speaks the local language is not a

problem. Sometimes, I ask my wife

to stand in a certain spot and, for the

subject to look to the side, I ask her to

either talk to me suddenly, to cough

loudly, or to make any sudden sound

that demands a bit of attention. The

person looks in her direction and I get

the shot. If the subject is a child, this

process can be more playful.

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Photograph the poseafter the pose7

This approach is about making the

subject comfortable with being

photographed and capturing the

most natural possible pose. As Ive

already alluded to, the very act

of being photographed can cause

undesirable reactions that dont look

great in photographs. People pose,

they become shy, or look awkward.

If there are hints that a person is

not going to be at ease with being

photographed, rather than wait, I

actually begin shooting as soon as

possible. I dont necessarily aim to get

anything good at this stage. I shoot

to assess just what I can do with the

subject photographically while easing

their shyness or awkwardness. With

every click, they may be getting

more comfortable or at least

showing me what to expect. I might

also show the image to him or her

on the cameras display so that the

person understands exactly what I

am doing and feels less intimidated

or overwhelmed.

Once the novelty or the weirdness

of being photographed wears off, I

take a very quick pause. Depending

on how the person reacts, I either

ask for a certain pose or look, or I

make a few quick exposures while

they are back to being themselves

or being introspective and

forgetting about the camera.


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Natural Looking Travel Portraits

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