How do I take better photos of people?

Most disappointing portraits fail for one of three reasons: harsh light, standing too close with a wide lens, or a subject who is waiting to be photographed rather than doing anything.

Step by step

1. Find soft light.A large window out of direct sun, open shade, or an overcast sky. Soft light wraps round the face and flatters it; direct midday sun gives hard shadows and makes people squint.
2. Turn the subject towards the light.Face towards the window, then rotate slightly until the shadows shape the face rather than flatten it. A quarter turn is usually the sweet spot.
3. Avoid overhead light.Ceiling lights and midday sun produce shadows in the eye sockets and under the nose. Move the person to a doorway, a window or the shaded side of a building.
4. Step back and zoom in.A moderate telephoto — around 85mm on full frame, or 50mm on APS-C — taken from a few metres away renders faces naturally. Standing close with a wide lens enlarges the nose and distorts the face.
5. Focus on the near eye.Every other part of a portrait can be soft. The eye nearest the camera cannot. Use eye detection autofocus if the camera has it, or a single point placed on the eye.
6. Open the aperture, but not all the way.Around f/2.8 to f/4 separates the subject from the background while keeping both eyes sharp. Wide open at f/1.4 often leaves one eye soft.
7. Check the background before the pose.Move so nothing grows out of the person's head, and put distance between them and the background so it falls out of focus.
8. Give them something to do.Walking, holding a mug, talking to someone, looking at something. People stop performing when occupied, and that is where genuine expressions come from.
9. Talk while you shoot.Silence makes people self-conscious. Keep talking, and take pictures between the posed moments rather than only during them.
10. Shoot more than you think you need.Expressions change constantly. A short burst around a moment gives you the one frame where the eyes are open and the smile is real.
11. Get down to the level of children and pets.Photographing a child from adult height gives you the top of a head. Kneeling changes the picture completely.

Tips

• Window light, subject turned slightly towards it. That single setup makes most portraits work.
• Focus on the near eye, always.
• Give them something to do. Posed people look posed.

Common mistakes

• Standing close with a wide-angle lens — Whatever is nearest the camera is enlarged, so the nose grows and the face distorts. Stepping back and zooming in renders proportions naturally.
• Photographing in direct midday sun — The light comes from overhead, so eyes sit in shadow, noses cast shadows on mouths and people squint. Open shade in the same conditions is far better.

If it doesn't work

Questions people ask