FEATURE

PHOTOGRAPHING PEOPLE
YOUR GUIDE STEVE BAVISTER
Steve is a photographic journalist and freelance photographer. He is editor of The Photographer, a leading magazine for pro photographers, and author of ten books on photography including Digital Photography and Take Better Family Photos

bavister@easynet.co.uk

PORTFOLIO STEVE BAVISTER

People are easily the most popular subject, but you need to think carefully about what you are trying to achieve, says Steve Bavister, if you want to produce pictures with lasting appeal

ince its invention over 160 years ago, photographys most popular subject has always been people by a long way. While a relatively small band of enthusiasts have specialist interests such as landscape, still life or natural history, the majority of pictures taken are of family and friends. Whether were out having a wonderful time or simply relaxing at home, we like nothing more than to record the occasion for posterity. But all too often the results disappoint failing to capture the magic of the moment or the personalities of those present. Even people you know really well can get tense and nervous when a camera is pointed at them, resulting in awkward poses and cheesy grins that ruin the shot. Other images are let down by technical considerations such as poor composition, ghoulish red-eye, inaccurate focus, wrong exposure or unflattering lighting.

Of course, one of the great advantages of using a digital camera is that you can review the pictures immediately, and shoot them again if theyre not quite right or even salvage them later on a computer.

Getting it right
But sometimes the opportunity has gone and there is no second chance such as blowing out the candles on a birthday cake. So it makes sense to get it right first time. At the heart of the problem is the fact that many photographers just pick up the camera and snap away without thinking about what they are trying to achieve or how to get the best from the situation. However, with the right approach, a picture can be a true and lasting portrait that reveals something of the real people or a treasured memento of a precious moment not just a superficial snapshot. The bad news about taking pictures of people this time of year is that it gets dark so early, and if youre shooting after late afternoon the only option is to use the cameras built-in flashgun. The good news is

that over the next couple of months there will be loads of parties, school plays and so forth, and you wont find yourself short of subjects. The problem with using flash is that its not subtle. Because it blasts light directly at your subject, youre not going to get the best shots in the world. All too often you end up with white, over-exposed faces staring out from a m

Shallow depth of field isolates the subject from the background Direct eye contact with the camera engages the viewer Muted background colours dont distract from the main subject The models hair and arm pose help to frame the face

Even people you know really well can get tense and nervous when a camera is pointed at them
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WHY WE CHOSE OUR COVER PICTURE

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3 IMAGE EXPLAINED
1 Touching heads together creates a sense of intimacy and avoids the camera sensor focusing on the background 2 Shooting into the light puts a halo of light around the girls hair and back 3 Setting the built-in flashgun to give a burst of fillin flash ensures that the faces are fully illuminated and theres an attractive catchlight in the eye 4 Using the top end of the 4 2 camera's zoom range and placing the girls some 1 distance from the background gives a three3 dimensional effect

An increasing number of digital cameras allow you to select the aperture and shutter speed settings
black background. Worse still, your subjects may suffer from red-eye, caused by the flash reflecting back from the blood vessels at the back of the eye. While red-eye is not difficult to correct using an image-editing program, why make work for yourself when it can often be avoided?

Dealing with flash

Many cameras feature a red-eye reduction facility that will diminish and sometimes eliminate red-eye in the majority of situations. If you dont have such an option you could try switching on the room light the pupil of the person youre photographing will close down, reducing the risk of their eyes ending up red.

You can minimise the likelihood of over-exposure when using flash by not getting too close to your subject. Around two metres is a good working distance with most built-in guns. If you have children, though, and want to photograph them in the Christmas play, you may need to increase the sensitivity setting on your camera, from ISO 100 to 400 or even 800. The quality wont be quite as good, but it will increase the effective range, and reduce the possibility of under-exposure. Getting there early and bagging a front row seat is also a good idea. Sometimes youll have to use flash, and its ideal for party pictures, but if you aspire to more than that perhaps taking portraits with style and quality its to the many moods of daylight you should turn.

Making the most of natural light

If, like many photographers, you associate taking pictures outside with sunlight and blue skies, you might not be inclined to step through your front door with your camera in your hand at this time of year. But, in fact, the

gentle light you get in autumn and early winter is a lot more attractive than the fierce light of summer. Cloudy days in particular are perfect for people photography of all kinds. Shadows are much softer and more flattering, minimising lines on more mature faces. And even when the sun is shining, the fact that its lower in the sky means you dont get ugly, dark areas under the eyes, nose and chin as you do in brighter weather conditions. In fact, the position of your subject in relation to the sun is of prime importance and different results will be achieved at different times of the day, as the sun rises, circles the heavens, and then sets. Of all the kinds of lighting available to the photographer, top lighting is probably the least satisfactory. You get it in the middle of the day, when the sun is at its highest. Because shadows are point down and relatively dense, it really is best avoided whenever possible. The best times for portrait photography outside are morning and afternoon, when the sun is

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closer to the horizon. Place the sun behind you and your subjects will be evenly lit, with a catchlight (a point of light thats a reflection from the sun) in their eyes, bringing them to life. A simple way to make the light even more appealing is to improvise a reflector of the type widely used by professional photographers. Any white or reflective material will do a white piece of card, an old sheet or a square of polystyrene. Simply ask the person to hold it at waist height, so its not seen in the picture, and youll be astonished how much it improves the lighting. If you have a friend on hand who can act as an assistant, try positioning your subject so theyre lit from the side, with the reflector held vertically on the opposite side to bounce light back into the shaded areas. Reflectors are also valuable when taking pictures into the sun or contre-jour, as its also known. The backlighting from this arrangement can be attractive because of the Ready-Brek glow it gives to hair and body, but if you just shoot away you may end up with a silhouette. Setting your cameras flash menu to provide fill flash can be an effective, but less controllable, way of making sure people are fully illuminated. When taking pictures outdoors in autumn and winter its a good idea whenever you can to get your

You can make people look thinner by asking them to stand at 45 to the camera, rather than square on to it

As well as photographing people standing and sitting, try out shots of them lying on the floor or leaning against a wall

2 APERTURE CONTROL
If your camera enables you to select the aperture, you have direct control over how much of the finished picture appears sharp. There is a zone, technically called the depth of field, in front of and behind the point on which the camera lens is focused, which varies according to the size of the aperture. When you set a small aperture (confusingly, a big number such as f/11 or f/16), theres a large zone of sharpness, with most things appearing in focus. When you set a large aperture (a smaller number, such as f/5.6 or f/8), the zone is much narrower, and only the main subject sharp. Choosing a small aperture is ideal where you want to show your subjects in their natural environment. Selecting a large aperture is preferable where you want to concentrate attention on the person.

By focusing on an area in front of the subject and choosing a large aperture setting, the subject is outside the shallow area of depth of field. This creates the unusual effect here

By selecting a small aperture, more of the subjects in the shot remain in focus. Unlike their traditional film equivalents, digital cameras rarely offer a depth of field preview, so some experimentation may be required to get the result you want

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Extreme depth of field effects can be enhanced in an image-editing program. Here, the effect of shallow depth of field has been greatly exaggerated by digitally blurring the background Learn more about depth of field in our camera techniques feature on page 86

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FACIAL EXPRESSIONS
The best way to get an interesting facial expression is to be unobtrusive. Dont ask your subject to say cheese instead, lie low and snap off a few shots when theyre least expecting it

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FILL-IN FLASH
subjects to wear bright clothes, to stop them blending into their surroundings. Only gloomy days it's a good idea to set your camera's flashgun to fire a burst of fill-in flash balanced to the existing lighting to make sure that your subject is fully illuminated.

Before you take a picture, look around the frame to see if there's anything messy or potentially distracting

When shooting indoors using room lighting, switch off ceiling lighting, which causes ugly shadows, and use table lamps instead

2 WIDE-ANGLE CONSIDERATIONS
Experimenting with wide-angle lens settings can produce some interesting effects when shooting people. Wide angle lenses cause some interesting, if at times unflattering distortion of the facial features, and the wider the lens you use the more this will be apparent. You can also try experimenting with the Spherize filter in Adobe Photoshop/Elements on a normal picture to recreate the effect of a wide-angle lens.

Camera settings
The lens setting you use and where people are positioned in respect to the background are important factors. If you want people to stand out, so the emphasis is on them rather than the surroundings, you should use the top end of your zoom range and get them to stand well away from the background. What this does at a technical level is reduce the depth of field the amount of the scene that appears sharp in the finished picture. If you have a powerful zoom and the backdrop is some way behind, your subject will stand out almost three dimensionally. When you want to shoot an environmental portrait, showing people in their surroundings, you should do the opposite go for a wide-angle setting and position people close to the background. An increasing number of digital cameras allow you to select the aperture and shutter speed settings, rather than leave it to the cameras exposure system. If you have this option, you can control the depth of field in a direct and creative way.

Taking candid photos

Whether you shoot indoors or outside, getting your subjects to relax while youre photographing them can sometimes be a challenge. As soon as you pick up your camera and point it in their direction many people get tense and nervous with stiff body language and frozen smiles ruining the shot. Or worse, they start acting up and pulling silly faces. But theres a simple way to avoid these problems by shooting candid pictures. Instead of asking people to pose, you photograph them when theyre unaware of you. This allows you capture them as they really are, at their most natural, enabling you to get a glimpse of their real character. And shooting candid pictures isnt hard to do. You simply have to develop a different way of working. Instead of getting people to Say Cheese, you stand at a distance using a telephoto lens setting, waiting for the right moment to release the shutter. Expressions change in a fleeting second, and opportunities can arise and be gone before you know it blink and you miss them. So you need to concentrate on your subject completely, anticipating the right moment and acting decisively when everything falls into place. Of course, if youre shooting candids indoors using flash, the first picture you take will give the game away. Outside, though, you may be able to take a sequence of pictures, especially if the person is immersed in some kind of activity or chatting to someone else. The downside of candids is that you have little control over things such as lighting or background, and for that reason you will almost certainly want to control the two approaches.

have some idea how you would like to start things in terms of location, pose, lighting and composition, and then make changes as you go along. The best way to put people at their ease is to chat to them about things that interest them, such as their hobbies or work taking pictures as they grow more animated and lost in the conversation.

Taking posed photos

If you do go the posed route, be prepared to offer direction rather than leave people to their own devices. The more you tell them what to do, within reason, the more confident they will be in your abilities. Its best to

Photographing children
This works particularly well with children, who often have a short attention span, and get bored with posing quickly. Subjects such as pop music and TV programmes are a good place to start, and a fund of knock-knock jokes or amusing stories can help break the ice with

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2 EXPERIMENTING WITH COLOUR
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Flatter people and make them look younger by using the flash whatever the weather. This softens shadows and bleaches lines. To reduce any potential harshness, secure a piece of tissue over the flash this diffuses the light

Some digital cameras may give you the option to shoot in black and white, but for greater flexibility shoot in colour and then convert the image on your PC. Contrasty images work best when converting to black and white but this can also be tweaked in your contrast settings in your image editor. Here we see various colour alternatives, as well as black and white, try experimenting with duo, trio and quadtones. 1 Monochrome variation 2 Sepia toned image 3 Duotone image (black + yellow) 4 Duotone image (black + magenta) 02

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youngsters. As any parent knows, if youre bossy theyll start to rebel. Encourage them to try different poses rather than telling them to perhaps by getting them to play with a favourite pet or toy, or asking them to pretend theyre a princess or king. One of the key things when photographing children is to get down to their level, both literally and metaphorically. Crouching so youre the same height as them means you dont get awkward expressions as they strain to look up at you. Babies are easy to photograph, because they stay where you put them, but toddlers can be tricky because they tend to be in perpetual motion rushing towards you when you try to photograph them. For that reason a candid approach is more likely to be successful.

Improving composition
As with other areas of photography, composition plays an important part in portraiture. How big you make the person in the frame, and where you place them is, to a large degree, a matter of personal preference. And while you will obviously want to enhance images once you get them on a computer, you dont want to lose quality by throwing too many pixels away and its a good idea to get your composition as right as possible in the first place.

One option is to include all of the person. This works well if you want to show them in context, but can lack impact because they often seem far away. For general picture-taking a three-quarters crop, typically from just above the knees, is a good choice the face isnt so small in the frame but you can still see the background. For maximum impact, try cropping even tighter, to a head and shoulders. You get lots of eye contact, and the only real downside is you dont see any of the setting. If your camera has a zoom lens, its better to use that to fill the frame with the subject, rather than move physically closer. Avoid taking tightly cropped pictures of people at the wide-angle end of your range the distortion that results is far from flattering. As you go closer you need to make sure you focus on the eyes because the depth of field is greatly reduced, and if the eyes are unsharp it tends to make the whole picture look wrong. When photographing one person, youll often want to place them at the centre of the frame though its worth experimenting with other positions, such as to the side, or even dynamic compositions such as at a diagonal, by tilting the camera. When photographing two people together, you should aim to capture something of the relationship between them. If theyre related in some way, getting

One of the great advantages of using a digital camera is that you can show your subjects the results straight away
them to put their arms around each other and tip their heads together is a simple way to create a sense of intimacy. It also avoids the common problem of the focusing sensor going between the heads and focusing on the background with both people ending up out of focus. With groups, try to avoid lining them up like a firing squad. The key to success lies in making sure you can see everyones face and that theres some kind of shape or structure. One simple technique is to create a triangle, with the tallest person in the middle, and others slightly in front and to the side. Whoever you photograph, and however you photograph them, one of the great advantages of using a digital camera is that you can show your subjects the results straight away, giving them immediate feedback on how theyre coming across. And once they see they look okay, theyll noticeably relax, paving the way for even better images.

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PHOTOGRAPHING PEOPLE

Red-eye removal
Its a hoary old problem peoples eyes going demonic red when taking photos indoors with a flash. Its easily fixed

QUICK TIPS
FIXING RED-EYE IN ADOBE PHOTOSHOP ELEMENTS 2 1 Select the Red Eye brush from the tools palette. 2 Choose a brush from the pop-up palette and select an appropriate brush size. You can select the colour you want to remove when you click in the relevant part of the image. 3 Choose a replacement colour, either via Default Colours or Replacement colour. You will probably want a good, deep black. 4 Choose a Tolerance (how close in colour different pixels must be to the ones they are replacing). The lower the tolerance, the closer the colours need to be to those they are replacing. 5 Click the pupils to change their colour.

ne of the most basic problems when photographing people, is red eye when using a flash. Red eye happens when the bright light from a cameras flash unit reflects off the the subjects retina. Some cameras have red eye reduction features built-in but even then, you may still have this problem Luckily, its something easily fixed. Many low-end photo editing programs feature dedicated red-eye removal tools and wizards. The latest versions of Paint Shop Pro, PhotoImpact and Photoshop elements all do but surprisingly the gorilla of the bunch, Photoshop, expects you to do it all manually. Weve used Photoshop to show you how to fix it without recourse to fancy tools, but if you have Elements 2, take a look at our tip opposite.

Mark up both eyes with a selection marquee ready to edit. Use any of the selection tools with the Shift key held down to select both affected eyes in the photo. For best accuracy, you should zoom in and trace around the eyes with the Lasso.

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SELECT THE EYES

Shift the reds to greys. Under the Image menu, go to Adjustments and choose Desaturate. This turns the red in the eyes to grey. In the Layers palette, click on the Create New Fill or Adjustment Layer button and pick Hue/Saturation.

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DESATURATE TO GREY

Two steps to heaven

There are several ways to approach the problem using paint brushes and alpha channels, but here weve chosen the most popular method using an easy two-step technique: first turn the red to grey, then Colorize that grey to something else. Using an adjustment layer also enables you to temper unrealistically coloured eyes by making the layer partly transparent. Now take a look opposite:

Apply a new colour to the selected grey eyes. The Hue/Saturation dialog window appears automatically. Add a tick next to Colorize, drag the Saturation slider to the centre (50%) and drag the Hue slider until you find the eye colour you want. Click OK.

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COLORIZE THE LAYER

Artificially applied colour can look fake so tone it down with layer transparency. Tone it down by dragging on the Opacity slider in the Layers window. This allows some of the grey in the Background layer to temper the hue you chose.

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REDUCE THE LAYER OPACITY

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PHOTOGRAPHING PEOPLE

Correcting skin tones

Get that skin colour right!

QUICK TIPS
USING PHOTOSHOP The best tool for repairing skin tones is Photoshop, because it enables you to work in CMYK mode (the four colours that make up printed colours Cyan, Magenta, Yellow and Black). You can precisely adjust the CMYK values separately. USING ELEMENTS 1 & 2 The Variations tool (under Enhance) enables you to add more of certain colours. USING PAINT SHOP PRO 7 Do something similar using the Manual Colour Tool to remove a cold colour cast and replace it with a warm colour category like woods. See www.jasc.com/tutorials/ robin/ for more information.

aking skin look correct is very difficult because people have an idea in their head what colour skin ought to look, regardless how the rest of the image appears. Another problem is certain kinds of lighting conditions or a predominance of colours like blue (like outside on a sunny day) can affect the balance of all the other colours, deadening them or making skin tones look cold. Luckily your image editor contains tools which enable you either to replace these colour casts or add warm colours to your image to offset them. On the other hand, once you begin editing a photo for skin tones, its easy to lose track and end up sending everyones faces pink instead of buff.

Start with a new Adjustment Layer for each action. Open the Layers palette, click on the Add A New Fill or Adjustment Layer button and choose Curves from the drop-down list. An Adjustment Layer is created and the Curves dialog window appears.

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ADD AN ADJUSTMENT LAYER

Adding more contrast will prevent dark areas from colourising in subsequent steps. In the Curves dialog window, tug the diagonal line down slightly from the middle in order to turn it into a gentle curve.

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TUG THE CONTRAST

Fixing it up
The quickest method is to experiment with Variations under Photoshops Image8Adjustments menu or Elements Enhance menu, but careful use of multiple Adjustment Layers gives you more control. This is especially important when youre trying to add colour to skin (as shown here) rather than take it away. You can do something similar in Paint Shop Pro 7 although the tools here are less flexible. Probably the best rule of thumb is: add reds, to warm up an image. Take a look opposite:

Use sliders to swing the emphasis from greens to reds in the photos midtones. Click OK, then use the Add A New Fill or Adjustment Layer button to create a Color Balance layer. Gently move the sliders to compensate one channel colour against another. Click OK.

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ADJUST THE COLOUR BALANCE

Moderate the colour change by adjusting the Levels balance to finish. Create another Adjustment Layer, this time choosing Levels from the drop-down list. A tiny adjustment is required here. In our case, a slight movement of the middle slider to the right.

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NUDGE LEVELS