How to Take a Male Formal Portrait

Now we’re going to do the young man, this is so easy. Man are simple, head and body to the light, turn t his way a little bit. Brad, take your left leg and cross it over like this, great. Tip the top of your head there, good. This is the pose, so simple. I could show this three quarter, I could show at head and shoulder or I could show it close up.

I’m going to just do some close ups. The right elbow out a little bit and bring the elbow this way. Now I do have a table, everywhere I go, put those lights on the ground for this one and just put your elbow there, that’s it. Little fist, I always tell the men, pretend like you’re hiding a golf pencil and that’s it, right there. The tables are little high just lower it, it’s adjustable and come right there. There’s our pose then mark, pose light, he’s a little taller, a little more hand from and then the girl, a little higher, chin up a little bit and look back over here. Turn your nose this way a little and then a reflector.

Guys it’s the same thing, we did over the girls, we just add the man. The lighting is very simple, I can show this three quarter if I make a three quarter portrait what’s camera height or right here on the chest. Let’s do that first. And I’m just going to drop it off to tripod because I know what I’m doing here, I’m all ready to go, look at his right hand, I want to refine it by making a little fist. Turn your nose to the right a dash, yes.

It’s kind of a 2/3 angle of the face, but his eyes coming back to me, this is not my do quite often to slim a face down. Turn your face to me full face, keep turning, yet not straight and your head about tipping it right there. That’s Brad’s full face portrait right there. That’s his full face portrait. He looks better; turn your nose to the right, like this. We’re slimming his face; he’s going to like that better. So it’s a little bit between full face and 2/3 we do that all the time, hint of a smile Brad give right there. And have that smile with your teeth showing, teeth, teeth, yes.

Now Brad relax your smile and those smile may just go like this, less smile, less smile right there, that expression I just did don’t move. That’s what I never want to see I either want to see a big smile, full gums, go for it go for it, that’s one expression or the other one is no smile at all. No smile just a hint of a smile in your eyes, that’s it. I’m working off my tripod because I’m all set, I don’t need to refine anything so I’m doing a three quarter down here, I’m doing my head and shoulder right up there. Nice portrait.

How about and easy refinement by taking the left hand right under your chin like this, good bring it right over there and then the wrist down, put underneath a little more over that on the side and your nose to me, and then put the hand over there more. See I need my tripod, so I need to this to be two hands and that’s what I’m messing around with trying to hold the cam era and make the portrait at the same time, right there.

This little jacket there be g on me, I'm going to pull that down, good right there. Chin down a little bit, want to see a little bit of the white cuff, want to hide the watch, just leave it right there for now, I’m going to just crop right passed it, right there. Chin up a dash, I want you to turn your nose to the right, your chin down a little more, tip your head to the right. Hide the hand under your chin a little more, right there. Turn your face back to me a dash. I love it, now listen I talked about their Chrome on a Cadillac. I talked about that light that we haven’t use all day. I’m going to bring it in right now for the man’s portrait. Little strength, a little of light coming from behind here, the key for this light is that can’t be too bright, it’s like garlic. A little garlic goes a long way; we don’t want to ruin this take by putting too much garlic on it.

If I’m hitting him from this side with and edge of light, we call it the kicker light; it’s going to be down this low. If I’m hitting this side of the face so the kicker light is set high. Remember that errors we work with children that’s how I know where my kicker light comes from. So it’s down low a little bit, coming across the face and it’s just going to going to give me this beautiful shot and right across the edge of the face right there, no smile. Relax.