Portrait Analysis - A Talented Friend

Introduction

Welcome back to the portrait analysis series. Last week, for the first analysis, we discussed a self portrait. This week we’ll be taking a look at a photo I took of a friend recently in the studio. I am quite proud of this image because it, again, communicates where I’d like to go with my style of portraiture.

The inspiration for this photo comes from the work of Phil Sharp (@philsharp), a photographer that I look to for inspiration often. While this is a different source than in the previous analysis, I think my goal is to mix the two as best as I can.

Analysis

Lighting

Lighting in this photo of Dakota (@dakotaiversin) is quite unique for me. I used an optical snoot for the first time, and the results were immediately beyond my expectations. The snoot, creating the window light, was used as the key light while I used a fill light on the same axis as the snoot. The lighting is a large part of this image and I think it’s pretty good. I like the way it looks like there’s a street light outside of a large window. This was, however, my first time using the optical snoot, so there is a lot to improve. Not to mention, I am learning lighting as I go, so there are also general things I would change. I love the angle and the intensity of the light. At first, I didn’t like the shadow of the subject cast on the background, but the more I look, the more I believe it’s necessary for the image to feel natural.

Color

I like the color a lot in this image as well. It seems as though monochromatic or near-monochromatic schemes appeal to me. I could see myself adding a curtain on the side to create a second dimension of color. The image is warm in a way that appeals to me as well. I love blues, but when it comes to portraits, I connect more when the overall color is on the warmer side.

Composition

As simple as the composition is here, it took me a while to realize where I wanted the camera in relation to the subject. In the previous analysis, I mentioned that I liked the composition quite a bit and would add more negative space as with this image. The window pattern allows me to fill more of the frame with negative space. Somehow, it feels as though this pulls me into the image more than when the frame is filled with the subject. In the future, I may try to add small environmental props such as a curtain in the background or an ashtray with a lit cigarette on the table. With that said, I don’t want to take away from the subject too much, so minimal environmental distraction is important. If I were to do it again, I might try seeing what it looks like when there is less of the window in the frame so that there is more of the dark background on the left and possibly at the top. I think this could pull my view into the subject even more.

Conclusion

I must say, having a talented model available to photograph makes all of these factors less important. I’ll remind us both that it’s the connection to the subject that really makes an image special. Dakota is very comfortable in front of the camera and I couldn’t have created this image without his specific input.

Check in next week, when we look at the work of one of the photographers I look up to. The goal in that analysis will be to help myself develop as a photographer by picking out what I like about images that I find pleasing that are created by others in the same industry.

Portrait Analysis One - The First of Many

Introduction

This is my first official blog entry, and hopefully the first of many entries into a series in which I review and analyze different portraits. I will occasionally review my own photos and occasionally I’ll review others’. The plan at the moment is to discuss what I like and what I would do differently, but this, and the structure of these posts, may change as we go. I’ll review a self portrait for this first entry for a couple reasons. One, I can take this opportunity to explain and demonstrated the structure of these analyses, and two, I won’t be biased by the fact that there is someone else in the image or some other photographer that created the image. Of course, an argument could be made that there is bias in the fact that I am the one in the image.

Currently, this is my favorite self portrait because I think it communicates my intended style quite well. As far as portraits go, I think this is the closest to what I’d like to accomplish in my shoots with clients. The inspiration for this self portrait came from the work of Ivan Weiss (@ivanweiss.london), a talented London-based photographer that inspires me often.

Structure

Categories

I’ll use categories to discuss each image. The number of categories may change over time and they may differ between images because there might be different aspects that stand out more than others depending on the image. Examples of categories are lighting, color, and composition.

Subjectivity and Technical Knowledge

The discussions will include only my opinions and perspectives that suit my taste at the time of writing the review. My thoughts could change over time - in fact, I expect them to. Furthermore, I hope to minimize the required technical knowledge to understand the review and to participate in the discussion. I personally don’t have very much technical knowledge and I don’t think it is relevant to most discussions that we’ll be having.

Analysis

Lighting

Lighting in this image is quite straight forward. I was in my living room so the light was difficult to control, but I sat with a white wall to my right (camera left) and a small white reflective umbrella as the key light about 30 degrees to my left. I like the simplicity and the dimension created by the shadows. I like the density of the shadows as well. If I did this photo again, I would add a hair light or a rim light behind myself to create better separation between me and the backdrop.

Color

I love the colors in this image, they are earthy and complimentary. The image has a monochromatic feel to it in the shirt, the table and the skin tones. I like the sweater, but perhaps I would remove the blue from it in post so that the only colors present are shades of tan/brown. The dark swirls in the tabletop are nice, but I would like to know what the image looks like if there were a beige tablecloth. It might not work at all, but I’d like to know.

Composition

For what I was trying to accomplish, the composition is nearly perfect. A recent addition to my compositions is to include more negative space than is typical of traditional portraits and headshots. I took a photo recently of a friend and model (@dakotaiversin). You can see that he is quite small in the frame. If I were to redo the self portrait of our analysis today, I would add more negative space around myself, but not quite as much as with the photo of Dakota, since there is no shadow of interest on the backdrop in the self portrait above.

Conclusion

Overall, I am quite pleased with the self-portrait we discussed today. The color, and composition communicate my intended style, and the lighting is fun and creative. There are a few things I would do differently if I were to recreate this image, but I don’t think I’ll try to do that any time soon.

Check in next week when I analyze the photo of Dakota above. It’s in my top three photos that I’ve created, and I’m excited to discuss it.