Digital Portrait Photography For Dummies

A full-color guide to the art of digital portrait photography

Portrait photography entails taking posed photographs of individuals or set scenery and is the most common photo style among the most novice photography hobbyist to the most advanced photographer. With this easy-to-understand guide, bestselling author and professional photographer Doug Sahlin walks you through the best techniques for getting professional-quality digital portraits.

Packed with hundreds of full-color photos and screen shots, this book discusses best practices for taking formal portraits, wedding photos, event photos, casual photos, and more. You'll examine the difference between using the built-in flash and natural lighting and take a look at the benefits of upgrading to a photo lighting kit and pro backdrop.

Portrait photography is the most popular style of photography
Features helpful information for everyone from beginner hobbyists to advanced photographers
Shares insider tips for selecting equipment and choosing from the various tools for portrait photography
Walks you through working with a wide range of subjects, including children, pets, and wildlife
Discusses lighting and editing images
Takes a look at ways to create a portrait that is suitable for framing
Make sure your subjects are ready for their close ups with this fun and friendly guide to digital portrait photography.


From the Back Cover
Learn professional techniques for shooting great portraits of kids, pets, and family groups
Done right, a good portrait captures much more than what someone looks like; it also reveals a bit of his or her life and personality. This guide shows you how to make that happen, with advice on equipment and lighting, tips for working with various subjects, information on how to choose the best camera settings for portraits, and instructions for fine-tuning your images on your computer.

Choose the right equipment — find out what to look for in the ideal camera, lenses, filters, and lighting sources

See your subject — sharpen your observation skills by paying close attention to your surroundings and the people near you

Location, location — place your subject in natural surroundings that say something about the person

Meet challenges — discover the secrets of photographing babies, young children, and pets, especially cats

Make them even better — enhance the effects you've created with appropriate cropping, sizing, and retouching

Open the book and find:

Important details about composition

How to work with props

Various lighting approaches and the results they achieve

Tips for taking advantage of your surroundings

What differentiates a portrait from a snapshot

How to use focal length and aperture

Ten top editing tips

What a histogram is and how to use one

Paperback: 336 pages
Publisher: For Dummies (December 2, 2009)
Language: English