From the course: Learning Portrait Photography

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Directing people for portraits

Directing people for portraits

- Most of the people you meet don't want to really be in photographs. They're not excited about it. It's a real struggle for a lot of people to be in a picture. There's something about standing in front of this black box that makes people nervous and very uncomfortable. They've probably had some bad experiences in the past. So, right now I'd like to share with you some ideas for helping people both be comfortable and present themselves most attractively toward the camera. The first thing you need to do to help people be comfortable in front of your camera is have your camera ready. You need to have the exposure ready to go and have the settings all set before you ask people to look at the camera. When people are looking at the camera or standing in front of it, they're kind of on, they're actively trying to be good in a picture, and we don't want to waste that effort from them. It's stressful for a lot of people, and it takes energy and effort, and so we should minimize that by having…

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