Video: how to shoot a great portrait

Portrait photography is a challenging field that requires you to show skill in a few different areas. The best portrait photographers marry their technical abilities with their creativity and their ability to work with their subjects.

If you’re just starting out in portrait photography, this short tutorial created by commercial advertising photographer Joel Grimes Photography that teaches you technical skills about lighting will set you in good stead.

In this tutorial, Grimes gives you the best tips he has learned from his 35 years of experience in the field.

The core lessons of this tutorial relate to the use of different types of light sources. The most obvious reason that lighting is an important variable to master in your portrait photography is because it is used to illuminate your subject, but it also a powerful tool for portraying a mood and message in your images and for developing your style as a photographer.

In the video, Grimes also takes you through what it’s like to work with natural light as compared to a single artificial light and he  shows you how to create Rembrandt lighting. Rembrandt lighting is a commonly used technique in studio portrait photography that requires the use of two lights, or one light source and a reflector.

Check out the tutorial to learn all these helpful tips in just 10 minutes.