How to Photograph People
If you want to know how to photograph people and improve your Portrait Photography hopefully this post will help. Or perhaps you are just curious to know how I came to capture the prints for sale here on my site.
Out of all my Travel Photography, the images that people ask me the most questions about are the ones of people, and especially the portraits. For me they are also often the most powerful and intimate, and some of the most difficult shots to capture.
So let me answer the most common questions that I'm asked and share a few tips. I'm not a 'professional' photographer, I'm just sharing with you some habits I have picked up through experience.
Do I know the people in my photographs?
In most cases the people I photograph are those who I have had a brief interaction with as I travel along my way. Perhaps a market stall vendor, a fellow customer in a roadside food stall or a rickshaw driver. in this case, you are already engaging with the person in some way, whether it be buying bananas, answering questions about Manchester United or paying for a ride. These day to day activities give opportunity to meet some very colourful characters and often a kind of excuse to take their picture, especially if you are their customer or if they started the conversation.
Should you ask permission for a portrait?
This is one of the oldest dilemmas in photography and each photographer has to decide according to their individual judgement.
Personally I don't usually find it necessary to verbally ask permission. First of all, if you are in the Peruvian Andes and don't speak Quechua or in Zanzibar and you don't speak Swahili then like you are going to have to get the phrasebook out or use some non-verbal communication.
When you get the camera out, you are probably going to get the feeling straight away as to how comfortable people are going to be about having their photo taken. I usually carry a big SLR with a zoom lens which isn't always the most discreet tool. So at this point I might already hear "Hey! No foto". Usually from some loudmouth on the other side of the street.
If everyone seems comfortable enough I will start clicking. Initially from a distance and then moving in closer to my subject if they don't mind.
Did I ever get in trouble for taking a stranger's photo?
I once got screamed at by a lady who was begging at the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem for taking a candid shot without her permission. It was in the early days of my photography and I was still finding my boundaries regarding peoples privacy. She really gave me a fright though and I wouldn't cross that line again!
Should you pay to photograph people?
I've never directly paid anyone to let me photograph them, nor have I paid anything to those who came asking for money after I had taken the shot. However I'd share some biscuits with them, or maybe buy some of whatever they are selling. Again this is something you have to make your own mind up about depending on the circumstances. Even if you are not a photographer it can be an constant dilemma whilst travelling in developing countries whether or not to give money to people who ask for it.
How to get a blurred background?
Finally the most important key to great looking portrait photography. How to get that creamy, out of focus 'bokeh' effect behind your subject! Unless you are shooting on a phone in 'portrait mode', you are going to have to turn the aperture (Av) setting on your camera way down as low as you can go (which may be something like f1.2 or f2.8, depending what gear you have). That should achieve the professional look you are going for.
I hope this post has shed some light on how to photograph people or at least a little insight into my Travel Photography habits.
View and buy prints of my Portrait Collection: https://nomadprintsonline.com/collections/portraits