Photography FAQs: Portraits

Duncan Evans is an author and photographer living in the most northerly part of the UK. He edited Digital Photo User for over four years, and his pictures have been published in magazines and newspapers such as The Daily Mail and The Scotsman. He is a member of the Royal Photographic Society, currently with a licentiateship distinction (LRPS). Duncan has written several photography books including the hugely popular A Comprehensive Guide to Digital Portrait Photography.

Frequently asked questions. Introduction. Essential hardware: Digital cameras; Film stocks; Portrait lenses; Wide-angle lenses; Telephoto lenses; Macro lenses; Built-in flash and flashguns; Artificial lighting; Diffusion and reflectors; Studio accessories. Metering: Types of metering modes; Exposure compensation and bracketing; High-key images; Low-key images; Metering challenging lighting. Using colour and monochrome: Colour temperature; Filters; Colour concerns; Black and white. Natural lighting and supplementary flash: Lighting outdoors; Lighting indoors; Bouncing flash; Mixing lighting sources; Long exposures; Reflections and diffusion. Studio lighting: Standard lighting arrangements; Simple lighting arrangements; Classic Hollywood lighting; Lifestyle portraits; Complex lighting and arrangements. Composition and posing: Depth of field in portraits; Rule of thirds for portraits; Portrait lengths; Posing the subject; Unusual angles; Group shots; Parties; Expressions and emotions; Props and accessories. Shooting on location: Finding good locations: Problem lighting; Candid photography; Action portraits; Locations and the law. The digital darkroom: Correcting exposure; Fixing common mistakes; Problems with colour; Cleaning up portraits; Black and white; Toning and tinting. Subject index. Acknowledgements and credits.