Tips for a Successful Portrait

Tips for Acheiving a Great Portrait

• Creating a fine portrait takes a little planning. Effective portraiture captures facial expressions and mood, while clothing, accessories, and props are secondary and shouldn't create any distractions. Careful selection of these will avoid dating your portraits.
• A white background will show off skin tones best when white, ivory or pastels are worn. Be sure to select props that match clothing colour. While the colourful pose is a great secondary portrait for a child's playroom, it may not be suitable for a "timeless" quality portrait.
• For hand coloured images or vintage effects, medium tones are best.  Consider the design and intricacy of the pattern if any.  A subtle floral pattern is perfect for these creative artistic enhancements.
• With only two subjects in the portrait, it is especially important to dress in the same colour(s) and tones to capture their relationship.  You definitely do not want one person dressed in a bright yellow, and someone else in a dark brown as the person in yellow will dominate the portrait.
• You may want to bring extra clothing and accessories "just in case", and I can help you decide if something else would work better.
• As a background, the outdoors can be quite busy.  It is preferable to choose only one or two theme colours, with your subjects wearing shades of those colours. While blues or denims are excellent all year, white, ivory, and khaki  are great against green foliage and against our beautiful sandy beaches. Burgundy, brown, tan, and gray are nice late in the season. 
   

General Fashion Tips

•  Avoid busy patterns and bright colours unless you are wanting a contemporary editorial type look with Childrens portraits.
• Eyeglasses can be very challenging with reflections from lighting and unwanted glare.   I highly recommend you borrow an empty pair from your favourite Optometrist or remove the lenses.  Sometimes it is impossible to avoid reflections or to retouch them later. 
• Light colours are best with light backgrounds and fair complexions.
• Darker colours look better with deep backgrounds and dark hair or complexions.  Darker colours are SLIMMING!  V-necks are flattering on younger subjects and frame the face nicely.
• White, ivory, khaki, or pastels are best with a white background.
• Avoid wearing yellow or green as they can adversely affect skin colour.
• Shoes or socks should be in key.
• Teens and adults should wear long sleeves to cover elbows.
• Skirts should cover the knees.
• Short skirts should be avoided as it makes it very difficult to pose properly.