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Capture the Best You – Common Portraiture Mistakes That You Should Avoid at All Costs

When it comes to taking photographs, you may want to check out some of the common portraiture mistakes that most amateur photographers make. Of course, you could hire a professional photographer to shoot those portraiture shots, but if you are planning on handling it on your own, then you may well want to check out the following tips in detail.

  • Poor composition: It takes expertise and experience to make outstanding portrait shots, which stand out for the right reasons. One of the common mistakes that most amateur photographers make is with regard to the composition of the shot itself. They often end up leaving a lot of space in and around the subjects’ head which needs to be cropped and edited. Of course, you could always search online for photography Leeds which should provide you with a list of professional photography firms that you can utilize to take your portrait shot.
  • Background issues: Again, you are taking a portrait shot and it is vital that you opt for a simple background. Another portraiture mistake that most amateurs make is by co-opting a background that contains too much detail and often end up drawing the focus away from the subject to the background itself. This is why it makes more sense for you to use Google to search online for Portrait photographer Leeds.
  • Merging into the background: Yet another common portraiture mistake is when you place the subject too close to the background. This often results in the subject almost merging with the background that it sort of loses focus.
  • Focus: Yet another common portraiture mistake is a loss in focus which can end up providing you with a blurry image among others. A few amateur photographers are known to increase their aperture to blur out the background. The problem is that this often causes you to lose focus in the subject itself.
  • Focus on the eyes: Another common mistake in taking portrait shots is in not focusing on the subject’s eye. Remember that you are essentially taking a portrait shots and it is essential that you focus on the person’s eye to get the right focus and image.
  • Slow shutter speed: This is a no-no as well; while there are certain images for which you may need a slow shutter speed, portrait shots is not one of them. You need a high enough shutter speed to capture the subject perfectly and rather than a blurry image, you should end up with the perfect shot, which after all, is the main objective here.
  • Lighting: It is no good taking portrait shots with poor lighting and yet, that happens to be one of the most common mistakes that most amateurs make, when taking portrait shots. You need to utilize the right amount of lighting so as to get the contrasts in the image. You can adjust the settings on your camera to compensate for low light but essentially, with portrait shots, you need to be sure that you have the right amount of lighting for that perfect shot.
  • Take more than one photograph: You need to remember that just taking one image may not do the trick here. Chances are that your subject may not exactly be happy with that single image which is why you need to take quite a few images, with different settings. And your customer can then pick the one that satisfies him the most.
  • Connect with your subject: It is important that you are able to connect with your subject as you take their portrait shots. This is mainly so that you can help them relax for the shoot and in turn you should be able to take some awesome images.


These are some of the common portraiture mistakes that you need to avoid. And remember, it takes both expertise and lots of photo shoots before you become skilled enough, so don’t get dejected if it does not happen overnight. And when taking portrait shots of others, you may want to check out the above tips on what not to do and soon, you should be able to shoot some outstanding portrait shots.