Figure A-13: Environmental Portraits shy away from the standard head-and-shoulders formula; instead they show the person in their element, documenting not only their character, but the space in which their gift thrives.
Classical Portrait – classic head shots adhere to the rule of thirds – the eyes generally are placed right on the upper-third line. (Figure A-12.)
Environmental Portrait – an environmental portrait tries to capture the essence of a person’s character in their own environment. (Figure A-13.) For shots like this the camera should be zoomed out all the way, with your subject placed via the Rule of Thirds and as much about the subject’s surroundings (“his or her life”) filling up the rest of the shot. Photojournalists use this technique a lot.
“Hey, Look at Me!” – This technique is the antithesis of the Rule of Thirds. These are “in-your-face” shots that absolutely force you to look at the subject and ponder it a little. The subject should be front-and-center, parallel to the sensor, with no distracting backgrounds. Examples in Figure A-14.
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Figure A-13: Environmental Portraits shy away from the standard head-and-shoulders formula; instead they show the person in their element, documenting not only their character, but the space in which their gift thrives. |
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Figure A-14: “Hey, Look at Me!” shots are very in-your-face, and force viewers to ponder your subject. It is the opposite of the rule of thirds, where your subject is front and center. (And what is it about outhouses that draws people’s interest? :-) ) |
