What is Portrait Photography?

Portrait photography has been around since the camera was first invented. People found it was a cheaper easier method than portait painting. The objective behind a portrait is to capture the individuals personal traits, for example their personality, mood and to high light important factors of the face like the eyes, nose and mouth. Usually the main focus is the individuals face, although in some portrait photographs the individuals body and background may be included. Although a portrait is usually a image of a person in a still position, capturing the person looking directly at the camera.























Portrait photography can be divided into four sections:
Close up
Facial shot
Upper body shot
Enviormental shot

There are also four approaches that can be taken in portrait photography. Each approach has been used over time for different reasons whether technichal, artistic or cultural.
Constructionist approach:
This is when a photographer portrays a idea through the photo. For example, a portrait of a couple showing romance and love or a family and friends showing happiness and fun. It is the most common approach in studio and social photography. It is also used in advertising and marketing photography.
The environmental approach:
This approach shows the individual in their normal enviroment for example a teacher in a classroom or a child in a playground. With this approach more is given about the individual, not all is left to the imagination.
The candid approach:
The most common example of this approach is paprazzi. The candid approach is where people are photographed doing their daily routines, it is more of a natural approach to a photograph.
The creative approach:
The creative approach is associated with digital manipulation, this approach is becoming more and more popular with portrait photography.