There are several reasons that can lead us to want to take a self-portrait. You realize that you have photos from all over the world but you never go out, you need a model, you want to put into practice the photography tips you read on the blog or in this mega guide on portrait photography (which you can’t miss or you’ll regret it), you don’t want to waste your beauty or grace 😉 or you want to immortalize an important moment in your life and you don’t have anyone to portray you… Surely something similar has happened to you and if not … time to time, sooner or later you will find yourself in one of the above situations.
That is why I am writing you this article today with tips and tricks, to make this task easier for you, which is not as simple as it seems, but it is not impossible either.
The two most common ways of self-portraying yourself are “here I’ll catch you here I’ll kill you” or something a bit more elaborate. The first option is when we stand in front of a mirror and shoot handheld (please, in that case, avoid bathroom mirrors and don’t use a flash), or when we stretch out our arms like Inspector Gadget. This last option is useful, for example, if you are traveling alone and want to photograph yourself with a monument in the background (try not to let your arm come out or cut it out later from your computer).
Surely you have already experienced these two methods, now if what you want is a proper self-portrait, read on.
Tips for Getting Great Self Portraits
1. Arm yourself with patience. I have already told you that it is not an easy task. You will have to spend time and patience. Try again and again, shoot many times until you find the expected result and this time it is not from the comfort that being behind the viewfinder gives you, this time you will have to go and look at the result from your position again and again…
2. Plan. It may seem strange to you, but a self-portrait is not just any photograph, a portrait has to convey your personality or an emotion. Look for the right place and think about the costumes or props that you are going to use. You can also rehearse your gestures and postures in front of a mirror. We usually have it easy with models, move like this or «aso» but since we don’t see each other… then we can get surprises 🙁 .
3. Take care of the lighting. I remind you how to get impressive photos with natural light, although you can also use the fill flash if necessary. The light will determine a large part of what you want to convey with your self-portrait, soft light, hard light, natural or artificial. Give it the importance it deserves.
4. Use a tripod. It is the best option to hold the camera, although failing that you can place it on a firm surface, such as a table or a wall. If you don’t have one but want to get one, in this guide we help you find the best tripod for you.
5. Use a remote shutter release or timer. The remote trigger is not essential, however it is of great help, especially if you are at a considerable distance and no matter how much you run as Usain Bolt you do not have time to press the button and return to your position. For about nine euros you can get one and I assure you that the result is worth it. The cable ones are even cheaper, but they will also limit the distance.
6. Frame well. Ok, this, along with the next point, are the most difficult to carry out, that’s why I’m going to expand a little more on them, because it’s very easy to say but doing it is another story. It will be very likely that you shoot and when you go to check the result you find that you do not appear in the photo!, or only your arm appears or a blurred image of someone trying to get high… Do not worry, this is very normal happen. To avoid this you can use several tricks:
- If you are lucky enough to have a rotating screen… you can skip these tricks because it will be easy for you to rotate the screen towards you, if not, keep reading 😉 .
- Put marks on the wall or on the floor to know where you have to stand.
- Use a very wide frame and later crop with a computer program. A wide angle will help you in this case.
- Framing close-ups is somewhat more complicated, since any slight mistake will make you disappear, leaving a sadly empty stage. If your camera has an LCD screen, you can place a mirror behind it and see the result reflected. If you’re like me and you don’t have that luck, get a doll or any other object and put it in the place where you’ll have to stand later (eye… don’t forget to remove it later! 😀 ).
7. Focus well. Ains, how easy it is to say this and how complicated it is to do it, right? If you have already tried it you will know what I am talking about, if not, you are lucky to have some tricks before you take many disappointments:
- The easiest thing is to use a small aperture, or what is the same, a large depth of field (a high f number). This ensures that more elements of the photo are in focus.
- Another option is to activate all the focus points automatically and wait for one to focus on us. Although it is a bit risky and will cost you more than one trip to check.
To refine a little more and above all to get impressive portraits, of those that we have already talked about in other posts, and in which, for example, you blur the background or only focus on the eyes, there are also other tricks which work very well:
- Focus manually on a doll or similar, the same one that has served you for the frame can be worth it 😉 .
- Focus backwards. The distance between two points is the same from the point where you measure it, right? So leave the tripod in place, stand where your mark is, focus and put the camera back in place. Now you can position yourself and shoot!
- If you have a wall behind you, place a mark where you are going to stand. Place a thread on the target that reaches just with the tip to the mark. Now do a manual approach to that mark, stand in front of it and pull the thread taut by putting the tip right in front of your eye. If it is somewhat loose, remove the tripod, until the thread is taut. I tell you the eye because in portraits it is the part that should be focused, but if you want to experiment and focus, for example, on your nose, well, you know… the thread at the tip of your nose 😉 .
8. Shoot in burst. If your camera allows you to shoot in burst mode, it will be easier for one to come out decent. Mine, for example, does not allow me to shoot in burst if I use the remote control, although it does with the timer.
9. Let your imagination run wild. Have fun, dress up, make funny faces, experiment! The session will be more pleasant for you and you will last longer, which means more practice, more learning.
10. Take care of the composition and other aspects. Last but not least, I remind you that you must also take into account aspects such as the composition, the background or the harmony of the colors. If you want to review the rules or tips on composition, read this article.
I hope that these tips have helped you and that you are already thinking about the place where you plan to self-portrait and what you want to convey.
Remember that you are the model that can have the most patience with you and that you can be available whenever you want 😉 . I encourage you to get down to work and practice! Oh, I forgot, if you liked the article please share it, so it will reach more people. 😉 Thank you!