Process 095 ☼ 7 Tips To Capture Great Professional Portraits
GIVEAWAY: $150 gift certificate for the Moment store
Dear friends,
In this week's letter, I will share my approach to taking great professional portraits for entrepreneurs and independent creatives.
Coming up: tips for creating portraits that capture someone’s personality, showcase their joyful professionalism, and leave a lasting impression. So, grab a cup of tea, sit back, and dive in!
This letter is also about my falling in love with the Canon EOS R5 which I borrowed from the good folks at MPB and used for the shoots in this issue.
This week's Process Giveaway is brought to you by Moment, a valued supporter of Process and our community. We're thrilled to offer a $150 gift certificate to stock up on film, accessories, and anything else you need to enhance your photographic skills.
Housekeeping — Mentor Session In Paris
I will be in Paris briefly from May 10-13th and have one more in-person mentor session available. Read more about mentor sessions here and get in touch to snag that spot. Below is a testimonial from a recent session:
"Wesley is a fantastic mentor and helped me to push the boundaries of what I thought possible for my project and assisted in planning the first steps to see it come to fruition. As a result, I have never felt more motivated to work on personal photographic projects." - Carolyn West
Professional vs Editorial Portraits
As an entrepreneur or self-employed creative, your professional image is everything. Whether you're building a personal brand or promoting your business, a great portrait can make all the difference. But taking a professional portrait isn't as simple as pointing and shooting. It requires a careful balance of technical skill, creativity, and understanding of your subject's unique style, personality, and story.
When it comes to portraits, the purpose behind the photo can greatly impact the approach I take. Portraits taken for professional business use, like a headshot for a company website or LinkedIn profile, need to convey joyful professionalism and reliability. On the other hand, portraits taken for artistic or editorial use can lean more towards the creative and experimental, with a focus on conveying emotion.
Below is an example of both styles with portraits of CEO Jay Reno and a dancer Ramses (right). Different purpose, different feel!
The Power of a Comfortable Environment
Recently, I had the pleasure of doing a shoot with my friend Steffie, a documentary maker based in New York City, who was visiting Amsterdam and needed portraits for her personal website. Since Steffie's budget didn't include a studio rental fee, we had to get creative with our locations.
We decided to check out the beautiful Eye Film Museum, where we shot both inside and outside with the landmark Amsterdam Central Station in the background. We got some lovely shots but I felt something was still missing.
After our shoot at the museum, we walked down to a nearby coffee shop where we ended up getting the best shots of the day. Steffie thought we were done, so she was at her most relaxed, and we were able to capture some candid, authentic moments.
Getting great portraits requires creating a comfortable and enjoyable environment, especially for those who are not accustomed to being in front of the camera - which, let's be honest, is most of us! Despite having to improvise our locations, our shoot was a great time and we were very pleased with these shots.
A Home Shoot To Celebrate A New Career Move
I also recently had the pleasure of doing a portrait shoot with my friend Frederique Matti, a talented Amsterdam-based painter. Frederique recently signed with a gallery in New York City and needed portraits for promotional use as she takes this step up in her career. We decided to do the shoot at her apartment, where we were able to incorporate her beautiful paintings into the background of the shots.
One of the things that made this shoot particularly exciting was that Frederique's work is in part defined by a specific shade of blue, which we wanted to incorporate into the portraits. By playing with the lighting and the colors in the room, we were able to create a cohesive and visually striking set of images that perfectly captured Frederique's personality. It was an amazing experience working with Frederique and I'm excited to see where her talent takes her next!
What About Team Portraits?
Another recent client shoot was with Cat and Robert, founders of Versed, a startup that empowers anyone to create their own role-playing video game based on just the written word. You write, and their technology creates the game. How cool is that?
Cat and Robert recently raised their seed round funding and have started hiring team members, so it was the perfect time to get some professional portraits for publicity and online use. They have a great track record in their respective field so it’s smart to have some shots ready for the inevitable press moments.
We decided to do the shoot at the co-working space that Robert works out of, which created a scrappy but pro startup background for the shots. Cat and Robert were both very relaxed and easygoing throughout the shoot, making it a fun experience.
We also grabbed some individual shots to cover the future team page, LinkedIn, and any individual interview opportunities. I'm excited to see where Versed goes in the future and look forward to collaborating with them again!
Seven Tips & Takeaways
Plan ahead: Before the shoot, talk to the entrepreneur about the purpose of the portraits, their brand, and the look and feel they want to convey.
Choose the right location: The location should reflect the entrepreneur's brand and image. It can be a studio, an office, or an outdoor setting.
Use good lighting: Lighting can make or break a portrait. Use natural light or artificial lighting to create a flattering and professional look.
Mind the background: Choose a clean and uncluttered background that won't distract from the subject but still helps tell their story.
Pose the subject: Help the entrepreneur pose in a way that's comfortable and natural, but also conveys their personality and professionalism.
Dress for success: The subject should dress in a way that reflects their brand and conveys professionalism, avoiding patterns and logos. I prefer dark colors on top.
Play with angles: Experiment with different angles and perspectives to create a dynamic and interesting portrait. It doesn’t have to be straight on.
In need of your own professional portrait or team shots?
Check out my portfolio and get in touch!
Gear Talk — My Experience with the Canon EOS R5
Every shoot I shared in this issue was shot with the Canon EOS R5, the mirrorless follow-up to my longtime workhorse the Canon EOS 5D Mark IV. The good folks over at MPB let me borrow this bad boy with a Canon RF 24-70mm f/2.8 L IS USM lens.
Some notes:
Sensor: Upgrade from 30 to 45 megapixels. I usually de-emphasize the importance of more megapixels but here I can’t deny these cleaner and brighter images.
Autofocus: The R5 autofocus system is noticeably better, has more AF points, and includes majorly improved eye and head detection. Fewer missed shots!
Image stabilization: The R5 has in-body image stabilization, which provides up to 8 stops of image stabilization when paired with some RF lenses. Not a huge deal for these types of portrait shoots but amazing for shoots with a lot of movement.
Electronic viewfinder (EVF): The R5 has an EVF, the 5D does not. Some people hate EVF and prefer an optical viewfinder. I personally prefer a great EVF because it offers a more accurate preview of the final image.
Ergonomics: The R5 has a deeper grip and the way the buttons are placed makes it more comfortable to hold and easier to operate.
Electronic shutter: The R5 has an electronic shutter that is completely silent and offers faster burst shooting speeds compared to the 5D Mark IV's mechanical shutter. This is great for the BTS shoots I do on set at commercial video shoots.
Color Profile: The colors are significantly better than on the 5D which provides flat images that need some work in the edit. Many prefer flat images as they offer more control in the edit. I’d rather edit less.
In short: I love this camera. I didn’t think it’d be such a step up from the 5D, Canon’s forever flagship model, but it was. I would switch from my 5D to the R5 in a heartbeat.
That’s it for this week! Shout out to Taylor Foster who assisted me on every shoot mentioned and also shot the BTS images!
Did you enjoy this issue? Share it with a friend who might love it too.
Next week: Our desire, as photographers, to be seen, plus the imposter syndrome.
Keep shooting and take good care of yourselves and others.
Wesley
PS All my film work is developed and scanned by my friends at Carmencita Film Lab. Use code “PROCESS” at check out to get a free size upgrade.
PPS If you’re in the market for a Canon EOS R5 yourself MPB currently has a bunch of fully inspected used bodies in the store and a section for students with great setups for under €500.
Process Giveaway!
This week, we're teaming up with our friends over at Moment for an exciting giveaway! One lucky winner will receive a $150 gift card to spend on anything their heart desires in the Moment store. Whether you're looking to stock up on some fresh film, snag a stylish new bag, or enroll in an online course, the choice is yours!
Don't miss out on this awesome opportunity to treat yourself – enter now for your chance to win by answering the question below in the comment section for this issue:
QUESTION: What do you think about AI in photography? Is it a threat or a tool?
My answer: I think AI will greatly impact certain fields like product and architectural photography, but I don’t see it replacing the more human genres. In my opinion, an AI image is a photo illustration, not a photo. That’s not a value judgment, but a definitional one. At the same time, AI has been a great tool in photography. Our digital cameras all use AI already, as does Photoshop when we use tools like the content-aware fill feature to retouch an image.
I’m excited to read everyone’s thoughts!
ENTER THIS WEEK’S GIVEAWAY before 11 am EST on May 21st.
The winner will be randomly drawn. This giveaway is for Process subscribers only.
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I think AI photography is a great tool to make moodboards and previews! It can help you visualize want you want to create and then you can go out and make it!
A tool or a threat. I think both and it is subjective anyways. I think the roll of AI will largely be dependent on the ultimate intention and motive of the user. If used for malicious intent then a threat, otherwise could be an amazing tool! As for AI generated art, well it could be viewed as a new genre of art that exist within its own domain.