Magazine Tips

1. Familiar recognition from issue to issue (the brand)
2. Emotionally irresistible (thats the images appeal)
3. Arousing curiosity (thats to pull the casual glancer in)
4. intellectually stimulating, interesting (thats to promise benefits)
5. worth the investment of money, time (thats the "Whats in it for me?")

Self Portraits and Portraits Warm-up

-A variation on the idea of zooming in on one part of the body is to obscure parts of your portrait subject’s face or body. You can do this with clothing, objects, their hands or just by framing part of them out of the image.

Doing this means that you leave a little to the imagination of the image’s viewer but also focus their attention on parts of your subject that you want them to be focused upon.

-Shooting with a wide angle lens attached to your camera can help create some memorable shots when you’re doing portrait photography.

At very wide focal lengths you can create some wonderful distortion. It might not be the type of shot you take of your wife or girlfriend (unless she’s in a playful mood) but using these focal lengths will enlarge parts of the face or body that are on the edge of the frame more than what is in the centre.

It can also give a wide open and dramatic impact when your subject is in an impressive setting.

-A mirror or some other reflective surface offers an even easier way to take a self-portrait. In most cases, the camera will be included in the scene (but this can help make a statement about your enthusiasm for photography). You can use your camera as a prop, and hold it away from your face. When you photograph into a mirror, be sure your reflection is in focus. An infrared autofocusing system will usually focus on glass if it's aimed into a mirror, and will focus at infinity if aimed at an angle. You might try focusing at an object that's the same distance as the distance from the camera to the reflection, lock in the focus, recompose the image to include yourself, and take the picture.

I chose this picture because the subject is the only thing in focus and there isn't anything distracting in the background and I liked it because it looks like he is the only one in the room and it makes the picture more dramatic.

I chose this picture because I like the contrast between the layers of the water and how half of her is underwater. I liked it because she looks like she's coming from a dangerous place and is escaping into the water.

I chose this picture because the woman isn't looking at the camera and it is a good example of a self portrait.

1. What are the characteristics of an environmental portrait?

An environmental portrait is a portrait of a person, they have an environment or an interesting background behind them.

2. What is the difference between an environmental portrait and a casual portrait?

A casual portrait only has the subject in focus and there isn't a strong background, where an environmental portrait has more of an interesting background and tells more of a story.

3. What will you need to do to get a really good self-portrait?

You have to have an interesting or different perspective to have a really good self portrait.

4.  When you go take these pictures, and you will eventually turn in one of each, a portrait and a self-portrait, describe to me what you would like to do and who you would like to take a portrait of and where you might shoot these images.

I would probably take these pictures outside in an interesting background and i would probably take a picture of one of my friends or family members.