Paul Wilkinson’s top 25...

Even with so much information out there, taking perfect portraits can be hard work. Pro photographer Paul Wilkinson guides us through this huge genre with his pearls of wisdom

The broad range of talents you need for portrait photography makes it incredibly appealing. Part artist, part physicist, part counsellor, part clown: it is indeed multi-faceted.

Every person’s face is different, so uniqueness is almost guaranteed each time you create a portrait. However, there are still skills and ideas you can bring to bear when working with your subject, from getting the best out of natural light to creating tension in the design of the image and knowing when to release the shutter.

In this feature, I’ve outlined some of the ideas that have worked for me over the years and could very well work for you too. I have broken them down into sections for clarity but, honestly, they are a mishmash of many influences and millions of images. Let’s get started!

Softly does it...

Getting the best lighting for portraits isn’t always easy, but get out there with your gear and make the most of any conditions

The most readily available soft light source is natural daylight: all you require is an overcast sky. If you are lucky to live in sunnier climes, there are always shady porches and doorways to avoid hard sunlight and capture some simple headshots.

Provided my subject in the doorway can see the sky over my shoulder when they look up to the camera, the light will always be reliable. I know I have it sorted when I can see the sky clearly reflected in their eyes – the sky is a natural softbox, illuminating the face and creating wonderful catchlights. This pose has the advantage that the subject’s body drops out of focus, making it all about the face.

If I want to keep the camera at the same eye level as my client, I will look for something a little more architectural for perfect light – usually an outdoor covered porch or a gazebo that funnels the daylight. If I place the subject further back into the shade, the light source becomes increasingly front-on and less bright. I am still watching for those catchlights in the eyes, but now I have a directional light source. If the walls happen to be dark, this also creates shade around the cheekbones.

Make use of what you have

Frequently, I will stumble across the perfect location where there is perfect light on my subject and some illumination in the background. Underpasses are great for this. As a result, you can have ideal light on your subject and a beautiful out-of-focus texture in the background, rather than inky-black darkness. Use a telephoto or mid-range zoom lens, and open the aperture as wide as possible to drop the background out of focus. Every image in this section was created with just a camera and a lens.