Australian_Photography_-_March_2016_

32 AUSTRALIANPHOTOGRAPHY.COM

ABOVE
Novice monks
walking down a
tranquil pathway
outside an ancient
temple in Bagan,
Myanmar. I like the
way the tree frames
the image and
the green foliage
compliments the red
robes. Canon EOS
6D, 24-105mm lens
@ 21mm, 1/1250s
@ f/4, 800 ISO,
handheld. Curves,
saturation, contrast
and sharpening in
Photoshop CC.

AUSTRALIAN PHOTOGRAPHY MARCH 2016

HOW TO Environmental Portraits

subject is backlit, half in shade, or wearing a hat, you’ll notice

this problem. Asking your subject to move, or waiting for the

light to become favourable isn’t always an option, so it’s good

practice to shoot with post-processing in mind. Underexposing

or overexposing elements in a scene allows you the freedom

to recover lost details in your editing software by adjusting the

shadow/fill depending on the situation. Exposing for someone’s

face when the light is harsh may result in an extremely over-

exposed sky. In this case it’s likely the highlights would be

unrecoverable, so expose for the highlights and tweak the

shadows in post. If this increases digital noise (grain) you can

reduce this with some noise reduction in post production.

06 

Increase ISO

A common photographic fear that I’ve noticed

amongst some photographers is a fear about increasing the ISO

setting on their cameras. Most photographers know about the

advice to use the lowest ISO possible. There is good reason to

shoot using lower ISOs, as image quality is at its maximum

compared to shooting with a higher ISO. However, camera

technology has improved a lot since the first DSLR was released

and most modern DSLRs are capable of shooting very good

images at higher ISOs (1600–3200 or greater). Increasing the

ISO enables you to shoot at faster shutter speeds and smaller

apertures, which can be extremely useful when shooting

portraits in low-light conditions – without the need for a tripod

or f lash. A high ISO rating combined with a fast prime lens

opens up a whole new world of experimentation and this is often

when the best light happens. If noise is evident then you may

need to adjust your settings, but you can also remove digital

noise in post-processing, so go explore and see what you find!

07 

Get model releases

Basically, a model release is a contract. It’s a written

and signed agreement between the photographer and the

model. The purpose of obtaining a release is to protect the

photographer from future liability. Every photo you intend to sell

which features a recognisable person should be accompanied

by a release unless it’s being used for certain reportage or

documentary purposes. The document imposes the terms and

conditions upon which one party may use images taken of

another party. In short, it’s an essential part of being a portrait

photographer if you want to use images commercially.

There are a number of phone apps which allow you to

electronically draft legally binding model releases in a few

seconds. All you need is a smart phone or iPad and a good app.

I have been using the app by 500px called ‘Releases’, which lets

me save model and location information. Once you’ve filled in

the blank fields all you need is your model’s signature, which

he or she can sign with the ease of the touch screen using

their finger and you can save it as a PDF to print, file or export

elsewhere. This certainly saves a lot of time doing paperwork! ❂