Portrait photography tip: Let the position of the head play a part

Friday 24 May 2024, 16:08 by Elja Trum | 3,006 views | 0 comments

This article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.

In a portrait, you usually want to present someone in a positive way. Especially for something like a profile picture. It is smart to look out for 'friend signals' too. Signals that make people like someone more.

Sarah - f/6.4, 1/125s, 400 ISO @ 95mm
Most people are not consciously aware of this, but as a photographer you can use these techniques in your photography.

Research has shown that people often tilt their head when they like someone. Someone with a tilted head in a photo therefore also gives off this friend signal and will, unconsciously, be seen as more friendly and likeable than someone who keeps their head straight.

Would you like to include more of these unconscious signals in your photos? Then be sure to read the book The Like Switch by former FBI agent Jack Schafer. It is also a very useful book for improving how you deal with your models and clients.

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About the author

Elja Trum is the founder of Photofacts and online photography course website Photofacts Academy. He has been writing about photography since 2006. Elja is also the author of (Dutch) books on composition, black-and-white photography, flash photography and portrait photography.

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Elja Trum

Photofacts; everything to do with photography!

Would you like to take better photos and keep up with what is happening in photography? Photofacts publishes articles that teach you something about photography — from a product announcement to a practical shooting tip or a look at a website. Photofacts covers photography every day and is a hobby project of Elja Trum's that got out of hand. The articles are written by a team of volunteer authors. If you would enjoy writing one or more articles for Photofacts, do get in touch.More about Photofacts

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