7

for TIPS Natural Looking

Travel Portraits

A photographic tip for each day of the week

Mitchell Kanashkevich

A word from the author

Seven Tips is a series of eBooks aimed at helping you to improve your photography with a tip for each day of the week. My eld of expertise is travel photography, so the content is based around that. However, travel photography is such a broad topic and touches on so many aspects of photography that virtually anyone who is into photography in general can benet from the tips included. The entire Seven Tips eBook series is completely free. If you like what you see, please spread the word and direct other photography enthusiasts to Eyevoyage.com. I hope you enjoy the rst eBook of the series.

Mitchell Kanashkevich

About the author

Mitchell Kanashkevich is a travel, documentary photographer and a best-selling eBook writer. He constantly travels the world in search of images of unique cultures and stunning places. His work has appeared in some of the worlds top travel and photography magazines (National Geographic Traveler, Vanity Fair, Lonely Planet Traveler, Geographical UK) on book covers, in ad campaigns and has made its way into private photo collections around the world.

TIPS

for Natural Looking Travel Portraits

Introduction
Its tough to point out what makes a good travel portrait. It is, however, pretty safe to say that there is an essential characteristic that any kind of portrait must share. The person in front of the camera shouldnt look awkward, uncomfortable, or be visibly affected by the photographers presence. Your portrait subject should look natural in your image. Creating natural looking travel portraits is something that I have regularly strived to achieve on my own photographic journeys. Throughout the years, I have developed certain ideas and techniques which have helped me achieve my aims time and time again. In this eBook, I will share what I feel to be seven of the most important tips for creating natural looking travel portraits. As a side note, I want to mention that photographing people is a sensitive area. I urge all of you to be respectful in all of your actions. None of our photographic subjects are there for the sake of our amusement; they are all human beings with emotions, feelings and needs. Please keep this in mind. No matter how much you want to photograph your subjects, dont overstep certain boundaries.

Interact and communicate

In portrait photography, communication is often a must. Some people simply wont agree to be photographed without knowing our intentions; even those that agree will usually feel more comfortable with some level of interaction. A comfortable person in front of the camera almost always leads to a more natural looking portrait. The level of interaction and communication required to make a person comfortable differs. Sometimes eye contact, a nod, or a smile is enough. Other times, we might need to explain ourselves and in certain cases, we really need to talk and to connect with the person before we can proceed to make images. Communication does not need to come directly from you. If you cant speak the language, you can communicate through someone who can translate. I nd that communication can be particularly important when my portrait sessions take more time. In such cases, I like to keep communicating either by myself or through someone else. This way I avoid awkward silence and keep the person in front of the camera comfortable.

Quick story about the photo

My wife and I met this woman outside of her house in a small village in Belarus. She was elderly, small, and alone, but saw no threat in us and invited us inside. By default, a couple (boy and girl) is perceived as less threatening. I knew that the woman would not feel comfortable being photographed right away; things just dont work that way in her culture. It helps to understand these details. I have a genuine interest in people. I feel most people are receptive to it, which allows them to open up. I was born in Belarus and speak her language, so, we chatted. I told her that I was photographing traditions and culture in the Belarusian countryside. She told me her story. She is a widow. She mostly lives for her children. The spinning wheel is used to make socks for her grandson in the city. After I established rapport, I asked to photograph her. She understood that and by the time the question came up, she knew enough about me to be ne with the idea. The process was natural, as I believe was the resulting image.

Be a fly on the wall

This tip can be approached in two ways. The rst might seem contradictory to the previous. One way that you can be a y on the wall or in other words an invisible observer, is by keeping the communication to a bare minimum. This approach is rarely challenging in short photographic sessions. If you are taking photographs for an extended period of time however, your subjects will likely want an explanation of why you are there. Sometimes, when a friend or a translator can do the talking, I arrange for them to explain and to interact on my behalf. I intentionally avoid making a connection. I dont want the subject to pay attention to me and to start interacting with me in any way. Some photo journalists prefer this approach because its so unobtrusive. One personal suggestion I have is that after you nish your shoot, dont just leave. A simple smile or a quick chat is the least you can do to thank your subject for gifting you a look into their world. Another way to become an invisible observer involves more time. You can go the route of communicating and establishing a connection yourself.

By spending enough time with your subjects, you will not be as much of a novelty anymore. How quickly you can achieve this will vary a lot. Sometimes it depends on how exposed your subjects are to foreigners. Once you are no longer a source of amusement, you can ask the subject to not pay attention to you and go on shooting without any interaction for minutes at a time.

Quick story about the photo

I took this photograph at a home-stay in Spiti Valley, India. I stayed a few days, so my approach combined the two that I mentioned. There was a lot of communication with the subjects through my friend and I communicated and interacted however I could myself. Because my aim was to make photos that appeared as if I was not at the scene, my friend asked everyone not to pay attention to me. It was impossible at rst, but after a couple of days my presence was not even amusing to the little girl, and it is hard not to be amusing to children in such remote places. The morning that I took this photo she didnt even notice me when she woke up.

Be an observer of people

Keen observation of people is of utmost importance if your aim is to make natural looking portraits. Observe peoples body language. There are myriad details that you should pay attention to. Posture, movement, and facial expressions can all differ from culture to culture. Through observation you build a sort of a knowledge-base of body language, of the way your potential subjects behave and react to things in general. This knowledge will help you to make sense of what youre seeing and will inform how you should approach the subject. Sometimes a subjects body language might appear uninteresting or just not photo-worthy to the untrained eye. But when you have trained yourself, you can better recognize what makes for an interesting portrait. You will also know when to intervene and do something to break the ice or when to step back and let things unfold. A common example is when the camera is pointed at children. Often they squirm or twist their bodies in the most unusual manner. Their parents or other adults tell them to take their hands away from their faces, to look into the camera, or to stand up straight. The untrained photographer thinks that the pose is not acceptable for a photograph. However, if youre a keen observer of people, these unusual poses tell much more about the subject. You will come to recognize the characteristics that make for a much more natural looking and engaging portrait.

Quick story about the photo

I met this girl with my friend in Tigray, a remote, mountainous region in Ethiopia. Like most girls her age, she was shy. When we spoke to her, she answered very quietly, smiled, covered her mouth, and avoided eye contact. I realized that if I captured this particular moment, Id be making a photo that would be very telling of the girls character. I took a few quick exposures. I was lucky that I acted quickly because my friend, being untrained at that stage, thought that such pose was inappropriate. He asked her to look at us and uncover her face. When she did, the moment of magic was gone. Thankfully, it remained on my cameras memory card.

Frame out awkward body language, get up close

In many instances, the awkwardness only happens below the face. The face and the way the subject looks into the camera are frequently still engaging and photogenic. I focus on these engaging qualities and frame out the hints of awkward, unnatural looking body language. If youre having trouble, focusing on the eyes is almost always a safe option. It pains me to exclude some of the amazing costumes and ornaments. Sometimes, I almost feel like this is cheating, but when given the choice of getting a strong photograph or one which just doesnt feel right, I will always choose the former.

If youve been observing people, youll recognize that sometimes pointing a camera at them results in body language which is awkward, unnatural, and not interesting photographically. In some cultures, people assume certain poses before being photographed. In India, for example, people in rural areas often have their Im-being-photographed pose: body straight, arms by sides like a soldier. It transforms a potentially natural looking portrait into something contrived and stiff. In other cases, the subjects might not look right for reasons that are tough to pinpoint. Previous observations will help you decide whether the pose is unusual, but interesting, or simply awkward and uninspiring.

Quick story about the photo

This mans name is Gonko. He belongs to the Hamar tribe in Ethiopia. Over a few days, I got what I felt were great images of him while he was going about his daily activities. However, when I attempted a formal portrait of him, he gave me a pose that was very straight and stiff. I had a limited window of opportunity to get a strong photograph. He had things to do and I couldnt keep him waiting. He had a captivating look, but no matter what I tried, his poses kept looking awkward and forced. There was no sense to frame wide, so I came in closer and worked with the strengths of my subject.

Photograph your subjects doing something familiar to them

When your subjects are doing something that is familiar to them, their mindset is different from when they are simply sitting or standing in front of the camera. They are less likely to pay attention to being photographed. This factor can ultimately lead to more natural looking portraits. One way to take advantage of knowing this is when we photograph in the streets; particularly in countries where a lot of life takes place outdoors in the public domain. You can photograph people engaged in various activities, doing chores, working, playing and so on. These kinds of portraits are likely to look very natural, but because the people are paying less attention to you, there might not be the immediacy that eye contact brings. If you do want that immediacy, theres a trick that can be very effective. I briey interrupt the person I am photographing by saying something, myself or through a translator. This gets their attention so they look at me and I take a quick photo. In such case, the person usually reacts in a purer way which makes for a more natural portrait.

Quick story about the photo

The ideas I mention in this tip can be taken further. If youve established rapport with your subject, you can think of an activity that is familiar to them and might make for a good photograph. I might, for example, suggest that the person I want to photograph makes tea. I photograph while they are making tea and, if I want eye contact, the same trick applies. On the streets of Jaisalmer, India, I spotted two children transporting mattresses on their heads. One of them was a small girl who, even from far away, seemed very photogenic to me. In India, photographing children in the streets can be really fun, but it can also be challenging. They act for the camera and their level of excitement can easily get out of control. In this case, the girl was working. She wasnt in the position to strike poses or joke around. I interrupted her through the sheer fact that I came towards her. I raised the camera, she paused and glanced at me for a second with a smile, I took the photo, and she continued her work.

Photograph when the subject is looking away from the camera

For some people, looking directly into the camera is too confrontational. It might be much more natural for them to look away; or they might look much less awkwardmore comfortable looking away. A direct look might give a portrait a formal, less natural feel. A look to the side lends a kind of casualness. Sometimes, I photograph people looking away while they do it on their own accord. Other times, I create a situation where they will look in a certain direction. One way to get people to look in a different direction is to simply ask them. Often, I ask my subject to look through a window or to look at some object or spot. This isnt possible all the time, as some people wont necessarily be ready to follow your instructions, but it is the most straight forward method when it works. Having another person with you will maximize your chances of succeeding. A translator, guide, or friend can stand to the side of you and talk to the subject. The subject will naturally look in that direction so you can take the photo.

Quick story about the photo

Not having anyone with you who speaks the local language is not a problem. Sometimes, I ask my wife to stand in a certain spot and, for the subject to look to the side, I ask her to either talk to me suddenly, to cough loudly, or to make any sudden sound that demands a bit of attention. The person looks in her direction and I get the shot. If the subject is a child, this process can be more playful. The man in the image is a sulfur miner by the name of Paing. We became friends while I photographed at Ijen Crater in Java, Indonesia, where he worked. I wanted a kind of a casual, natural looking, environmental portrait of Paing in his surroundings. While he had no problem looking into the camera, I just felt that such a portrait was not natural, nor casual. Being friends, I developed a certain level of rapport with Paing. To get him to look off camera, I asked if he could to look at a mountaintop in the distance (its always good to be specic in your directions). He looked away and I quickly made the exposure I needed.

Photograph the pose after the pose

every click, they may be getting more comfortable or at least showing me what to expect. I might also show the image to him or her on the cameras display so that the person understands exactly what I am doing and feels less intimidated or overwhelmed. Once the novelty or the weirdness of being photographed wears off, I take a very quick pause. Depending on how the person reacts, I either ask for a certain pose or look, or I make a few quick exposures while they are back to being themselves or being introspective and forgetting about the camera.

This approach is about making the subject comfortable with being photographed and capturing the most natural possible pose. As Ive already alluded to, the very act of being photographed can cause undesirable reactions that dont look great in photographs. People pose, they become shy, or look awkward. If there are hints that a person is not going to be at ease with being photographed, rather than wait, I actually begin shooting as soon as possible. I dont necessarily aim to get anything good at this stage. I shoot to assess just what I can do with the subject photographically while easing their shyness or awkwardness. With

Quick story about the photo

The young monk is from a monastery deep in the mountains of Sikkim, India. He was actually a very serious character. Once I pointed the camera his way, he stopped cleaning butter lamps and gave me a very formal pose. I took a few photos and showed him the cameras display. His reaction was as if he wanted to say, Ok, you got my photo. Now I can get back to my work. He got back to cleaning the lamps. I obviously was not happy with his formal poses, so after a few seconds of watching him work, I made a few more exposures. He raised his head and looked at me while cleaning a lamp, and I got the natural pose for the photograph I wanted.

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Tell the world!

The eBooks I write are something I wish I had when I was starting out in photography. Through the eBooks I want to share the ideas and the knowledge Ive gained over the years with everyone hungry to know, to learn and to experiment. It gives me great pleasure that somewhere around the world, virtually any photo enthusiast, perhaps not unlike myself can download this eBook for absolutely free and hopefully gain something from it. These eBooks and many more will be a regular feature at Eye Voyage. Please, share the love, spread the word and tell the world! If you got this eBook from a friend or elsewhere online, you can receive new free eBooks by signing up here. Please share on:

Final words
You now know some of the most important tips for getting natural looking travel portraits. One of the rst steps you can take upon the completion of this eBook is to visualize various situations and to imagine yourself applying the tips to them. Of course with people photography, you only improve signicantly when you actually get out into the eld and gain practical experience. The more people you meet, the more you shoot, the more you will improve. So, what are you waiting for?

all images and text copyright Mitchell Kanashkevich 2013