What are the Different Types of Portrait Photography?

• Traditional Portraits

What is traditional portrait photography? It is the most common form of portrait photography, wherein the subject strikes a pose and looks at the camera. Usually, photographers click conventional portraits in a studio with a formal backdrop. Traditional pictures have another subgenre – formal portraits. They also involve posing in front of the camera in a standard setup but with the subject wearing a formal outfit.

• Self-Portraits

Let’s now look at self-portraits and their meaning. What is self-portrait photography? A self-portrait isn’t similar to a selfie you click with a mobile phone So, you shouldn’t mistake a self-portrait to be a selfie. Self-portrait, of course, involves clicking your own picture. But it requires a more significant amount of planning and insight.

• Lifestyle Portraits

Lifestyle portrait photography involves clicking pictures of human beings. Lifestyle portraits capture people in their familiar environment while performing daily tasks. Lifestyle photographers often have a confined time frame to capture various images. They have to direct subjects. For instance, they will have to a couple look at each other or hug to capture the moment perfectly.

• Conceptual Portraits

Conceptual portrait photography is another promising avenue to explore within the portrait genre. It involves capturing an idea or concept within a portrait image. These photographers often use props, photo editing, and alter the common camera settings, to bring their conceptual photography ideas to life and make them more appealing.

Conceptual portrait photography essentially entails creating an idea. So, it includes various edits, special effects, levitation, makeup, perspective manipulation, etc. Conceptual portrait photographs may require a lot of editing and post-production.

• Glamour Portraits

Glamour portrait photography focuses on the subject’s beauty. Thus, it involves wardrobe planning and professional makeup artists to enhance the subject’s beauty. Sensuous photography, which highlights physical attractiveness, is another subgenre within glamour photography. Glamour photography could involve outdoor shoots across locations that match the photograph idea as well.

• Close-up Portraits

Close-up portrait photography is perhaps the most personal of photography categories. It requires getting in close to the subject or the model. The focus remains on the eyes, as they are the most striking and interactive feature of a person’s body.

• Group Portraits

Group portrait photography, as the name suggests, involves clicking photographs of many people in the same frame. It is a challenging subgenre as it requires collaboration between every participant in the photograph. Although bound in a group, the subjects shouldn’t look disconnected.

Thus, while cameras are vital, communication is critical for lively family group portraits, corporate group portraits, and other group portraits

• Candid Portraits

What is candid portrait photography? It refers to taking unposed, uncurated photographs. These photographs involve capturing natural moments. Candid photography doesn’t require an elaborate setup and includes spontaneous pictures.

Some photographers use posing and prompts to enhance candid photographs

Become a Portrait Photography Professional with Seamedu!

We hope this blog provided you with a fair understanding of portrait photography. If you aspire to become a professional portrait photographer, you must learn the genre formally for better career opportunities. Seamedu can help.

We have various degree and diploma photography courses that encompass learning many diverse photography techniques, genres, and subgenres. The courses also include learning about photography equipment like cameras, lenses, tripods, etc., and leveraging them optimally to capture iconic photographs.