The Bicycle Guide to The Kodak Library of Creative Photography The Art of Portraits and the Nude

1. 1Decide the effect before you pick the tool. The passages stress that successful pictures come from photographers who 'had a clear idea of what they were trying to achieve.' Write one sentence naming the mood (romantic veil, subtle softness, central sharpness with smoky surround) before attaching anything to the lens.
2. 2Choose the diffuser for the effect you want. A center-spot filter (round hole in the middle) gives an out-of-focus image with a central area of sharpness. A soft-spot filter gives a clear central image with a smoky surround. A diffusion filter with an uneven surface breaks up the light into overall soft focus. Pick one per frame.
3. 3Improvise if you have no filter. Breathe gently on the lens for the simplest soft effect. Or smear Vaseline lightly on a plain glass or colorless ultraviolet filter, and leave part of the glass clear so some of the image stays crisp.
4. 4Match the strength to the subject. The passage describes a range from 'a very subtle overall softness' to 'a pronounced veiling of the image' with a romantic effect. Light spreads into the dark lines of a face and outward from highlights in hair and eyes. Use the subtle end when you only want to tame the detail modern lenses over-deliver.
5. 5Combine the lens effect with pose, make-up, lighting and exposure. The soft, high-key close-up used a raised arm to exclude the background, pale cosmetics, a large diffused light, and two stops more exposure than the meter indicated. Treat the diffuser as one of five levers, not the whole effect.
6. 6Correct exposure for the bright scene. A meter reading of an overall bright scene tends to darken the image to a mid-tone. For high-key softness, give at least one extra stop, or set a film speed slower than your film's.
7. 7Test before the sitter arrives. The source advises testing special lighting beforehand so you do not look undecided. Shoot a test frame with the filter or Vaseline in place and check how much of the glass is clear.
8. 8Use reflections and double exposures as separate, planned techniques. The contents list reflections and double exposure as their own special-effects topics. The passages here give no procedure for either, so plan them with the same clear-intent discipline and verify results on test frames.

The source describes a soft, high-key close-up of a girl built entirely on stacked decisions. She lifted her arm beside her face to exclude the background and wore pale cosmetics. The photographer used a large, diffused light and gave two stops more exposure than the camera's meter indicated. That extra exposure overrides the meter's tendency to pull a bright scene down to mid-tone. Add a diffusion filter or lightly Vaseline-smeared UV filter, with part of the glass left clear, and the light spreads softly from highlights into the face for a flattering, veiled result. Every element pushes the same direction, so the softness reads as intention rather than a focus error.

• If modern-lens sharpness shows more facial detail than you want, then diffuse the light source first (tracing paper, frosted window); add a lens diffuser when you need a more specific effect.
• If you want a clear subject in a dreamy frame, then use a center-spot or soft-spot filter, not an overall diffusion filter.
• If the scene is bright and the effect is high-key, then add at least one extra stop (the source's portrait used two) rather than trusting the meter.
• If you have no filter, then use a lightly smeared Vaseline on plain glass or UV filter, leaving part clear, or breathe gently on the lens.
• If the effect fights the mood, then drop it: dark, low-key, high-contrast portraits (small highlights, single spotlight) call for hard light, not soft focus.

• Smearing Vaseline across the whole filter: the entire image goes murky and nothing is sharp. The tell is no clear point anywhere, such as the eyes.
• Trusting the meter on a high-key soft portrait: the whites turn gray and the intended airy mood goes flat and dull.
• Using a heavy veiling effect on a character or dramatic portrait: the strong features the shot needs dissolve. The tell is a mismatch between the mood and the subject's personality.
• Relying on the filter alone: without pose, background control and lighting, the softness looks like a technical mistake. The tell is a cluttered background still visible through the haze.
• Testing the effect only when the sitter is waiting: you hesitate and the subject tenses. The tell is a stiff expression and an undecided session.

• ▸Intended mood: one sentence (e.g., romantic veil, subtle softness, sharp center with smoky edge).
• ▸Effect technique: diffusion filter, center-spot, soft-spot, Vaseline on UV/glass, or breath on lens.
• ▸Clear area left: note which part of the glass or frame stays sharp and why.
• ▸Light source: type and diffusion (tracing paper, window, umbrella) and its position.
• ▸Supporting levers: pose, make-up, background, and what you exclude from the frame.
• ▸Meter reading vs. planned exposure: write the extra stops added for a bright scene.
• ▸Test frame result: pass or fail, and what you adjust.
• ▸Final frame check: is the effect still reading as intentional?

1. 1Frame the session as cooperation before you lift the camera. State that you are working together toward a good result. Most people secretly like having a competent photographer take their picture, so build on that willingness. Expect tension anyway: few people can pose formally without it.
2. 2Remove your own indecision first. Plan lighting and background before the session, set the equipment up as you intend to use it, and test any special lighting before the subject arrives. A photographer who looks undecided makes the subject uneasy.
3. 3Keep a conversation going and be free with compliments. Make positive suggestions instead of criticisms. If the sitter frowns, take a few pictures and then encourage a change of pose. Once they feel involved and things are going well, the frown disappears on its own.
4. 4Take time to establish rapport before deciding what the portrait should show. Each person has a public image that shelters the real self. Spend the first minutes forming an impression of character, then look for the clues in expression, manner, gesture and dress that reinforce it.
5. 5Seat the subject. Subjects relax more easily sitting down, and a favorite chair makes an older person settle back automatically. If a seated subject still struggles, offer a prop such as a book or newspaper. For standing subjects, give them something to lean on or prop an elbow against, and have them shift weight mainly onto one leg.
6. 6Check the hands and the pose for comfort. Hands betray tension or ease immediately. Never push a dramatic pose that leaves the subject physically uncomfortable or embarrassed. Start with simple, classical poses.
7. 7Make the session two-way. Explain why you want a different pose and invite the subject to suggest ideas. Where privacy matters, as with nudes, shoot indoors or in a completely secluded place, warm the room, and let the subject wear loose clothing beforehand so elastic marks do not show. Partly concealing the face and asking for deep breaths also helps a shy subject.
8. 8When the expression freezes, break it with an action. Use a deliberate change of activity or glance to restore a natural look, then shoot the moment after the break.

A woman wears a tense, fixed smile. Following the passages, the photographer asks her to fill her cheeks with air and blow it out again. The action is so ridiculous that it reliably provokes an outburst of laughter, and the photographer captures the laughter instead of the smile. A second case uses the same logic on a different problem. A man falls into a fixed gaze. The photographer asks him to shut his eyes and look down, then captures the alert expression he wears when he looks back up. In both cases the photographer does not criticize the expression. They give a simple instruction that changes what the sitter is doing, and the natural look follows. This works only because the equipment and lighting are already set. The subject's attention goes to the instruction, not to waiting on the photographer.

• If the sitter is frowning or stiff, then take a few frames, suggest a new pose, and keep talking and complimenting. Do not criticize, because involvement dissolves the frown.
• If a standing subject looks awkward, then seat them or give them something to lean or prop an elbow against. If a seated subject is still tense, then hand them a book or newspaper.
• If the subject is shy, self-conscious about their body, or older, then choose privacy, a favorite chair, simple classical poses, and partial concealment of the face. Drop any pose that causes physical discomfort.
• If the expression has frozen into a trance or a forced smile, then break it with an action (a glance change, blowing out cheeks) and shoot immediately after.
• If you do not know the subject well, then spend the first minutes on rapport and on reading their character before committing to a lighting or setting concept.

• Fiddling with lights and backgrounds while the subject waits. The tell is the sitter stiffening and glancing at you for reassurance because you look undecided.
• Critiquing instead of suggesting, for example telling someone to stop frowning. The tell is a more guarded face and shorter answers.
• Falling into silence behind the viewfinder. The tell is a held, formal pose and eyes locked on the lens with no conversation.
• Forcing a dramatic pose you like on someone it embarrasses. The tell is visible tension in the hands, shoulders or stomach, and a pose that looks held rather than lived in.
• Skipping privacy and preparation in sensitive sessions: a cold room, a public spot, tight clothing leaving marks. The tell is goose bumps, mottled skin, and a subject who stays self-conscious.

• ▸Subject and relationship: Note whether you know them well or hardly at all, which sets how much rapport time you need.
• ▸Setup done before arrival: List the lighting tested, background chosen and equipment placed so you look decisive.
• ▸Opening conversation topics: Write two or three subjects to keep talk going and where you can offer sincere compliments.
• ▸Pose base: Choose seated, leaning or weight-shifted, and name the support (chair, bookcase) and any prop (book, newspaper).
• ▸Hand plan: Note where the hands will rest so they do not betray tension.
• ▸Privacy and environment: Record the location, who is present, and the room temperature and clothing instructions if relevant.
• ▸Tension tell and fix: List the signs of stiffness you will watch for and one positive suggestion for each.
• ▸Expression-break action: Pick one action (change of glance, blowing out cheeks) for when the face freezes.
• ▸Subject input: Note the pose ideas the subject suggested and the reasons you explained for changes.

1. 1Name the mood in one word before you touch a light (joyful, sinister, romantic, dignified, jaunty). Every later choice has to serve that word.
2. 2Set the tonal key first. For youth and lightness, go high-key: a large diffused source (tracing paper close to the subject), a white background, and slight overexposure. For solemn or sinister, go low-key: a dark or unlit background, a smaller or more distant light, and deeper shadows.
3. 3Correct the meter in high-key scenes. An exposure meter reading a bright scene will darken it toward mid-tone, so give at least one extra stop or set a slower film speed.
4. 4Choose the light's hardness to match the mood. For drama, use a small, hard source (a snoot over a tungsten lamp, or flash a foot or two from the camera) placed in front of and slightly above eye level, then shifted to one side. For softness, diffuse the lamp through tracing paper or muslin set a few feet in front of it, or use window light through thin curtains.
5. 5Fill or sculpt the shadows to the degree the mood needs. Put a reflector on the side farthest from the lamp: the larger and closer it is, the paler the shadows. For a stark mood, drop it. With a second lamp as fill, keep it dimmer than the main light, and if the two are equal in power, place it about twice as far from the subject.
6. 6Build a color scheme around the mood. Start with the subject's clothing, then match the background. Soft pinks and greens suggest delicacy; rich blues or purples suggest moody sophistication; vivid saturated colors juxtaposed suggest a restless, lively person; neutral browns, grays and beiges suggest dignity. Check for colored reflections spilling onto the skin.
7. 7Use the setting and expression to support the mood. Strip the background to what is needed (plain wall, foliage, one tree trunk) or choose an interior that says something about the sitter. Encourage natural gestures, because they read as more alive than static poses.
8. 8Add optional softening at the lens for a romantic effect: a diffusion filter, or Vaselinee smeared lightly on a clear filter with part of the glass left clear. Work quickly, because Vaselinee melts after a few minutes.

The passages show the key as a dial. A large lamp diffused by a big sheet of tracing paper, placed close to a fair-skinned subject against a white background, gives a very high-key portrait, and slight overexposure adds to it. Now darken the background, or leave it unlit, and make the light smaller, farther away, or angled differently so the shadows grow larger and deeper. With a black background and a single spotlight on one side of the face only, the portrait becomes moody, even sinister. The passages show the same logic elsewhere. Two ordinary spotlights placed to the rear lit a compelling, almost sinister portrait, since light from each side narrows the face and makes the stare more penetrating. In contrast, a window-blind shadow across a gray wall, natural light on the subject, and a gray dance costume and headband produced a softly romantic atmosphere. In both cases the mood comes from the same four levers: light quality, tonal key, color, and setting.

• If the mood is youthful or light, then use a large diffused source, a white background and +1 stop or more. If it is solemn or sinister, then use a small hard source, a dark or unlit background and a single side light.
• If the sitter's face is the focus of a dramatic portrait, then place a small hard light in front of and a little above eye level, shifted to one side so the subject is not looking straight into it.
• If the shadows read too heavy for the mood, then add a larger reflector closer to the subject on the shadow side, or a dimmer fill lamp placed near the camera.
• If the setting competes with the subject, then simplify it: plain wall, foliage, a limited-depth wide aperture, or an interior chosen for what it says about the sitter.
• If you want a lively or restless personality, then use saturated colors in juxtaposition. If you want quiet or dignified, then use neutral browns, grays and beiges.

• Meter-induced mud: a high-key scene comes out gray because the meter pulled it to mid-tone. The tell is a white background that renders gray and a flat face.
• Unintended hardness: a single undiffused lamp gives harsh shadows when you wanted a gentle mood. The tell is sharp-edged shadows on a face meant to look soft or flattering.
• Competing fill: a second lamp placed too close creates a second set of shadows, or is as bright as the main light. The tell is double shadows on the face and a lost sense of direction in the light.
• Color spill: a bright colored backdrop or wall reflects onto the skin. The tell is a green or red tinge on the face.
• Cluttered setting: busy backgrounds, patterned carpet or too much detail dilutes the intended atmosphere. The tell is that the viewer's eye goes to the surroundings rather than the subject, or the mood is unclear.

• ▸Target mood word: one word that every other choice must serve.
• ▸Tonal key: high-key, mid-key or low-key, and why.
• ▸Main light: source size, distance, height and side, and whether it is hard or diffused.
• ▸Shadow control: reflector or fill lamp, its position and relative strength.
• ▸Exposure adjustment: metered value and the compensation applied (for example +1 stop for high-key).
• ▸Background: tone, color and detail level, and what it adds to the mood.
• ▸Color scheme: clothing, background and accent colors, and the feeling each carries.
• ▸Expression and pose: gesture or posture that supports the mood.
• ▸Check: color spill on the skin, competing shadows, clutter, and whether the result matches the mood word.

1. 1Decide the personality statement before you touch the camera. The passages say the photographers 'all had a clear idea of what they were trying to achieve.' Write one phrase (for example 'stolid toughness' or 'deep, undisturbed privacy') and test every later choice against it.
2. 2Establish rapport first. Keep a conversation going, be free with compliments, and make positive suggestions instead of criticisms. If the sitter frowns, take a few frames and then suggest a change of pose. Once the subject feels things are going well, the frown disappears on its own.
3. 3Set up and test lighting and background before the subject arrives. Hesitating over equipment makes a sitter doubt you and tense up, and tension reads as personality in the final image.
4. 4Choose the setting to strengthen the character. Photograph people in their own environment (relaxing at home, working, enjoying a leisure activity) because surroundings reinforce individuality. Decide what to omit as deliberately as what to include.
5. 5Match the light to the trait. Oblique, close, underexposed light gives a rugged, high-contrast, dramatic reading. A large diffused light with extra exposure and pale cosmetics gives a soft, high-key, gentle one. Low-key lighting with a spotlight on hands and hair, plus slight underexposure, makes a powerful personality more forceful.
6. 6Pose for the person. Avoid full-face views unless you have a special reason. Seat the sitter comfortably, ideally in a favorite chair, which supports the arms and solves the problem of what to do with the hands. Give the hands almost as much attention as the face.
7. 7Control framing and viewpoint. Close in to emphasize the eyes, pull back to show face shape, or use clothing detail to suggest character. Eye level is generally most flattering. Slightly below eye level suggests authority. Looking down conceals the eyes and lengthens the nose.
8. 8Add one telling detail and expose for the face. Consider a ring on a finger or a lock of hair across the face. Close in to meter the face, or use an incident reading in front of it, before you step back to your camera position.

The steelworker at his furnace is the clearest case in the passages. The photographer wanted to convey the hardship of the job and the stolid toughness of the man. The setting is the furnace itself, and its fiery, unnatural light becomes the character statement. The subject stands in the glow of the tool of his trade, not in a neutral studio. The same logic runs through the other examples. A rugged profile is obliquely lit in close-up and deliberately underexposed to push the dramatic, high-contrast effect. A man absorbed in a book at home is placed at the frame's edge, lit naturally so the furnishings do not dominate, and reads as deeply private. Each time, light, position, and setting serve one pre-decided reading of the person.

• If the trait you want is toughness, drama, or hardship, then use oblique or low side light, close framing, and deliberate underexposure for high contrast.
• If the trait you want is gentleness or flattery, then use large diffused light, pale make-up, and extra exposure (two stops over the meter reading in the high-key example), or a diffusion filter.
• If the sitter is stiff or frowning, then keep talking, shoot a few frames, and suggest a new pose instead of criticizing.
• If you want authority in a formal study, then drop the camera slightly below eye level. If you want the most flattering view, shoot at eye level and never from above.
• If you do not know the subject well, then photograph them in their own environment doing something familiar, and pick a pose that is telling and also comfortable.

• Passport-style rigidity: the head-and-shoulders frame is square and symmetrical and shows no personality. The tell is a straight neck and shoulder line. Fix it by varying that line.
• Background or props overwhelm the person: furnishings dominate the frame. The tell is that viewers describe the room, not the sitter. Fix it by lighting and positioning so the setting supports without competing.
• Uneasy sitter: the subject appears tense and the expression reads as stiff or distrustful. The tell is that you fiddled with lights during the session. Fix it by preparing in advance.
• Wrong pose for the person: the pose could be swapped with another sitter's without anyone noticing. Fix it by weighing age, sex, and demeanor, and by avoiding the default full-face view.
• Exposing for the background: the face is lost or skin tone is wrong, so character in the eyes disappears. The tell is a bright window or sky that dictated the meter reading. Fix it by metering the face.

• ▸Subject and relationship: note how well you know them and how you will build rapport.
• ▸One-phrase personality statement: the single trait or feeling the portrait must convey.
• ▸Setting: where they live, work, or play, and what you will deliberately leave out.
• ▸Light and exposure plan: direction, hardness, and any over- or underexposure, tied to the trait.
• ▸Pose and hands: seated position, comfort support such as a chair, and what the hands do.
• ▸Framing and viewpoint: close-up, head and shoulders, or full length, and camera height versus eye level.
• ▸Telling detail or prop: one small element that suggests individuality.
• ▸Pre-session test: lighting and background checks completed before the sitter arrives.
• ▸Post-shoot check: does the image deliver the stated phrase, and what would you change?

1. 1Decide before the shoot whether you are studying abstract form, full figure, or an isolated elemental shape; a precise picture-idea lets you control pose, setting, and lighting toward one end rather than shooting haphazardly.
2. 2Set diffused toplighting to model three-dimensional shape: light from above creates subtle tonal gradations that suggest the bone beneath the skin, as with the hip study likened to a river-smoothed stone.
3. 3For texture, switch to oblique/side lighting from a single low-to-mid source; frontal light flattens, but light raking across the surface at an angle reveals real skin texture and surface detail.
4. 4Base exposure on the form you want, not the background — meter the body itself (an incident reading held near the subject, pointed back at the camera, records skin tones accurately regardless of background brightness).
5. 5Use a reflector to control shadow depth: fill shadowed contours enough to keep gradation without erasing the modeling that gives the body its sculptural roundness.
6. 6Close in on a single form (hip, shoulder, back) when you want pure sculpted shape; pull back only when the whole figure's line or stance carries the picture.
7. 7Build in mutual confidence first — no model relaxes unclothed instantly; dancers and gymnasts, used to regarding their bodies objectively, hold form and pose more readily.

In the hip study, the photographer treated a woman's hip as pure sculptured form, comparing it to a smooth stone softened by river water. Diffused toplighting was chosen deliberately: light falling from above spread across the curve in fine tonal steps rather than one flat wash. Those subtle gradations of tone do the work — they suggest the bone beneath the skin, giving the shape solidity and roundness. Nothing in the frame is incidental; the pose isolates one elemental form so the eye reads shape alone. The result reveals inherent beauty rather than clinical truth because the lighting was planned to model, not merely to record. Compare this to the portrait passage where frontal light through drawn curtains gave even, flat tones, while moving the light oblique 'begins to reveal the real texture' — the same principle applied to a face.

• If the goal is form and roundness, then use diffused toplighting for smooth tonal gradation; if the goal is surface texture, then rake light obliquely across the body.
• If frontal light flattens the subject too much, then move the source to the side until highlight and shadow model the contours.
• If shadows read as harsh black voids that break the form, then add a reflector on the far side — placed twice as far as the main light if using a second lamp — to keep gradation without a second shadow set.
• If the background is much brighter or darker than the body, then meter the body directly (incident reading) so skin tones record accurately.
• If the model is stiff or self-conscious, then seat them or choose someone body-aware (dancer, gymnast) so the form itself stays controlled and graceful.

• Shooting without a fixed picture-idea — the tell is a graceless, cluttered result; an unplanned nude approach 'is likely to produce only a graceless picture.'
• Lighting frontally when you wanted three-dimensionality — the tell is flat, even tone with no sense of bone or roundness beneath the skin.
• Exposing for the background instead of the body — the tell is bleached or muddied skin tones that lose form.
• Over-filling shadows until modeling disappears — the tell is a body that looks pasted-on and dimensionless, all mid-tone, no sculpture.
• Aiming for clinical truth rather than interpretation — the tell is an image that records anatomy blatantly instead of revealing inherent beauty; the passage warns against 'a clinical truth' and 'blatancy.'

• ▸Picture-idea: state abstract form, full figure, or elemental shape in one line
• ▸Primary emphasis: circle FORM (roundness) or TEXTURE (surface)
• ▸Main light position: toplight/diffused for form, oblique/side for texture
• ▸Diffusion: name the diffuser (umbrella, tracing paper, muslin) or 'none/hard'
• ▸Shadow control: reflector side and distance, or fill-light power and placement
• ▸Exposure basis: incident reading off the body — record ISO, aperture, shutter
• ▸Framing: close-in isolate vs. full-figure line — one word
• ▸Subject comfort: pose or prop chosen to keep the form graceful and relaxed

1. 1Before the session, define the interpretation in one sentence: what is individual about this sitter, and what might they be feeling? The source says the examples succeed because the photographers 'had a clear idea of what they were trying to achieve.' Write the sentence, then choose lighting, setting and pose to serve it.
2. 2Set up and test everything before the subject arrives: lights, reflector, background. A photographer who looks undecided about lighting or background makes the sitter tense. Visible competence is what lets the sitter relax.
3. 3Build rapport as part of the technique. Keep a conversation going, give compliments, and make positive suggestions instead of criticisms. If the sitter frowns, shoot a few frames, then suggest a change of pose. The frown fades once they feel the session is going well. With a stranger, establish basic understanding and mutual confidence quickly.
4. 4Study the face before choosing the treatment. Look at feature structure and expression. A round face is slimmed by concentrating light on the center and having the sitter lower the head slightly. A thin face is widened by broader light on a tilted-up head. A long nose is minimized with a telephoto lens and some space left above the head. To play down a receding hairline, avoid light from above and behind.
5. 5Choose elements that carry personality, not just likeness. Use a pose that is telling and comfortable, and a setting, props or clothing details that strengthen the character. Use the key for mood: high-key suggests youth and lightness, low-key suggests solemnity or menace. Use a viewpoint that supports the character, such as slightly below eye level for authority.
6. 6Control the technical basics so they do not undermine the interpretation. Base exposure on the face, closing in to meter it or taking an incident reading in front of it. Keep the camera at eye level for flattery. Avoid a wide-angle lens at close range, which distorts the nose and near side of the face. Avoid passport-style rigidity by varying the line of neck and shoulders.
7. 7Shoot a sequence and edit for the frame where the expression is individual and the sitter is at ease, not the one that is merely sharp or flattering. Check that the image reveals something about the person. The source notes that good portraits are often not conventionally flattering, but one that stresses bad features and hides good ones does the subject no service.

The source shows a steelworker standing in the glow of the furnace he tends. The photographer used this fiery, unnatural light to convey the hardship of the job and the man's stolid toughness. The decision starts from an interpretation (toughness, hardship) rather than a request for a clear likeness. Lighting and setting are chosen to say it: the furnace glow is the light source and the workplace is the setting. A second example: a rugged profile lit obliquely and in close-up, deliberately underexposed to raise the high-contrast drama, gives the face a classic simplicity. The profile also lowers distortion risk because eyes, nose, mouth and chin sit on nearly the same plane. In both pictures, light, framing and exposure were picked for what they say about the person. A third example, the painter posed beneath her own Velazquez-style Venus pastiche in a gaudy red room, uses setting as character evidence, lit by a single large studio flash.

• If the sitter is tense or frowning, then shoot a few frames, keep talking, compliment, and suggest a pose change instead of criticizing.
• If the subject is a stranger, then plan the lighting and background in advance and test them before arrival, so you look decisive while you learn their character.
• If you want youth and lightness, then use a large diffused source, a white background, and slight overexposure of at least one extra stop. If you want solemn or sinister, then use a dark or unlit background and a small, angled light.
• If the picture risks showing too much harsh detail on a mature face, then diffuse the light source or put a diffuser over the lens, applied lightly so the sparkle in the features survives.
• If a lens or angle distorts a feature, then back off and use a telephoto, or use a profile. If you want authority, then go slightly below eye level; otherwise stay at eye level.

• Recording a likeness with no point of view: technically clean but generic, and you cannot say in one sentence what it reveals about the person.
• Stiff, passport-like formality: a rigid head-and-shoulders pose with squared neck and shoulders. The tell is a blank, tense expression, often visible in the eyes or mouth.
• A nervous photographer: changing lights or backgrounds mid-session makes the sitter anxious. The tell is a sitter who stays tense and never settles into a natural expression.
• Exposing for the background instead of the face, so skin tone and expression are lost. The tell is a good setting with a muddy or washed-out face.
• Over-flattery or distortion: heavy diffusion that erases character, or a wide-angle lens too close that misshapes the nose. The tell is a face that looks smooth but anonymous, or misshapen.

• ▸Sitter and relationship: who they are and how well you know them; sets how much rapport-building you need.
• ▸One-sentence interpretation: the individual quality or feeling you want the portrait to reveal.
• ▸Key feature notes: face shape, nose, hairline, and expression; how you will enhance or minimize each.
• ▸Mood and key: high-key, mid or low-key; background tone, light size and direction, exposure adjustment.
• ▸Setting, props and clothing: which elements support the interpretation and which distract.
• ▸Pose and framing: head-and-shoulders, full-length, or profile; neck and shoulder line; eye-level or slightly below.
• ▸Lens and viewpoint: focal length and distance chosen to avoid distortion.
• ▸Pre-session test: lighting, reflector and background tested before arrival (yes/no, notes).
• ▸Selection check: does the chosen frame show the interpretation sentence? What does it reveal beyond appearance?

1. 1Fix the picture in your head before the session. The book states the aim as studying 'shape, form, texture and the strength or grace of the human body when in motion and at rest.' Name which of those four you are chasing, and note that an unplanned approach 'is likely to produce only a graceless picture.'
2. 2Settle the rapport first. No one, even an experienced model, feels completely at ease unclothed before a camera. Build mutual confidence, keep a conversation going, give positive suggestions rather than criticisms, and have your equipment and lighting set up and tested before the subject arrives so you look decided.
3. 3Control the pose before the light. Choose between a full figure and a close-in elemental form, such as a hip abstracted to 'pure sculptured form.' Cut the frame to the shapes that carry the study.
4. 4Light for gradation, not exposure of detail. The hip study uses diffused top lighting to produce subtle tone gradations that suggest the bone beneath the skin. Harsh oblique or low-key light can instead give an elemental, high-contrast result, as in the salt-flat nude at sunset where deliberate underexposure increased the contrast.
5. 5Control the setting. Choose a background and surroundings that echo the form rather than compete with it. The surreal landscape setting suits the salt-flat nude, and a plain ground suits the abstract hip.
6. 6Allow improvisation only inside the plan. A blowing drapery or an unexpected lighting effect can start a new idea, but you then re-plan around it.
7. 7Judge the result against the stated test: does the image reveal 'an inherent beauty rather than a clinical truth'? Keep the frames where form, texture and grace lead, and drop the ones that merely record or invite a leer.

The book's hip study is the model case. The photographer closed in on a woman's hip until it read as 'pure sculptured form,' like 'a smooth stone softened by river water.' Diffused top lighting created subtle gradations of tone that suggest the bone beneath the skin. The frame leaves out the face and any narrative, so no viewer can read it as a portrait or a come-on, and the body becomes a landscape of curve and surface. A second case from the opening pages is the athletic nude stretched out in a surreal salt-flat landscape at sunset. Deliberate underexposure heightened the harsh contrast, which gave an expressive, elemental pose rather than a documentary one. The two differ in light and setting but share the same discipline: each photographer knew what they wanted before shooting and controlled pose, setting and light toward it.

• If you want to emphasize softness, bone structure beneath skin or smooth surface, then use diffused, high-angle light and close framing.
• If you want drama and an elemental, expressive pose, then use hard directional light and deliberately underexpose to raise contrast, ideally against a stark setting.
• If the subject looks tense, then stop and talk, ask for a pose change, and repeat until the body relaxes, since tension shows and kills the grace.
• If an unexpected effect appears (drapery, light), then take it, but only if it serves the form you named in advance.
• If the frame reads as 'cheesecake' or as a plain record, then change the pose, crop tighter or reduce the detail until shape and tone are the subject.

• Shooting without a plan. The tell is a graceless, haphazard pose and a frame with no chosen focus of shape, form or texture.
• Clinical flatness. Even, frontal, over-detailed light makes a body-as-record shot, and the tell is a lack of tonal gradation or modeling.
• Blatancy or cheesecake. The pose or framing aims at provocation, and the tell is that the viewer's eye goes to the body parts rather than to line and form.
• A tense model. The model is not at ease because rapport was neglected, and the tell is stiff posture, tight hands or a held expression.
• A cluttered setting or background that competes with the figure. The tell is that eye is pulled to props or backdrop instead of the curve of the body.

• ▸Focus of the study: shape, form, texture or grace in motion or at rest; choose one primary.
• ▸Framing: full figure or abstracted close-in form, and what you will leave out.
• ▸Pose notes: key lines and curves you want, and how you will keep the subject comfortable.
• ▸Light: source, direction, diffusion, and the tonal effect you expect (gradation or high contrast).
• ▸Exposure intent: normal, or deliberate underexposure for contrast.
• ▸Setting and background: what it adds and what it could distract with.
• ▸Rapport plan: how you will brief and reassure the model, and what is tested before arrival.
• ▸Edit test: does the frame show beauty rather than clinical truth? Yes or no, and why.
• ▸Keeper decision: choose the best frames and note one improvement for the next session.

1. 1Fix the light before the sitter arrives. Set up the equipment as you intend to use it and test any special lighting in advance, so you never look undecided during the session.
2. 2Choose the source and its quality first. Outdoors, shoot between one and three hours after sunrise or before sunset, or whenever the sun is below 45 degrees to the horizon, when the light is less harsh. Indoors, a window gives soft, flattering light with no studio apparatus to make the sitter anxious.
3. 3Set direction by placing the sitter relative to the source. For a three-quarter window portrait, put the camera to one side of the window and the subject on the other side, turned slightly toward the light. Moving the chair or camera changes the result: facing the window with exposure on the highlight gives a silhouette, backlight with a reflector gives soft, even tones, a slightly shifted chair gives rimlight that reveals facial texture, and a camera turned into the room gives frontal light.
4. 4With a photographic lamp, start with the main light slightly above and to one side of the face. For hard drama, place a small source in front of the face and a little above eye level, then shift it slightly sideways so the sitter is not looking straight at it. This models cheekbones and chin without exaggerating the nose. Fit a snoot over a tungsten lamp, or hold a flash a foot or two from the camera.
5. 5Add fill only after the main light is set. Switch on the main light first and direct it as if it were the only source. Then add the fill close to the camera, dimmer than the main light. If both lamps have similar power, put the fill about twice as far from the subject as the main light.
6. 6Control shadow contrast with reflectors and diffusion. Pale card, polystyrene, a book, newspaper, crumpled foil, or a hand mirror will put light back into shadows, and the closer the reflector, the softer the shadow. Pin a white sheet or two layers of tracing paper over a window to soften direct sun.
7. 7Add accent lights last. A narrowed beam behind and above the sitter adds brilliance and detail to the hair without touching the facial lighting. A light behind the sitter's hair rings the head and separates dark hair from a dark background. A background light brings out texture, or colored acetate over the lamp tints a white wall.
8. 8Meter the light falling on the subject, not the surroundings. This keeps skin tone and color accurate whatever the background brightness or clothing tones. If the light is too weak for an adequately fast shutter speed, move the subject near a reflective surface or add a reflector.

The window sequence in the source shows one light, four results. All four shots use a single window and ISO 64 film. (1) Camera faces the window, exposure based on the highlight: the subject is a silhouette. (2) Same arrangement with a reflector putting light into the shadows, exposure set for the face (1/60 at f/4): the window bleaches out and the backlight is soft and flattering. (3) The chair moves a little to the left (1/60 at f/5.6): rimlighting appears and the real texture of the face shows. (4) The camera moves round to point into the room (1/60 at f/8), with thin curtains drawn as diffusers: the light is frontal and even. Nothing changes but subject and camera position and the use of a reflector or diffuser, which shows that direction and fill do most of the work.

• If the sun is harsh, then put the subject in shade for even light and softer shadows, or turn the subject away from the sun and bounce light back with a reflector or hand mirror.
• If window light leaves deep, inky shadows on the far side of the head, then add a pale reflector, and move it closer to soften the shadows further. In a small or pale room, wall bounce may make it unnecessary.
• If direct sun comes through the window and contrast jumps, then diffuse the light itself with a white sheet or two layers of tracing paper.
• If you want drama and bone structure, then use a small hard source in front of and slightly above the eyes, shifted a little to one side. If you want flattery, use a diffused or broader source.
• If you use two lamps, then keep the fill dimmer than the main light and set it near the camera. With equal-power lamps, put the fill twice as far from the subject as the main light.

• Fiddling with lighting during the session. The tell is a tense, doubtful sitter and a stalled conversation. Prevent it by testing special lighting beforehand.
• Placing fill like a reflector, or making it as strong as the main light. The tell is flat, double-shadowed faces with no modeling. Put the fill near the camera and keep it dimmer.
• Ignoring window shadow depth. The tell is one half of the face lost to black in a large or dark room. Add a pale reflector.
• Metering for the background or clothing. The tell is wrong skin tones or a bleached or silhouetted face. Meter the light falling on the subject, or decide deliberately which of highlight or face to expose for.
• Setting the key light too low or straight on. The tell is an exaggerated nose, flat features, and a sitter staring straight into the lamp. Raise the light slightly above eye level and move it a little to one side.

• ▸Light source: window, sun, flash, tungsten lamp. State which.
• ▸Time/conditions: time of day, sun angle (below 45 degrees?), cloud or haze.
• ▸Direction: frontal, side, three-quarter, back, rim. Note subject and camera positions.
• ▸Quality target: hard (snoot, small source) or soft (tracing paper, sheet, shade, diffused sky).
• ▸Main light position: height relative to the eyes and sideways offset.
• ▸Fill: reflector material and distance, or fill lamp power and distance (twice as far if equal power).
• ▸Accent lights: hairlight, backlight, background light, with any acetate color.
• ▸Exposure reading: metered on the subject's face or highlight, with ISO, shutter speed, aperture.
• ▸Pre-session test: done before the sitter arrives (yes/no), plus adjustments made.

1. 1Decide the job of the frame before you raise the camera: record the face, show personality through the body, or abstract the form. The source treats framing as a deliberate choice, and each level of inclusion does a different job.
2. 2Start with head and shoulders, the 'favorite way of framing a portrait'. It puts full emphasis on the face and needs no elaborate lighting, equipment or special background. Then choose a tight version (fill the frame with the head, stressing features) or a looser one (step back and let clothing details suggest personality).
3. 3Use a zoom lens to run a sequence from the same position. Close in until the eyes dominate. Pull back slightly until the whole head is in the frame and the face shape is accentuated. Pull back to standard framing for a formal effect. Include more of the figure to reveal a casual stance and the portrait turns informal.
4. 4Go full-length when posture and gesture carry the character. The whole body shows tension or composure, and gestures add emphasis to facial expression. Expect the subject to ask 'What do I do with my hands?' and have an answer ready. One option is to sit people on the ground, where they tend to use their hands naturally for balance.
5. 5For two people, keep the arrangement simple. In the 35mm horizontal format, use a head-and-shoulders pair side by side, but avoid putting both heads on the same level unless they face each other in profile. For more varied framing, turn the camera vertical and put the pair on different levels: one sits, the other stands slightly behind with a hand on the chair.
6. 6For the nude, use the minimal approach: crop to a small part of the body, often by cutting the head out. Attention goes to contour, shape and form, and you avoid weaker features. In outdoor settings, frame so the body detail merges with the surroundings, such as a midriff echoing indented sand.
7. 7Set camera height as part of the framing. Eye level is generally most flattering. Looking down hides the eyes and lengthens the nose. Slightly below eye level suggests authority in a formal study, and a low angle emphasizes the hands and adds stature.
8. 8Check the frame edges and background before you shoot. Use elements like a painting behind and a sofa in front to frame the subject and lift him away from distracting wallpaper. Vary the line of the neck and shoulders so a head-and-shoulders frame does not look like a passport photograph.

The source describes a zoom-lens sequence of one sitter. Frame 1 closes right in, which gives full emphasis to the eyes. In frame 2 the photographer pulls the lens back slightly so the entire head is in the frame, and the shape of the face is accentuated. Frame 3 uses standard framing, which is more formal, but the sloping line of the body keeps it from seeming staid. In frame 4 the sitter has hardly moved, but more of the figure is included, the casual stance shows, and the portrait becomes relaxed and informal. The only variable is how much is inside the frame, and the mood changes at every step.

• If you want the eyes or facial features to carry the picture, close in until they fill the frame. If you want the face shape, pull back just enough to include the whole head.
• If the sitter's personality shows in clothing, posture or stance, move back from the tight head crop to include shoulders, clothing details or more of the figure.
• If a head-and-shoulders portrait looks stiff or passport-like, vary the line of the neck and shoulders instead of squaring them to the lens.
• If two heads would sit side by side at the same level, put one lower, or turn the camera vertical and put one person seated and one standing, unless both are in profile facing each other.
• If a nude subject has features you want to downplay, or you want an abstract image, crop to the strongest part, often without the head, and fill the frame with its contour or texture.

• Passport-style rigidity: a squared, symmetrical head-and-shoulders frame with no variation in neck or shoulder line. The tell is a flat, formal result.
• Full-length framing with no plan for the hands or posture. The tell is a tense subject asking what to do with their hands and a stiff body in the frame.
• Shooting down on the sitter. The tell is hidden eyes and a lengthened nose.
• Two heads side by side on one level, not in profile. The tell is a dull, static double portrait.
• A busy background left in the frame. The tell is the subject merging with a distracting pattern such as wallpaper, instead of being lifted away from it by framing elements.

• ▸Purpose of the picture: one line on what the frame must convey (face, personality, form, relationship).
• ▸Chosen framing level: tight on features, full head, head and shoulders, standard, full-length, or minimal crop.
• ▸What is included and excluded: list what the frame deliberately keeps and cuts, including the head if cropped in a nude.
• ▸Camera height: eye level, slightly below for authority, or low to stress hands and stature.
• ▸Format and orientation: horizontal or vertical, and why, especially for double portraits.
• ▸Neck, shoulder and body line: how you will vary it to avoid passport rigidity.
• ▸Hands and posture plan: where the hands go, or whether the subject sits on the ground.
• ▸Background and framing elements: what frames the subject and what distracting detail must be hidden or lifted away.
• ▸Sequence check: note the tight, medium and wide versions shot and which one best serves the purpose.

1. 1Settle the intent before the subject arrives: decide the mood or character you want the pose to carry (the passages stress that every effective picture comes from a photographer with 'a clear idea of what they were trying to achieve'). Set up and test lighting and background beforehand so you do not look undecided during the session.
2. 2Build rapport first. Keep a conversation going, offer compliments, and state that you are working together. Few people pose formally without tension, so the pose cannot be directed until the sitter relaxes.
3. 3Choose the head angle for the sitter before refining the body: full-face for direct, challenging communication (suits good eyes and regular features, but risks passport-photo dullness unless the sitter is confident), profile for striking or unconventional lines, three-quarter as the middle option.
4. 4For a profile, liven it up: throw the head back slightly to show long hair and a graceful neck. Place the light ahead of the face and slightly farther back than the subject from the camera to emphasize the profile line.
5. 5Give positive suggestions instead of criticisms. If the sitter frowns, shoot a few frames, then suggest a change of pose; once the subject feels things are going well, the frown fades naturally.
6. 6Choose a pose that is telling and also lets the subject feel at ease. Fit the pose to the setting or role: echo a painting's pose, place a worker beside his furnace, or position each person in a group by his individual role.
7. 7For groups, fix the overall arrangement first, then work each individual's pose and appearance. Use steps or a slope, or raise the camera, so figures do not hide each other. Have people turn their shoulders or put an arm around the next person to bond a close-up group.
8. 8For self-portraits, direct yourself: frame with a stand-in chair, leave space around where your head will be, rehearse taking up the pose against the self-timer's delay (about eight to ten seconds), and use a mirror behind the camera to monitor your expression.

A painter sits below one of her own pictures, a pastiche of Velazquez's celebrated Venus, in a gaudy red room. The photographer's direction is the concept: he posed her to echo the painting, so her body repeats the painted figure's line and the two images answer each other. A single large studio flash handles the light, so the pose carries the picture. In the restaurant staff portrait, the photographer arranged the staff around a table laden with food and positioned each person according to his individual role. The semi-circular arrangement draws the eye to each figure in turn, then back to the table. In both pictures the posture is chosen to say something specific about the sitter or the group, not left to chance.

• If the sitter is unconfident or has ordinary features, then avoid a flat full-face view and use three-quarter or a lively profile; full-face needs confidence or strong eyes.
• If you want a profile, then tilt the head back slightly to show neck and hair, and place the light in front of the face, slightly farther back than the subject.
• If the sitter looks tense or frowns, then shoot a few frames, give a positive suggestion, and change the pose rather than criticizing.
• If figures in a large group hide one another, then move them onto steps or a slope, or raise your camera height, even by standing on a chair.
• If using flash or tungsten indoors with a wide aperture, then pose group members at roughly equal distances from the camera to keep them in the narrow focus zone and evenly lit.

• Defaulting to full-face on an unassertive sitter: the result reads as a passport photograph.
• Arriving undecided about light or background: the sitter senses it, tension stays, and stiff poses follow.
• Criticizing instead of suggesting: the frown or rigid posture deepens instead of dissolving.
• Overstaged profiles with a sitter unfamiliar with their own profile: the subject looks wary and the pose looks forced; the fix is the head-back, neck-showing lift.
• Posing a group in rows with no control of individuals: faces are hidden behind front figures and attention is uneven, so no shared bond appears.

• ▸Intent: the mood or character the pose must convey, in one sentence.
• ▸Sitter comfort notes: nervousness level and the compliment or topic you will use to relax them.
• ▸Head angle: full-face, three-quarter, or profile, with the reason it suits this sitter.
• ▸Head and neck cue: tilt, turn, or lift you will request (for example, head back slightly to show the neck).
• ▸Body and limb arrangement: stance or seat, shoulders, arms and hands, and what each says.
• ▸Setting or role link: the prop, background, or role the pose references.
• ▸Light relationship: where the light sits relative to the face to support the pose.
• ▸Positive suggestions: three phrased cues to give during the shoot.
• ▸Review check: after test frames, what to change (pose, angle, expression) and why.

1. 1Decide what the setting must do before you pick it. The source says you 'must decide what kind of surroundings will strengthen the portrait.' Write one line: this backdrop should add context (profession, taste, home) or mood (calm, drama, intimacy), or it should stay out of the way.
2. 2Choose the type of setting. Use a plain studio ground for a simple, controlled likeness. Use the subject's home or workplace when objects and surroundings tell the story. Use an outdoor location when you want spontaneity. The passages treat 'Indoor settings' and 'Outdoor settings' as separate choices, each with its own lighting consequences.
3. 3Survey the location for clues, then cut. At a subject's home 'almost everything you see will provide some clue to a facet of personality,' but 'the temptation is to include too much.' Keep a few items and place them so they work together, like the painting, chessboard and dog in the writer's portrait.
4. 4Plan the setting before the subject arrives. Have the equipment set up as you intend to use it, and test any special lighting in advance. Being undecided about 'lighting or about backgrounds' during the session undermines the subject's confidence.
5. 5Outdoors, place the subject and the background together. Move around to get the best balance of light and 'the least distracting background you can find.' Shoot when the sun is below 45 degrees to the horizon, roughly one to three hours after sunrise or before sunset. Use the diagrammed positions: shade, back to the sun with a reflector, or a hand mirror on the beach.
6. 6At a workplace, accept the surroundings and control them with the lens. Use a wide-angle 35mm lens to show foreground and background with equal clarity when the setting is part of the story. Use a wide aperture and limited depth of field to isolate the subject from a confusing background, as with the potter.
7. 7Light the setting deliberately. Use window light to keep the workplace's real atmosphere, because added lights often destroy it. Use a background lamp to bring out a printed backdrop's texture and pattern, or put colored acetate over it to tint a plain white wall. Set the exposure for the face, not the background.
8. 8Match the background's color and weight to the subject. The thick-haired subject shot against an apple-green backdrop shows a color choice that supports the pose.

The source describes a potter photographed at work. The workplace background is confusing, so the photographer does not try to rearrange it. They use a wide aperture, which gives limited depth of field, to isolate the potter and blur the clutter. In a second workplace portrait the surroundings are 'a vital part of the story,' so the photographer switches to a wide-angle 35mm lens. That lens renders foreground and background with equal clarity. The principle is to choose the lens and aperture after deciding whether the setting is evidence or noise. Both shots use window light and fast black-and-white film instead of added lamps. This keeps the workplace's true atmosphere and avoids the colour casts that mixed lighting produces.

• If the surroundings tell the subject's story (workplace, home, studio of an artist), then keep them sharp with a wide-angle lens and include only a few items that support each other.
• If the surroundings are confusing or distracting and you cannot change them, then isolate the subject with a wide aperture and limited depth of field.
• If you shoot outdoors at midday in harsh sun, then move the subject into shade, turn them away from the sun, or fill the shadows with a reflector, or wait until the sun is below 45 degrees.
• If you shoot at a workplace, then use available window light and fast black-and-white film instead of adding lamps, so you keep the atmosphere and avoid mixed colour casts.
• If the backdrop is printed or plain and you want it to register, then light it separately: a lamp close to it makes a pool of light, a lamp farther away makes it more even, and coloured acetate adds colour.

• Prop overload: you photograph everything in the subject's home. The tell is that the eye cannot find the subject and the items do not point to one idea.
• Unplanned backdrop: you hunt for a background while the subject waits. The tell is a subject who looks tense and uncertain, because hesitation over lighting and backgrounds undermines their confidence.
• Exposing for the background outdoors: the face is under- or overexposed. The tell is wrong skin tones; the fix is to meter the face, close up or with an incident reading, before backing off.
• Adding studio lights to a workplace or home setting: the place loses its real atmosphere and shows mixed colour casts. The tell is odd colour on faces or a staged look.
• Leaving a cluttered background sharp: a busy scene competes with the face. The tell is a background that holds the eye as much as the subject; the fix is a wide aperture.

• ▸Subject and purpose: one line on who is being photographed and what the portrait should say.
• ▸Setting type: plain studio, home, workplace, or outdoor, and why.
• ▸Story or mood the setting must add: context (profession, taste) or mood (calm, drama, intimacy).
• ▸Props to keep (max 3-4): list the few items that work together; note what you will leave out.
• ▸Background problems: clutter, glare, harsh light, or colour casts you must control.
• ▸Lens and aperture plan: wide-angle for showing the setting, wide aperture to isolate the subject.
• ▸Light plan for the setting: window, reflector, shade, backlight, background lamp or acetate colour.
• ▸Time of day or sun position: target one to three hours after sunrise or before sunset, below 45 degrees.
• ▸Pre-session test: what you will set up and check before the subject arrives.

1. 1Start with the background, not the lens. Before you raise the camera, look at what sits behind the subject and decide if it supports the story or confuses it. The passages treat the background as something you accept at work sites and then control through lens or aperture choice.
2. 2If the surroundings are part of the story, pick a wide-angle lens (the passages use a 35mm) so foreground and background both render with equal clarity. Use it for a subject whose workplace explains who they are.
3. 3If the surroundings confuse or distract, isolate the subject with a wide aperture on a normal lens. The passages use f/4, which gives limited depth of field and blurs the background out. Set the aperture first, then adjust shutter speed to match.
4. 4Use the same wide-aperture approach in bleak, shadowless light. The passages show an outdoor man portrait where a wide aperture blurred the background and kept the focus on a simple, direct face.
5. 5Set exposure from the face, not the background. Close in and read which aperture and shutter speed the meter indicates, then step back to your camera position. With a hand-held meter, take an incident reading in front of the face, pointing back toward the camera.
6. 6Check that the aperture you chose still gives a usable shutter speed. If the light is too weak for an adequately fast speed at your aperture, move the subject near a reflective surface or add a simple reflector rather than giving up the lens choice.
7. 7When you use flash with a diffuser or reflector, set the unit to manual because the automatic sensor is misled by the bright white surface. Run bracketed exposure tests in advance, using wider apertures than for normal flash photographs, and record the settings for that lighting arrangement.
8. 8Plan before the sitter arrives. Have the lens fitted and the aperture strategy decided so you do not look undecided about backgrounds during the session.

The passages give a direct pair. In a workplace portrait of a worker whose surroundings are "a vital part of the story," the photographer chose a 35mm wide-angle lens, which shows the foreground and background with equal clarity. In a second scene, a potter sat in front of a confusing background. There the photographer used a normal lens at f/4, and the limited depth of field isolated the potter from the clutter. The potter was lit by soft, even window light, which picked out detail in the sculpted pot and the lines on the craftsman's hands and face. The subject and the available light were similar in kind. The lens and aperture choice decided whether the background was evidence or noise. A further window-light example in the passages, shot at ISO 64, 1/60 at f/4, exposed for the face rather than the window highlight.

• If the setting tells the subject's story, use a wide-angle lens (35mm in the passages) so the surroundings stay clear.
• If the background is confusing and you cannot change it, use a wide aperture (f/4 on a normal lens) to limit depth of field and isolate the subject.
• If the light is dull and shadowless, still use a wide aperture to blur the background and keep the portrait simple and direct.
• If the light is too weak for a fast enough shutter speed at your chosen aperture, add a reflector or move the subject to a reflective surface instead of abandoning the aperture.
• If you use flash with a diffuser or reflector, set it to manual and test with bracketing at wider apertures than normal.

• Wide aperture chosen out of habit when the environment was the point. The tell: the workplace or props dissolve into mush and the portrait loses its context.
• Wide-angle used on a cluttered scene. The tell: every distracting object in the background is as sharp as the face.
• Exposure read from the background or window instead of the face. The tell: skin is bleached or silhouetted. The passages show the window highlight bleaching out when exposure is set for the face, and a silhouette when it is set for the highlight, so only choose these deliberately.
• Trusting automatic flash with a bright diffuser or reflector. The tell: the sensor is misled by the white surface and exposures come out wrong.
• Choosing the aperture without checking shutter speed. The tell: in low light you cannot reach an adequately fast speed, and the picture is soft or underexposed.

• ▸Subject and setting: one line on who the person is and where you are.
• ▸Is the background part of the story? Yes or no.
• ▸Background problems: list anything confusing or distracting behind the subject.
• ▸Lens chosen: wide-angle (e.g. 35mm) if the setting is the story, normal lens if isolating.
• ▸Aperture chosen: wide (e.g. f/4) to isolate, or smaller to keep the surroundings clear.
• ▸Face exposure reading: aperture and shutter speed indicated when metered close to the face.
• ▸Resulting shutter speed: is it adequately fast at the chosen aperture? Yes or no.
• ▸Fix if too slow: reflector, reflective surface, or other light source.
• ▸Flash setting: automatic or manual, plus the bracketed test result if manual.