Sedi Studio

The best camera settings for portrait photography

Portrait photography is not that hard! There are methods by which you can take very good portrait photos, special and professional photos. The main difference between a professional portrait and an ordinary portrait, apart from the high experience of the photographer and his skills, is that the professional photographer takes control of the camera settings and has a good understanding of different aspects of lighting. They also know what makes a good composition. Professional photographers usually use a lens with a focal length of 85mm or more. This will move the camera further away from the subject and you will end up with a smoother result. In this article you will begin to better understand the best camera settings for portrait photography and how to implement them in your photos.

1. Aperture

In portrait photos, it is very rare that you can see the background well. Because they usually put the background out of focus so that the viewer can focus more on the subject. Subjects can be completely in sharp focus or slightly softer with lower resolution, which is better in some subjects. You can make these changes using the aperture. For best results, try to stay in the F/1.8 to F/4 range, depending on the capabilities of your lens. As you change the size of your aperture, you also change the depth of field. In short, this is how much of your photo can be in focus at once. With a wide aperture, you have a shallow depth of field. This means that at one moment it is less in the spotlight. With a smaller aperture, you’ll have more depth of field, allowing more to be in focus. For portrait photography, background blur has become one of the main genres. By blurring the background, it highlights the subject while creating a more professional image.

2. Shutter speed

Most professional portrait photographers shoot with a shutter speed close to 1/200 seconds. The reason for using this shutter speed is not to prevent blurring of the photo due to camera shake, but because the maximum synch speed of most studio flashes is 1/200 seconds. Therefore, when shooting in the studio and using flash, they use this shutter speed. Shutter speed is one of the most important camera settings that keep your subject sharp. Especially if you’re giving a model an action like walking or turning their head, it’s important to capture this movement correctly. With a faster shutter speed, you can ensure that your subject is sharp. A shutter speed of 1/100 or faster is a great place to start. The longer the shutter stays open, the more light hits the sensor. This is why when you use a slower shutter speed. You get a clearer picture.

3. ISO

Choose the lowest ISO value according to the available light. In sunny weather ISO 100 can be suitable for photography, but in cloudy weather ISO 200 is more suitable. The ISO setting is great for bridging the gap between your shutter speed and aperture settings. Instead of having to adjust these settings, you can change the ISO to balance the exposure. The problem is that a higher ISO setting results in a grainier image.

The best settings for portrait photography

• Mode: Manual (M)
• Shutter speed: 1/100 or more
• Aperture: F/1.8 – F/4
• ISO: 100
• Focus: automatic (AF)
• Focus type: continuous/surveillance
• White balance: AWB
• Drive mode: single shot
• File type: RAW

Considering this framework, we can use other tools to improve portrait photos:

– Using a tripod

– Using a remote trigger

– Using the widest lens aperture