As a photographer I capture many images but an image taken 5 seconds later than the first can have a completely different look and feel. The head might be slightly shifted or the eyes might turn and look directly at the camera and, boom, a whole separate portrait is born. Same 10 second stretch, but so many unique and distinctive emotions can come from that small chain in time.
Life. Is. Precious, and fuels my love for photography. Part of that unknown where we are able to take and mold a moment that brings joy to someone’s eyes and immortalizes those quick seconds that may not have been seen otherwise. We need to make each moment count. Some days there are appointments that have to be kept, my kids’ homework that has to get done (and they may need help or just plain encouragement that it is, actually, a good idea to get it done), activities that I have to get them to on time, and then come the school meetings, the back-to-school nights, the meet the teacher conferences.
Photography helps slow things down and it can evoke powerful emotional responses. When I ask my clients what they are looking for in their images, the response I usually get has to do with sizes and digital copies and less feedback on the emotion they are trying to capture in this time period. I am hoping with this post to give you some ideas and thoughts on different photo styles that can illicit various sentiments and I have included a few of my favorites because, in fact, it is all about the image.
Vibrant Color: This type of image is bold and eye-catching. My goal is to make your colors stand out while still paying due respect to the subject/subjects. How do you know if you will like this style and is it best for you? This style is best for: a styled shoot that may be themed and overall I think it goes best with a minimalistic design, not a lot already going on in the photo. Here is an example of color taking the front seat but my subjects still very visible.
The Muted Pastels: This type of photo gives your colors a muted look and in my opinion makes the image look like it is dream-like or a memory. This is a great look that works well with children’s portraits. Muted doesn’t mean that color is not present in the image, it’s just less of the focus of the portrait.
Classic Black and White: My personal favorite. Obviously, black and white images are void of color, but it is a great classic look that I like to use a lot in my portraiture. Here is one of my signature portraits:
Images are powerful tools, think about what you want your images to say about you and your loved ones. And most importantly, enjoy your images.
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