Outdoor portrait photography made easy: tips for pro-quality results

jmeyer | Photography Tips | Portraits | 03/09/2012 11:00am

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Every photographer aspires to shoot professional-looking images, and in the first of our ongoing Shoot Like A Pro series on Digital Camera World we revealed the recipe that makes up all good outdoor portrait photography, offering expert photography tips on everything you need to know about this subject, from composition and kit to camera tips, flash techniques and more.

Originally run over four weeks, we’ve condensed the outdoor portrait photography tutorials from our first installment of Shoot Like A Pro into one place. We’ll start by covering the equipment you’ll need and how to nail the basics down. And over the following pages we’ll explain some of the other key aspects of outdoor portrait photography, such as how to control depth of field, which lenses to use and simple flash techniques you can use to transform your outdoor portraits into something special.

And don’t miss our ongoing Shoot Like A Pro series on creative landscape photography ideas. It will be concluding soon, and we’ll be moving on to our next topic.

Even if you can’t guarantee wall-to-wall sunshine, summer is the perfect time to shoot outdoor portraits.

There are long hours of daylight that allow you to shoot from dawn until dusk, it’s usually warm enough for both you and your model to spend plenty of time outside, and most people are generally just that bit happier in the summer compared to the depths of winter, which makes getting natural, flattering portraits a little easier.

Capturing great outdoor portraits takes a little more than just a sunny day and a willing model, though. So here’s our straightforward guide to all the shooting and lighting techniques you’ll need to master outdoor portrait photography. From controlling natural light and mastering depth of field to balancing exposure and fine-tuning flash, we’ve got it covered.

What you’ll need

You don’t need masses of costly equipment to get great outdoor portraits. Here are some basic items that you’ll need to get started:

Standard zoom lens
Flashgun
Reflector

Useful extras

Want to take your portraits to the next level? This additional kit will extend your lighting options, and help to give your photos a more professional look: