7 Portrait Photography Composition Mistakes

Here are some of the most common Portrait Photography mistakes when it comes to composition. Are you making them?

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Enjoy & have a GREAT DAY! Brent

[karenmcconnell]

thank you Brent. I am an intermediate photographer and appreciate your tips and tricks of the trade.

[aliceschaaij]

Thanks Brent, it was a lot of good information and tips to refresh some knowledge that I already possessed, but also giving me new incite into others I didn't.

[amdenis]

There were some other, what appear to be bigger issues in several of those photos related to focus and posing/positioning. Some of the focusing could be due Nyquist noise from using a sub-opitmal resizing on top of compression. However, for example, Dave appears chest-focused instead of head/eye. Daniella appears shoulder-focused, Lara's shoulder-focused instead of eye, and cheesbuger shirt model looks like she is chest focused, etc.

The posing and positioning issues have to do with weighting/prioritizing balance and other competing priorities against the rule of thirds. Everything is competing with some other aspect in terms of priority. For example, huge black negative space in a very detailed and interesting picture is more annoying to many than even not having enough space to expand or move into via the rule of thirds. Actually, a weighted golden mean or some other weighted positioning seems more appropriate than a strict rule of thirds. Also, ROT is generally best applied to an eye, rather than a nose in a medium of closer focus.

[waltermessines]

The last one was an eye-opener... Which can be helpful watching videos straight out of bed. The only one where you expanded the original photo.

[danielaesmaili]

I knew most of them however, you chose good example for who does not know about these rules. Good job.

love the shot of Laura...do you sell any of your photos? thanks for the tips.

[samsargdong]

Hi, thanks for your interesting video.

I always get panick when people ask me to make them a photo in the street.

From now on, I'll feel much more confident in that type of situations.

Cheers!

[tobiasmathiasson]

thanks for some useful tips. i am a beginner :)

[sutejotan]

@3:53 - a litte baby with her mother ( i assume).

what if i want to tell a story about a mother holding her baby... it will different story rather than crop it. Just my opinion

[wilbo]

Space to look into??? I think it is called Active Space! The space at the back is called Negative Space.

[frederickstjohn]

You should pay attention to the horizon. Boy diving pic.

[stephennewboult]

personally I think to much is made of rule of thirds its not say and end all of photography

[zvett]

0:55 OK smile, click, great one more, click, this is great, click, OK just take one step back, ...

[tw]

Nice video! You kind of set that guy up on the San Fran picture, though. You could have positioned the subjects before handing off the camera... :-)

[wanneske]

On pic 2 : the person on the left is cut in two

[mrdelper]

1:44 perhaps the little girl drowning?

[tykimikk]

rule of thirds should be trashed. dynamic symmetry is the right path to go.

[howardkahn]

You gave the person the camera and stood where you wanted and then you say the guy composed the image wrong joking, i know you did this to show composition errors, smile