Doing a Background Check

Three components constitute an interesting street portrait: (a) an intriguing subject, (b) adequate lighting, and, last but not least, (c) the right background. Background matters! One thing that wrecks a street portrait is a cluttered background which will swallow up the subject and distract the viewer’s eye. It will also make the image look flat because the camera can’t capture the depth that the two eyes can. Therefore the photographer has to create sufficient visual depth by means of composition and subject/background separation. Most times, the right background for a strong, compelling image can be produced by slightly changing your perspective or blurring out a background.

There are two different types of background for street portraits, (i) meaningful and (ii) "meaningless" backgrounds.

(i) The meaningful background:

If one wants to photograph the subject in her or his (cultural, natural or work) environment make sure the background is equally as impressive as the subject, is part of the story, and adds value to the image. This is called an environmental portrait; the aperture could be f/5.6 or even higher (up to f/11 and more, depending on circumstances). If there is sky in the image, one want's to make sure the horizon does not cut through the head of the subject. Choosing the right camera position creates sufficient visual separation between the subject and the background which is essential to draw the viewer's eye to the subject.

Examples (i) - Environmental Portraits with Meaningful Background:

(ii) The "Meaningless" Background:

If the street portrait is about an interesting subject, then one can try to fully eliminate the background, making it about the subject and her or his facial features. There are three ways to do this:

• (a) You blur the existing (cluttered) background by opening up to f/3.2 or even more (up to f/1.2 if you have a good lens) thus creating a nice, creamy bokeh.
• (b1) You direct and position your subject in front of a clean, colourful or uniform structure (e.g. a brickwall, a painted wall, a green or flowering shrub, a wooden fence, a roller shutter).
• (b2) You improvise and use any impromptu backdrop (e.g. an umbrella, a curtain, any large piece of clothing).

Examples (iia) - Blurred Background:

Examples (iib1) - Homogeneous Background:

Examples (iib2) - Impromptu Backdrops:

Background matters; an intriguing subject alone is not enough for an interesting street portrait. A piece of advice: find an interesting background and wait patiently for something to happen... Have fun!

High-res portrait photographs with full exif data, precise geotags and technical details in Matt Hahnewald's

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Varying the Facial View of Portraits

The facial views in portrait photography derive from portrait painting (e.g. Van Dyck’s Charles I in Three Positions); it is what portion or angle of the face is showing towards the lens, the photographer, and the viewer of the photograph. For interactive street portraits with eye contact, there are only two main types of facial views: (i) the full-face view (including the seven-eighths view subvariant), and (ii) the three-quarter view (including the two-third view subvariant).

The (i) full-face view is produced when the subject is facing directly into the camera, and his nose is pointing straight towards the lens. In this view, one can see equal amounts of both sides of the subject’s face, both ears are fully visible.
The proportional full-face view is useful when one wants to show the symmetry of a subject’s face, or when one wants to convey a more assertive, dominant, or powerful attitude. The full-face view may support the yang aspect of a person (e.g. his dignity, power, masculinity, sobriety, cognition).
The slightly asymmetrical seven-eighths view subvariant of the exactly symmetrical full-face view occurs when the subject is turning his head just a tiny tad away from the camera, still maintaining eye contact, and both of the subject’s ears are still visible.

The (ii) three-quarter view aka half-profile view of the face is produced when the subject’s face is turned away from the camera until the far ear just disappears. It is called a three-quarter view because about three quarters of the subject’s face are visible. It is recommended that the face should not be turned so far that the nose extends past the line of the cheek. Also, it is important that the eye on the far side of the face be contained within the face by a small strip of skin visible along the far temple.
The three-quarter view is useful for revealing the shape and contours of the subject’s face. It is also more demure and less assertive than a full-face view. The three-quarter view may support the yin aspect of a person (e.g. her grace, mobility, femininity, playfulness, emotion).
The two-third view subvariant of the three-quarter view occurs when the subject has continued to turn her head until the tip of the nose is almost touching the outline of the cheek on the far side (preferably, without the nose extending beyond the line of the cheek, which wouldn't be very flattering).

Note below the subtle psychological commonalities and differences between the three-quarter view and the seven-eighths view, but remember: the map is never the territory...

"The face is an ongoing parade of expressions."

(Marianne LaFrance: Why Smile?)

High-res portrait photographs with full exif data, precise geotags and technical details in Matt Hahnewald's

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Inspecting Combat-ready Korean Warriors

Hwaseong ("Brilliant Castle") is the fortress surrounding the centre of the city of Suwon, located c. 30 km south of Seoul, South Korea. This fortress was built from 1794 to 1796 CE by King Jeongjo of the Joseon Dynasty to house and honour the remains of his father Prince Sado, who had been executed by being locked alive inside a rice chest by his own father King Yeongjo after failing to obey the command to commit suicide…

The fortress includes King Jeongjo's palace Haenggung which is the focus of several martial arts performances and festivals (primarily Korean polearms and swordsmanship). The famous Twenty-four Martial Arts (muyedobotongji) are regularly demonstrated following the routine used in King Jeongjo's time as king. The Twenty-four Martial Arts were compiled in 1790 CE by Yi Deokmu and Pak Je-ga, who had received orders as such from King Jeongjo, and Baek Dong-soo, a master of martial arts at that time. These distinctive martial arts were then regularly practised by the warriors of Hwaseong.

Street portraits of Korean people in Matt Hahnewald's

Flickr Album 2013-06a Plunging into Brilliant South Korea