So this is where you took Festus off to for vacation! Good for DPR kicking you out since it got me to poke around here a bit more. Looks more relaxed and human.
I'll leave the technical advice to others.
I tend to take a bit of a confrontational approach to portraits. I ask someone to look into the lens. Think as if they are looking at someone they know. Usually people lose it after a few seconds, laugh, crack up. Self-consciousness. And this is the point I want to get people to. Have them dig into the anxiety and nervousness. Let them laugh, make faces at the camera, get the anxiety out and settle into themselves.
People have conditioned responses to having their picture taken. Established 'masks' that they can pull out and hold in place for a few seconds. The goal, I think, should be to get past these masks. Get someone comfortable in themselves and who they are showing the viewer.
So that's the key to me- have the person look at the viewer of the final image, not at the camera. Getting them to do this can take a little time, but I've never had anyone punch me for trying...
Last edited by dandaniel; 02-28-2009 at 10:25 PM.