Portraits at home, the place where you’re most comfortable, the place where you often express your personality; it can often be the most perfect location for a portrait session. Location is such a key part to a great portrait, so I’m going to share a few different examples over the next month or so, just to give you a taste of how things can look and work.
Portraits In Your Surroundings
There is something so special about taking portraits of a person in their home. Firstly, it involves trust on both parts. It also involves an understanding of how the client lives, how they express themselves at home, and which aspects of that they want to show in their portraits. Juey, the artist you see in the portraits featured, lives and breathes her art. Her home is an expression of who she is, and acts as an ever evolving exhibition. I appreciate not everybody lives in this way, but the majority of the homes I have taken portraits in have reflected the person who lives there perfectly. A huge advantage of portraits at home is that you are instantly more relaxed. If you feel daunted at the prospect of going into a studio setting, or an outdoor session, this could be the option for you.
How To Prepare For a Portrait Session at Home
So you might be thinking ‘my house is a mess, there is NO WAY it would work’. You would be surprised at some of the places I have taken portraits, and what is just out of shot. You don’t need to have a huge clean and tidy home, you don’t even need to have great light either… although a bit of beautiful window light is always a bonus. Before a session in someones home, I ask them to consider three different locations in the home that reflect who they are. On arrival we then work together to finalise a few different areas that feel the right mood for the client, and for the type of images they’re hoping to achieve. collaboration is key to having portraits at home.
Are you curious about how a portrait session at home could work for you? Please get in touch HERE if you have an questions, I’d love to chat with you.
