What Makes a Portrait Beautiful?

43 | Backlighting

As a photographer, it is my job to portray your likeness in the most flattering way using light & shadow, a camera, and posing.  There are countless ways to light a subject.  Light sets the mood of a photograph; it can be soft or harsh, direct or indirect.  There are all sorts of different lighting configurations and tools to achieve whatever look you have in mind! 

One of my very favorite setups is backlighting.  When I use it for portraits, it’s a beautiful soft light that gives the subject a bright and fresh appearance.  It’s forgiving, in that it sort of softens lines and wrinkles because there are minimal shadows.  For this reason, it’s often used in commercial beauty shoots because it’s so fabulous in making everyone look amazing! 

And while it is true that I use light and posing to highlight my subjects’ physical features, it’s important to remember that what truly makes a beautiful portrait is the subject’s inner presence shining through as emotion and a connection with the camera.  It’s my wish that every person would see their own beauty and worth.  And also have at least one beautiful portrait of themselves that they love! 

This week’s theme for my personal photography project is “Backlighting”. I love that I had an excuse to use this gorgeous lighting setup this week!! When you’re ready to start planning a photo shoot of your own, just let me know!