French photographer Pierre Turtaut (PierreTurtaut) specializes in fashion, beauty and fine art photography. Turtaut knows the importance of capturing the right light; less is always more. Turtaut knows a great del about portraiture photography and we wanted to learn more about his great techniques. These are Turtaut's top seven tips!
1. Do not improvise too much.
Think about what kind of result you want - to get at least a few hints of where you are heading. Find some examples of what you would like to do. I spend a lot of time browsing the web, looking for inspiration and catalog everything on Pinterest.That way you will be able to show examples to the model of what you want, and speak more easily about it.
2. Light adaptation.
In the studio, adapt you lighting to the mood of the shoot. I see a lot of people not giving enough attention to their light setup or always using the same. Get out of your comfort zone! Run some tests before the shoot since it can take some time to find the best light setup.
3. Cooperation with the beauty team.
If you work with a beauty team, stay focused on the final image you want and lead that team to that. Everyone wants to show their best skills but it may not always fit the project.
4. Put the model at ease and make him/her comfortable with the "click".
It can take some time. I can spend half an hour at the beginning of the shoot not focusing at all on the pictures but only trying to put the model in the good mood. I always have some music on, try to chat a bit during the first clicks explaining the attitudes to try and mimicking the poses that could work. It has to be fun.
5. The importance of catch light.
People instinctively look at the eyes of the model and if you have catch light then it improves the viewers focus. Even if the lightning doesn't bring this, add a small reflector or a light in the setup.
6. Try to forget the technique.
This i one of the most important tip, try to quickly forget about the technique when everything is setup and focus on what really matters: the expression you’re capturing, the mood. Always trust the first impression that comes out of your pictures. Remember to keep contact with the model, be careful not to leave him/her alone on the set during long minutes without knowing what is going on, that is a huge vibe killer! Over all it has to be a pleasant moment for everyone, and you will see the difference in the shots.
7. Adapt the level of retouching to the style of photography.
A beauty portrait demands a lot more retouching than some more "classic" portrait. It is a tricky thing to know what to retouch. You will not remove all the wrinkles from an old man face, it's a part of him! Keep in mind that less is more, and over retouched images with over done skin smoothing and eye sharpening/lightning are the worst.
