Creating Intimacy

There are three key elements in creating an intimate portrait. The first one is to get in close. You want to be close enough to be able to see the expression of the subjects eyes which is the most important feature. That usually (not always) means using a telephoto lens to get up close an personal with your subject. This can also be done with a photoblind or just getting your subject comfortable with your presence. The second one is to photograph on the same level as the subject. This applies to photographing children as well as pets and small animals as well. It is usually best to get down to their level by getting closer to the ground where they are. For squirrels and other small mammals it means lying on the ground with your camera in the dirt. For the image of the Anna's Hummingbird below it meant raising my camera way up on my tripod to where I was almost on my tippy toes. The third element is to carefully choose your background behind the subject so that it is non distracting and makes your subject stand out. This means that you will be shooting with a fairly wide F stop to blur out the background. In the case of the hummingbird below I had to slowly move around to find a spot where there were only dark trees behind the hummingbird. Grab your camera and go out and give it a try. See what beautiful images you can create. God's love and blessings to all, chris