P52.2 | Week 37 Classic Portraiture

As we continue to explore classic portraiture, this week we are delving into composition for full body portraits. Like the half-body and three-quarter portraits we explored last week, full body composition offers clues and context about the subject being portrayed. In many instances, the photographer will stand a considerable distance from the subject, getting a wide shot that reveals rich and detailed information about the subject’s life and personality. This kind of shot is excellent for storytelling, although the photographer must take care to ensure the subject is well-composed within the frame so they do not get lost in a busy background or otherwise compete for the viewer’s attention. In other cases, a photographer may direct their subject to get into a variety of body positions (sitting, kneeling, or lying down) in order to achieve an intimate portrait while still offering a narrative glimpse into the subject’s life.

Our year-long collaborative blog project is dedicated to composition and artistry. Please click HERE to read more about our project. The gallery mosaic is randomly sorted every time you load the page so please Refresh the page in your browser to see a different view. Please click on the individual images to see a larger version on the artist’s website and, in some cases, a series of related images.