One of the most important things in taking a great picture is where to crop your subject. In the industry there are certain standards: full length, 3/4 length, close ups, etc. What are the factors for deciding what stays in the photo and what is cropped out? This article is deals with different methods for cropping your images to make your portraits look more professional and more attractive.
There are two different ways to properly crop an image: in camera, and in post-production. The first method, cropping in camera is the best way of cropping. By cropping in camera you get the full resolution of your camera in your final images. Cropping in camera means that you carefully frame your subjects as you shoot your images, and decide what is in frame and what is out of frame. When you take a picture of a person's face, just the face is in frame, not the whole body to be cropped out later. By doing this, the final image will have the full resolution that your camera has recorded.
Unfortunately, sometimes this isn't possible, and that is why we also have the second method of cropping, cropping during postproduction. Sometimes you may find yourself, shooting pictures of a very fast event at a wedding; things may be happening so quickly that you don't have the time to properly compose the image.
People showing off their dance moves at the reception, or the female guests knocking each other over trying to catch the bouquet, or the men bumping each other reaching for the garter are all examples of very fast action where you may not have time to crop in camera. This is alright though. Focus on trying to capture the action as best you can with the knowledge that you will later be able to crop these images on the computer. As you know some resolution will be lost but better that than missing the moment during a fast action sequence.
Now that it is clear which method of cropping to use at which situation, we can discuss how we decide to leave parts of the subject in frame, while cropping other parts out. To start, DO NOT crop a subject at the joints, i.e., ankles, waist, knees, etc.
You are probably aware of the full length shot, that is, the entire body of your subject with a little bit of space above the head, and below the feet. The next kind of portrait is called the 3/4 length shot. In this type of portrait the thigh of the subject makes the bottom edge of the frame, and a little space above the head of the subject will be the upper frame.
Next, there is the head and shoulders length portrait. The bottom edge of the photo in this portrait will be the upper chest of your subject, and again a small space above the head as the limit for the upper edge.
The last type of portrait is also the most complicated, the close up of the face. As you may have seen in countless fashion magazines or photos online, these portraits for the most part tend to be more artistic. Because of this there are no hard and strict rules for cropping. My advice to you is to study the genre of facial close ups and choose a style of cropping that best suits your photography, and then expand from there.
If you new to wedding photography keep with it! I hope this tip helps you out at your next wedding. Good Luck.
There are two different ways to properly crop an image: in camera, and in post-production. The first method, cropping in camera is the best way of cropping. By cropping in camera you get the full resolution of your camera in your final images. Cropping in camera means that you carefully frame your subjects as you shoot your images, and decide what is in frame and what is out of frame. When you take a picture of a person's face, just the face is in frame, not the whole body to be cropped out later. By doing this, the final image will have the full resolution that your camera has recorded.
Unfortunately, sometimes this isn't possible, and that is why we also have the second method of cropping, cropping during postproduction. Sometimes you may find yourself, shooting pictures of a very fast event at a wedding; things may be happening so quickly that you don't have the time to properly compose the image.
People showing off their dance moves at the reception, or the female guests knocking each other over trying to catch the bouquet, or the men bumping each other reaching for the garter are all examples of very fast action where you may not have time to crop in camera. This is alright though. Focus on trying to capture the action as best you can with the knowledge that you will later be able to crop these images on the computer. As you know some resolution will be lost but better that than missing the moment during a fast action sequence.
Now that it is clear which method of cropping to use at which situation, we can discuss how we decide to leave parts of the subject in frame, while cropping other parts out. To start, DO NOT crop a subject at the joints, i.e., ankles, waist, knees, etc.
You are probably aware of the full length shot, that is, the entire body of your subject with a little bit of space above the head, and below the feet. The next kind of portrait is called the 3/4 length shot. In this type of portrait the thigh of the subject makes the bottom edge of the frame, and a little space above the head of the subject will be the upper frame.
Next, there is the head and shoulders length portrait. The bottom edge of the photo in this portrait will be the upper chest of your subject, and again a small space above the head as the limit for the upper edge.
The last type of portrait is also the most complicated, the close up of the face. As you may have seen in countless fashion magazines or photos online, these portraits for the most part tend to be more artistic. Because of this there are no hard and strict rules for cropping. My advice to you is to study the genre of facial close ups and choose a style of cropping that best suits your photography, and then expand from there.
If you new to wedding photography keep with it! I hope this tip helps you out at your next wedding. Good Luck.
About the Author:
Kevin Heslin is one of the leading Wedding and Commercial Photographers in Costa Rica. Besides commercial and wedding photography, Kevin also specializes in Travel and Cultural Portraits. To see more photo tips click on his blog Costa Rica Photographer Or to see photos of his weddings in Costa Rica, or travel and cultural photography in Central America check out his website Costa Rica Photography. Free reprint available from: Wedding Photography Tips for Beginners - How to Correctly Crop Your Subject.
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