3 Big Tips for Stunning Wedding & Portrait Photography

The amazing wedding and portrait photographer Bambi Cantrell gives us her biggest tips for lighting, location, and working with people when she’s on a photo shoot.

Tips for Taking Stunning Wedding Photos and & Portraits:

• Find the prettiest light source
• Work with light from a window or be in an outdoor environment if possible
• The more lighting equipment you have, the more uncomfortable people feel
• Look for catch lights in the eyes and shadow areas on the face
• If you learn to identify light, you can take beautiful photos anywhere
• Find a location where you have some natural light
• Don’t pick a location that is a distraction
• It’s not about the location, it’s about the face
• Clean, simple lines work best
• Have the subject forget about the camera

“Expression beats perfection.”

• Look into your subject’s eyes and talk to them and pull from them great expression.
• You don’t want them to think of it as a photographic experience
• Pay close attention to your subject as you communicate because you will start to notice small things will happen with their mouth and eyes that show excitement and great expression.

Good questions to ask to loosen up your subject:

What makes you happy?

What’s your favorite color?

What do you do for a living?

• Once the compositional elements are met, it’s more about finding out who the person is.
• If the subject starts to feel a little stiff, move them several times during the shoot. The more they move, the more they forget about the photographic experience.
• Don’t take yourself too seriously when on a shoot. Don’t lose that magical moment that happens in people.

You can see more of Bambi’s work on her website and you can follow her on Instagram at @bambicantrell.

Check out more of our video’s with Bambi at Advancing Your Photography Youtube Channel.