Portrait photography captures a person or group of people- it demonstrates their personalities by using different poses, background environments and lighting. Photographers take different approaches when photographing people for portraits, the four main types are environmental, constructionist, candid, and creative. It is important, when taking portrait images, that the subject and photographer are both aware of the type of atmosphere and personality they wish to portray in every photo.

Mood Board – Iconic Portraits

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Contemporary Portrait Photography

Contemporary Portrait Photography is highly focused on the values of the modern world, however it does not have to ignore a prior historical context. Contemporary portraits can either reinforce or challenge modern ideas and feelings by portraying different emotions.

Fernando Rodriguez

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An example of Contemporary Portrait Photography is this series of images by Fernando Rodriguez. Fernando Rodriguez is a Mexico City based photographer, who was inspired by Frida Kahlo’s iconic self portraits. Rodriguez has reimagined Frida’s recognisable portraits into contemporary pop-art style images. These images combine historic traditional hairstyles with vibrant futuristic outfits, bringing together moments of the past and present in a highly stylistic manner.