Glasses can be tricky things to photograph well, and occasionally people will advise you to have your portrait taken without them. That’s OK if you sometimes go without them in your real life. If you always wear your specs, however, you probably should have them on for your corporate portrait. Below are some tips for getting great shots even with your glasses on.
Make sure your glasses are clean
Bring along your cleaning cloths and/or lens cleaning solutions to your photo shoot, and give your spectacles a good clean just before you step onto ‘set’ for your shoot. Portrait photographers usually work hard to make sure your eyes shine in your photos, and dirt and smudges on your glasses will detract from that. Scratches to your lenses and frames look less than professional, too, so bring along your ‘best’ pair of specs.
Make sure your glasses are up to date
You probably put a lot of thought into the styling of your clothes and hair for your photo shoot, but what about your glasses? Make sure the style of your glasses is up to date and suits your face. If you can, bring along more than one pair so that you and your photographer can decide together which ones will photograph the best.
Avoid glare and reflections
Glare and reflections on your glasses obscure your eyes, which is where we usually want people to look first in a photo of you. Your photographer should be able to work with their light sources well enough to photograph you without glare or reflections, but if you are having a friend or colleague photograph you, here are a couple of things to try:
- Move into full shade and reduce the overall amount of light
- Turn your head away from the camera, and look ‘out of frame’ of the photo. (This will help with the glare and reflections, and will also give you a more ‘arty’ feel to your portrait, which may or may not be appropriate for you depending on the end use for your images.)
- Tilt you head down slightly. (This will in effect ‘move’ the glare or reflection from being directly in front of your eye to being more on your glasses frame. Be careful that you don’t create a double chin in the process, though!)
Avoid transition lenses
I know transition lenses offer great protection for your eyes, but they are a nightmare for photographers! If you can, bring a pair of glasses that are not transition lenses. If you only have transition lenses, then your photographer may want to take to identical photos of you, one with and one without your glasses on. Then the two images can be made into a composite image in post production so that you can have your glasses on and still be able to see your eyes.
Try some shots just holding your glasses
Some of my clients prefer to have their glasses in shot, but not actually be wearing them. Here’s an example.
And remember: Your glasses can be a statement of your personal taste and style, so they should be incorporated into at least some of your photos.
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