“Psychological Portraiture”

“Psychological Portraiture”

by William Lulow

“Psychological Portraiture” is a term that Philippe Halsman, noted photographer of over one hundred LIFE MAGAZINE covers over the years and photographer of many famous people, used to use a lot. As the son of a psychiatrist myself, my guess is that Halsman fancied himself somewhat of an amateur psychologist as well as a good photographer, and having studied with him back in the 1970s, he certainly had an interest in the psychological aspects of doing portraits. One knew that he was a “people” person and loved to photograph anyone.  The truth is, you need a bit of both disciplines in order to become a good portrait artist. True, you certainly need to know your studio lighting and how to control it, but you also have to have a sense of people and how they experience the whole process of having their images recorded on film or today, digitally. 

This brings up the difference between shooting for editorial content, where you can decide the kind of image you make, and shooting commercially so that the image can be used for a specific purpose. But the “psychology” I am referring to here is more about how to get the subject more involved in the image making. I do this by engaging them in conversation or some kind of banter that serves to relax them a bit. My technique sometimes involves telling them what I’m doing with the lighting while showing them an image or two on the camera’s LCD. In the days of film, I often made use of Polaroid materials for this purpose. But I also make a good effort to find out a bit about my subjects as well. Nothing animates a person more than talking about something they love or are involved in at the moment. 

I recently had to photograph several attorneys (as I often do). One of the most challenging, and rewarding aspects of being a portrait photographer is that I often don’t know who I will be photographing and what their personalities are. Here was one who wasn’t at all sure we could get a good picture of him:

Some folks are comfortable with the way they look and how they present visually. Most are not! Many find it uncomfortable sitting for a portrait or headshot. I have compared it to going to the dentist at times, because even though the outcome might be a good thing, it is still somewhat painful to endure. So, being aware of that is an important first step for any portrait photographer. 

There have been times when I have known some of the well-known or not-so-well-known people I have been asked to photograph. In that case, I have always made an effort to find out a little more about their interests BEFORE the shoot so that I would have more things to talk about in greater depth.With the famous writer Ira Levin (Rosemary’s Baby, Boys From Brazil), I found out that he was a wine lover and managed to get a couple of bottles of his favorite wine. I had one open when he arrived at the studio and we began drinking and discussing it. I was amazed at the shots I was able to get while we were both getting a bit tipsy:

Since this was an early effort for Random House, I was careful after that, not to lose sight of what my job was when interacting with my subjects. I want to relax them sure, but photographers still have to produce pictures that get the job done. 

Other times, when I have portraits or headshots to do, I just have to make up things on the spot depending on who the person is. Again, my aim is to get them talking about something they know. Many times I have tried to find a common subject that was of interest to us both. I would get the conversation going, all the while making my adjustments to the lighting, pose and overall “feel” to the photograph, as well as trying to get them involved in the process of photography itself. I have found that it helps to relax them somewhat and to break the ice when I don’t know who they are. Most of the time, I am looking for a great, interesting expression and a lighting setup that shows their best features. 

The psychological element in portraits is important in obtaining definite kinds of reactions from subjects. Sometimes what you talk about or the “patter” you use will determine various kinds of expressions. The lighting you use will also add to the overall mood of the portrait and, as I mentioned,  it sometimes helps to talk about what you are doing as you are doing it. Here is an image made during an actual shoot to produce a normal headshot, but I told the subject that I was doing an “experiment” with the lighting to make him look like a menacing lawyer. This was an image I intended to use just for myself:

So he struck a pose that he made up on his own.

This was his “normal” corporate headshot:

Photographer, Jean Rault:

This is a portrait of my old friend, Jean Rault. He is a French photographer based in the small Normandy town of Evreux. I visited him in France for his retrospective show back in October of 2023. I knew I wanted to make a portrait of him at his show so I brought two lights with me. One I placed into a small umbrella (not my  usual five foot wide portrait one) and another light I used directly aimed at his side in the EDGE LIGHT position. That light was equipped with a honeycomb light modifier so as to eliminate any flare. I asked him to remove his reading glasses and look right into the camera. As a serious photographic artist, this is the image I captured.

This is an image I made a few years ago in my old back yard of local singer/songwriter Susan Kane. We had a nice, comfortable session and you can see it in her expression. This is what I always look for in a portrait: the relationship between photographer and subject.

So it’s the psychology of the relationship between photographer and subject that makes for truly great portraits. In order to reach this point however, the photographer needs to know his or her techniques of lighting, exposure, focus – all the ingredients that make for good images to begin with – to be truly able to engage in that special interaction that will be evident in the portrait.