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Above: Image by George Barris

Above: Image by Cecil Beaton

Above: Image by Gene Korman   

If I’m showing my model how to stand, where to look and what to think about while I take their portrait then how much is the portrait about them and how much is it about me?

I believe a great portrait is a collaboration between the photographer and their model. A great portrait photographer has the ability to reveal a side of their model that nobody else will see in quite the same way.

You only have to look at portraits of the very famous to see just how different they look when they are photographed by different photographers. Have a look at this selection of images of Marilyn Monroe, one of the most iconic women in history. Three different photographers show three completely different sides of Marilyn. Yes, they are all images of Marilyn but the mood and feel of the images are directly influenced by the photographer.

How we see the world and others is what makes us unique. We as photographers tell stories with images and those images . . .

Above: Image by Gina Milicia Fuji XT-3

“We don’t see things as they are. We see them as we are.” -Anais Nin

Are you an optimist or a pessimist? How you perceive the world and everything that happens around you will have a huge impact on the type of portraits you take.

If you are a positive person who always tries to find the good in every situation your portraits will probably reflect that. A pessimist is always looking for the negative in every situation and so if you see the glass as half empty your portraits may reflect the darker side of the models you photograph.

I like to think I’m a fairly optimistic person and seek out the positive side of people I photograph. I’m constantly seeking out ways to flatter the people I photograph and make them appear positive and beautiful and joyful.

Answer: 116

1 to change the bulb 9 to say it would have looked better in black and white 40 to say it should have been edited in Lightroom 40 to say it should have been edited in Photoshop 15 to say it needs more contrast 5 to say it needs less contrast 5 to say it’s soft

1 to say it should have been shot on film.

“You don’t have to see the whole staircase, just take the first step.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

It was 30 years ago this week that I made the decision to become a photographer. To make it official I went out and got business cards printed that said:

Gina Milicia Photographer

…and my home phone number. I then spent the next 30 years making it up as I went along.

It’s been a roller coaster of a ride and I’ve loved every minute of it but there have been times when I doubted my decision and wondered if I was really any good, or would be better off “getting a real job”. Starting out is never easy and sometimes, all we really need is someone to tell us to keep going.

It’s worth it and everything is going to be okay. So I decided to write my younger photographer a letter and share some of the things I know for sure now – and really needed to hear back then.

1. Get a mentor My greatest regret is not seeking out mentors earlier in my career . . .

”We’re all just walking each other home.” – Ram Dass

Above: Image by Gina Milicia

When Rhonda (not her real name) at the passport office took my new passport photo I wasn’t expecting anything high end. I knew the minute she pulled out the point and shoot with the tiny flash and mumbled something about standing on a line that this wasn’t going to be good.

Rhonda was a no-nonsense kind of girl and wasn’t going to waste time on pleasantries like “hello” or “how are you?” If it were up to me, my new passport photo would have been lit with seven big soft lights much like Oprah has, and my focal length of choice would have been 85mm.

In my head I was hoping for Vogue, the reality was more like vague or vagrant.

Great timing Rhonda had impeccable timing. She managed to take the image at the exact moment I’d scrunched my face in confusion at her mumbled instructions.

I believe that all the Rhondas of the world who take passport and driver’s licence photos have been carefully trained to make everyone they photograph look as hideous as possible.

There is a . . .

I’ve got a real blind spot when it comes to verticals and horizontals. It’s kind of like vertical dyslexia. I can never get my images completely square. This can be a problem particularly when I’m shooting portraits of people in a room or anywhere with vertical or horizontal features such as light poles, doorways etc. I get so involved with capturing facial expressions that I fail to see the image is completely on an angle.

The one way I’ve learnt to overcome this habit is to work with a tripod which is great but I still couldn’t get my shots completely square until now with the discovery of this nifty $5 device.

It’s a cool little spirit level that fits in the hot shoe of my camera and tells me exactly when my camera is level so my shots will always be square.

Spirit/Bubble Level for Camera – 3 Axis

“Photography is a way of feeling, of touching, of loving. What you have caught on film is captured forever… It remembers little things, long after you have forgotten everything.” — Aaron Siskind

When we mention the word ‘portrait’ today we think of selfies of Instafamous models showing off their six packs, duck-lipped reality TV stars or Jan from accounts on vacation.

With billions of portraits being shared daily it’s easy to take the significance of this art form for granted.

The first recorded likeness of a person was created by the Egyptians over 5000 years ago. Back in those days, you had to be a member of the Royal family or a Beyonce or Bezos to have a portrait created of you.

If Jan from accounts lived in the Egyptian times, she would never be afforded the luxury of having her holiday memories of her trip down the Nile recorded for future generations.

Before the early 19th century, a portrait was created to show the importance, wealth, power or beauty of the subject.

Portraits were created as drawings etched into stone, busts made of marble, bronze . . .

Above: Image by Gina Milicia

We all have days when everything seems to be going wrong. Your last shoot sucked, you lost a client or you just feel meh and think all your photos are shite. I usually curl up in the fetal position with a 500gm jar of Nutella and watch One Tree Hill. What’s your go-to feel better hack?

I also find reading these quotes (while eating Nutella) really help.

Here are a few of my faves. Enjoy.

“It ain’t what they call you, it’s what you answer to.” – W.C. Fields

“I never loved another person the way I loved myself.” – Mae West

“I used to be self-conscious about my height, but then I thought, f*** that, I’m Harry Potter.” – Daniel Radcliffe

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us.” – Marianne Williamson

“Having a low opinion of yourself is not ‘modesty’. It’s self-destruction. Holding your uniqueness in high regard is not ‘egotism’. It’s a necessary precondition to happiness . . .