Day 204 of Project 365

I just love this picture of Brandi! I'm glad she gave me permission to use it as my picture of the day. This was my second choice:

But then I thought, I have plenty of pictures of Judica in my Project 365 and this wonderful shot of B is a great chance to talk about some of the things that make a great portrait.

First of all, the angle of the photographer is key. She was laying on the ground, so if I would have taken the shot sitting or standing up, it would not have the same effect. I had to get down on the ground at eye level in order to make it work.

Second, pay attention to your background. It can make or break your shot. You don't want distracting items in the background that take away from your subject. Yes, I could have photoshopped out Brutus' leg, but I purposefully left it because it leads to my third point...

Getting a great expression! Sometimes posed smiles just aren't the best option. You want your subject to look natural, so your options here are to take the picture without your subject knowing, or to say or do something funny to get them to laugh. In this instance, I asked Brandi if I could take her picture and promised to crop out Brutus' private parts that were so prominently visible behind her head. That was good for a laugh, and voilà! A gorgeous natural smile from my beautiful friend.

Thanks for being my picture of the day and for the wonderful afternoon at your pool :)