10 Wicked Portraits and Halloween Shooting Tips

Fall is the landscape photographer’s dream season but Halloween is when portrait photographers get all of the fun! Check out the images below, plus gain some shooting tips from working photographers. Let the shapes and shadows of the night inspire you and have a safe and happy Halloween from everyone at BorrowLenses!

Niki’s Tip: Shoot multiple exposures right after sunset during blue hour to combine a moody atmosphere and a sharp subject. Use exposure blending in post processing for a great effect.

Allie’s Tip: Use a 5-in-1 light modifier to create light for all tones. It will ensure that white balance is on cue while you’re developing that fall feeling surrounding the child/subject.

Julia’s Tip: Plan your shoots in advance and brief your team at least a few days prior to the shoot. Often makeup artists and hairstylists are willing to purchase additional tools, products, makeup colors, or even hair extensions to get better creative results. Give them some extra time to do their shopping – the entire team will benefit from it!

Renee’s Tip: Learning to see color accurately is very difficult and time consuming. Pick up books on color theory, attend a painting class, or hang out with painters who understand it well. Your art will appreciate it in the future.

Alex’s Tip: Use slow shutter speeds to gather moody ambient light and then compensate for motion blur with flash.

Emerald’s Tip: Have a kid who hates having their photo taken? Put them in a villain costume and take advantage of the abundant attitude. My kid actually enjoys her sessions for once when sneers, snarls, and wiggling are welcome!

Jamie’s Tip: When shooting your kids on Halloween, stand back a bit and let them be themselves. If you get in there and try to control the moment they will go out of character and it shows in the finished photos.

Charles’ Tip: Never underestimate the effects of good makeup.

Long’s Tip: You usually don’t want to carry too much stuff with you when you are out on Halloween. Stay light and portable. I like to stick to one body and one lens only. I needed more flashes and wanted a different lens for this shot but I just made it work. Nothing special but we all had fun and I made good friends! Make what you have work for you.

Sean’s Tip: Experiment with slow shutter speeds on Halloween night. This image was made with a shutter speed of 1/3rd of a second. The bright orange lights in the background, combined with the spooky costumes and moving the camera during the slow exposure, adds a surreal and nightmarish quality to the scene.

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Share your favorite Halloween shot in the comments below!