I was recently told that my portfolio was too bikini model focused and that one of the areas that it lacked was portraits.

I called up a few friends to help me out with this gap in my portfolio by asking them to pose for a few shots for me. I chose friends that I knew quite well and that I knew had quite interesting hobbies – if you can call it that – I’d say life passions. My 3 test mules were Alex, Dan and Demi.

Knowing that everyone’s time was quite precious, I set myself a goal of getting the images within the space of about 30 minutes. Including set up time. I chose to use just one light and any other available light.

The shoots with Alex and Demi were quite simple. Put a spotlight onto them. The shoot with Dan was a combination of natural light and a strobe.

Below are the results. I would love to hear what you think of my first attempt at portrait photography. Any suggestions on how I could improve would also be welcome.