Interview with celebrity photographer Brooke Mason

1. Equipment to use: iPhone 8 or higher. Recommend to use iPhone X, XR or 11,  it has a portrait mode and better quality camera.
2. The lighting system is very important to the quality of your picture!Purchase 2 ring lights (18” inches by  Neewer) on eBay or Amazon. Make sure you are purchasing a ring light with a phone holder

included.

Mount or place a ring light over your subject face and another ring light on the side of your client. Positing the light 12 inches above the face.

Neewer Triangle Wall Mounting Boom Arm for Photography Studio Video Strobe Lights Monolights Softboxes Umbrellas Reflectors,180 Degree Flexible Rotation, Max Length 51.1 inches/130 Centimeters (Black)

Please see an example on this picture below.

2) Don’t use a flashlight on your phone. Turn the brightness of a ring light all the way up over your subject face and another one on the side.

3) Take a picture of the full face at the angle. It looks more flattering than taking a picture directly overhead.

WHAT NOT TO DO!!! This is an example of the same person when the picture is taking directly over their head without using the light system. Please see the example below.

4) Sometimes I find it difficult to take a flattering picture of clients with a fuller face or the one who has a heavier lower part of the face. In this case, I take an angel from the behind of their head.

Give it a try! The pictures always come out beautiful!!!

Here is an example of the positioning of the camera, the angle and the example of the pictures.

5) Sometimes I have a better chance to take a picture of a client when they are sitting up. I have a white curtain as a backdrop behind my client’s face. If you notice I am standing on the step stool in search of a good angle.

Please see an example of the set up in my studio for that.

6) Use props to help you with taking good pictures. We recommend to purchase a step stool of a different height. I find it extremely helpful!

Clear your space around your client. We don’t want to see any clutter around their face.

Make sure you have a clean even tone background under the face.

Make sure your client is pleasantly smiling and looking directly into your phone or straight into the ceiling. The brightness of the light might bother their eyes. Ask them to close their eyes, make a deep breeze in, open their eyes on the way when they breeze out and look into your camera at the same time. And you will have a beautiful picture!