How to Shoot a Professional Portrait Photo without a Lot of Expensive Gear (VIDEO)

Believe it or not but you don't need a lot of fancy gear to shoot a professional-looking portrait photo. In the below tutorial, pro photographer Joel Grimes shares some fun and easy tips on how to shoot striking portrait photos with basic equipment.

"In this episode, I teach you how to take incredible portraits without lots of expensive gear," Grimes says. "I show you how to work with the available light, supplement it with a single light, and create dramatic Rembrandt lighting, easily. If you want to make your portrait dramatic, this tutorial can help you."

Grimes, who is a commercial and advertising photographer who has been shooting professionally for over 35 years, walks you through the step-by-step process of setting up and shooting a pro-level portrait.

"Very simple, nothing too complex," Grimes explains. "In fact, we're going to start off with a natural light scenario of [my subject], and then were going to go out and pull out one strobe, one modifier, and do a cross-light scenario and get a different result. So, follow along with me and I'm going to show you how simple it is."

Grimes' tutorial is just a sample of his free portrait photography course titled "Behind the Lens," which you can sign up for here. Grimes has also written a portrait photography how-to story for Shutterbug as part of our Exploring Light series.

In Grimes' tutorial, he gives you five reasons you should use a tilt-shift lens to shoot better portrait photos. And, of course, you should visit Grimes' YouTube channel for more helpful photography videos.

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