Photographing Friends In Bali
Two young friends, very much enjoying a moment of mirth, in Bali.
Here’s how to create really beautiful candid portraits like I did when photographing friends in Bali.
These two good friends were dressed up for a celebration in which they participated as members of a Balinese musical ensemble.
I was lucky to discover the group practising in a village in rural Bali. I approached and, once given permission from the kids and their adult conductor, got busy making photos.
I love the fact that the pictures in this series, which were made in just a few minutes, are so full of life and energy.
But these were not easy images to make. My arrival allowed the boys to turn a serious musical rehearsal into a bit of a circus with an abundance of laughter and mirth.
It was tricky to make controlled compositions given the merriment my arrival trigged. That’s one of the reasons why I concentrated attention on these two boys by framing the image quite tightly.
The scenes were also very colorful, perhaps too much so. This can be a problem when you’re photographing portraits as, generally speaking, you want to direct attention to the subject’s faces and not their clothing.
I reduced the saturation of the dominant magenta color in their head wraps so as to better balance it with their more subtle colored salmon clothing.
By the way the head wrap worn by Balinese males is called an Udeng.
Better Skin Color In Portrait Photos
I also desaturated the color of the skin in these portraits.
It’s a technique I often apply to portrait photos as I’ve found most digital cameras are not overly kind to skin rendering it too colorful.
You can see this phenomena occurring in most skin types and across all ethnicities.
In my case I have quite pinkish Caucasian skin. Despite quite a modest lifestyle here’s how I look in photos.
Little old wine drinking me rose
Red Santa Klaus cheeks
A further word of warning is that anyone with ache is likely to see that reddish color amplified with most digital cameras. Thus the need to selectively desaturated certain colors on the desktop.
If you’re not into post processing a good alternative, for folks photographing portraits in JPEG, is to set their cameras to a more subtle color palette.
In Nikon cameras you’ll find this under Picture Controls>Portrait.
In Canon cameras you’ll find it under Picture Styles>Portrait.
Most other camera brands will offer a similar option inside the camera’s menu.
Are You Confident Photographing Kids?
These lads were buddies and I wanted to record the close nature of their friendship.
Being a child at heart I have no problem relating to kids. Hopefully that shows in the boys relaxed and candid response to my jibes.
About To Travel?
Portrait Photography - Framing and Composition
Composition is a critical component in making great portrait photos.
As composition occurs inside the frame I think it’s fair to say that what you exclude from the frame can be as important as what you include within it.
By studying the photos in this post you’ll discover the different approaches I took to framing these photos.
You’ll notice that I framed certain images quite tightly so as to isolate the subject from their surroundings and, thereby, focus attention on the primary subject or subjects within the frame.
In other photos I’ve chosen a wider view so as to show the primary subject in relation to their environment. In those particular photos I felt that the environment could really add to the story being told.
In the case of the photo at the very top of this post I was drawn to the close friendship between the two boys.
To better explore that relationship and, as mentioned earlier, to minimize distractions around them I decided to move in nice and close and frame out their immediate surroundings.
Young boys playing up for the camera at band practice in Bali.
Capturing A Moment In time in Bali
In this candid group image good timing was required to record the exact moment when gesture and expression came together in a cohesive and harmonious manner.
I’m so happy to have recorded this fun moment in time that explores the theme of friendship and, in doing so, to have preserved a lovely memory for the boys and their families.
You can tell that these lads had at least as much fun as I did making the photo. The success of the photo is due to the following:
My direct, but unthreatening approach
Asking permission to make the photo
Keeping control over composition, while allowing the moment to unfold within the frame
Making as many of the required adjustments to my camera as possible before bringing it up to my eye
Concentrating on the story by remaining aware of the notion of friendship while making these pictures
Ultimately the success of these photos is based upon critical timing; being able to use my camera quickly and efficiently; and being motivated to create beautiful, life affirming images.
To achieve great timing you’ll want to get your exposure, focus and composition set before you do or say what's required to obtain a great expression.
Can you imagine missing such a moment in time simply because you'd elicited the ideal response from your subject prior to getting your camera set correctly? Yikes!
I was really grateful for the few minutes I had with these young lads during a break in their rehearsals.
As you can see I did my best to make both candid and more formal portraits. I find that it’s often best to mix up the kind of photos you make so that you end up with a more varied selection of images that will help you tell the story in question more completely.
I created a special guide to help you better understand the diversity of approach I referring to. It’s titled The Photo Essay: Recipe For Success.
Young boy, in local costume, at band rehearsal near Ubud in Bali.
Aim For Variety In The Photos You Make
Adding variety in the way you go about making photos can be a great way to produce a visually dynamic series of images.
Here’s some examples of how you can add variety into the photo stories you create.
Black and white instead of or in addition to color photos
Portrait and landscape orientation photos
Telephoto and wide angle focal lengths
Formal, candid and environmental portraits
Changing the camera to subject distance
Experimenting with depth of field
Photograph from your normal eye view as well as from higher and lower angles of view
Black and white portrait of a pensive young boy in rural Bali.
How To Photograph A Pensive Balinese Boy
While not a part of the musical group this young boy made for a great subject. With his permission, and that of an adult guardian, I made a few quick photos.
The exposure details are simple. This image was made, without a tripod, at 1/20 second with an aperture of f/4 and at ISO 400.
I employed a Canon 24-105mm f/4 IS lens at 105 mm, on my then Canon 5D Mark II camera, to isolate the young lad from his surroundings and to draw his face in a flattering manner.
Notice how careful focus and a shallow Depth Of Field has rendered his eyes sharp while blurring his shirt and ears.
When processing the image I decided that a black and white rendering was appropriate.
The quieter mood often associated with a black and white rendering seemed the right choice given the more pensive expression on the child’s face.
And it’s because of the intensity of that expression that I made sure to concentrate as much attention on his face as possible.
That meant minimizing the background in the photo, which I achieved in the following ways:
Reducing the camera to subject distance
Choosing a telephoto focal length
Selecting a relatively wide aperture (i.e., f/4)
Opting for a vertical (i.e., portrait) orientation
Removed color and opting for a black and white rendering
Why I Ask Permission Before Photographing Strangers
Balinese people are wonderful. I’ve found them to be friendly, easy to get along with and very accommodating. As a generalization the people of Bali are also quite shy and mild mannered.
It’s just not appropriate to barge your way into a private gathering and start snapping photos in Bali.
My own policy is to be aware of cultural sensitivities and, where ever possible, to ask permission prior to photographing people.
Even my candid people based photos are, almost always, made after I’ve gained permission to do so.
If you’re interested in candid photography you’ll find this post titled Definition Of Candid Portrait to be well worth reading. It outlines my definition of a candid portrait and the exact approach I undertake to create beautiful, life affirming candid photos.
Candid Travel Photography
One of the things I enjoy most about travel photography is that you never know what opportunities for meeting interesting people and making great photos will appear around the next corner.
That’s exactly what happened on the day I made these photos. I saw this group of young lads, all dressed up in traditional clothing, from the car as I drove into a small village near my base in Ubud, Bali.
It was simply a matter of getting out of the car, introducing myself and asking permission to make the photos.
However, not wanting to interrupt their practice for an unreasonable amount of time, I made sure I made my photos and was back in the car and on my way within a few short minutes.
Travel photography is fun and exciting. I really feel alive and that I’m living the life I was meant to live when I’m making photos.
Needless to say it helps, when you’ve traveled so far, to know how to use your camera.
Most folks buy a fancy pants camera and then struggle to get control back from the machine. Their ability to start making photos that finally begin to realize their creative potential is compromised.
I really hope this post has gone someway to helping you overcome any roadblocks you have in photographing strangers.
If you’re struggling with technical issues associated with using your camera then, perhaps, it’s time you reached out for some help.
Do you live in or around Melbourne, Australia and are interested to learn photography in a private 3 hour one-to-one photography course?
If not one of my private, online photography sessions might be the best way forward. I help folks from all over the world in this way.
Either way please feel free to reach out so we can work out the best option for your specific needs.
