Improving Your Portrait Photography

James Fondriest, DDS

Introduction

Whether it is for documentation of clinical circumstances, to celebrate the finish of treatment, or to market your skills to future potential clients, improving your skill at taking portraits has great value. Single lens reflex (SLR) cameras are becoming commonplace in dental offices for intraoral use. The same SLR camera that you use intraorally is excellent for exposing beautiful portraits as well. Interesting and emotion-generating portraits can be created with these cameras by changing the light source, lens, and camera settings from the typical intraoral setup. This article provides details on how to set up professional style lighting in the dental office and how to capture better portraits.

MOST OF THE PATIENTS COMING FOR YOUR SERVICES UNDERSTAND THAT QUALITY ESTHETIC DENTISTRY REQUIRES ARTISTIC TALENT.

GOOD PORTRAITURE SHOWCASES YOUR ARTISTIC TALENTS

Lighting

Flash Systems

Typical intraoral camera set-ups have a ring or dual-point flash system mounted to the lens. The ring flash positions the light very close to the lens, allowing illumination of everything visible in the viewfinder. A dual-point flash has two separated light sources, making it slightly more difficult to get light into the back of the mouth with retracted shots, but the indirect lighting effect makes your porcelain restorations look nicer and less opaque. Both flash systems yield a high-