Portrait Masterclass with Sam Elkins

Meet Sam!

After almost a decade of photography, Sam shares the philosophy behind his portraiture.

From selecting locations to styling to mood boards, Sam walks you through his pre-production process.

Learn about different types of subjects, where to find them and how to reach out to work with models and non-models alike.

In order to keep his work consistent, Sam tries to focus on utilizing one camera at a time. But how do you pick your gear? How do you know what gear is right for different lighting situations? Sam talks you through his gear selection process.

When shooting portraits, Sam loves to incorporate a mix of indoor and outdoor locations. This allows for a more interesting story and a variation in environments. Here, you get a BTS view of an interior shoot with Sam.

Similar to the segment above, we take you outside in Joshua Tree with Sam as he produces stunning exterior work.

Light plays a huge component in portrait photography. Understand how to use light to your advantage. Sam breaks down the difference between side lit vs backlit vs front lit.

You'll learn how to pose and direct your talent and get them comfortable with your process. Sam walks you through when to direct and when to allow the subject to move freely.

Footage from an epic day shooting along the Big Sur coastline with Sam.

Interested in shooting lifestyle? Learn as Sam takes you through his process.

We know great candid moments are tricky to capture. Oftentimes when you want a candid moment, it's best to direct a series of repeatable movements that your subject can use and feel comfortable doing.

Learn how to know when its best to use your film or digital camera on a shoot.

Sam walks you through the differences between indoor and outdoor environments and how to mix the two in order to get a great story. How does the environment help the portrait you are taking? What does it do for the story?

It can be tricky to make your talent feel comfortable in front of the camera. Here, Sam shows us his process working with non-models.

Get the inside scoop on Sam's photo editing process.