Shooting Better Portraits - Inside and Out

There are many things you can do to take a good portrait, and all are fairly simple. If your camera has a 3x-5x optical zoom, zoom all the way to telephoto (or mid-way on an 8x-10x zoom) and hold the camera vertically. Move in so your subject fills the viewfinder or LCD in a way that pleases you. If you're snapping shots of children, kneel down to their level as you'll be able to frame them and capture their expressions much more successfully. Regardless of their age, try to have your subject look just slightly away from the camera's lens.

If you are outdoors, set your camera's flash to "Flash On" mode (via the button on the back of the camera represented by the lightning bolt). The camera will automatically balance the daylight with the light given off by the flash and provide correct exposure (also known as Fill-in flash). Light from the flash will simply fill-in the harsh shadows that might have been present on your subject's face. Take an image with the flash on and one without it and you'll be surprised how much of a difference it makes!