Portrait Photography: Creative Tips & Ideas for Great Images

Taught by Bernie Raffe AMPA on Udemy

  • Category: Photography/Portrait
  • Level: Beginner
  • Rating: No reviews yet
  • Price: $54.99
  • Duration: 3 h 13 min (32 lectures)
  • Language: English

View the course on Udemy

About this course

A Udemy course by UK portrait photographer Bernie Raffe AMPA on tips, tricks and ideas for more creative portraits, using both natural light and flash. Most of it is filmed as live photo sessions with models, friends, families and children, indoors and on location. It is aimed at beginner and intermediate photographers, and advanced photographers who want new ideas, and requires a DSLR or mirrorless camera and a basic understanding of it. The course has 10 sections and 32 lectures (3 hours 13 minutes), was last updated in November 2018 and is taught in English.

It begins with portrait fundamentals: lighting patterns demonstrated on a mannequin and a model, and the best camera and lens settings for portraits (a lecture repeated from another course). Three window-light sessions show three shooting styles: parallel to the window, with the window behind the photographer, and shooting into the light.

Location sessions in rural and urban settings show how to use top shade, add depth, handle a bright background by a lake, and find good backdrops behind a supermarket, an office block or a steel air-conditioning structure, switching to off-camera flash where useful. A section on expressions gives 17 tips for natural smiles from adults and children, plus lectures on negative space and on shooting portraits in landscape orientation.

Further sections follow a family session in a park, including photographing two young boys, and a maternity chapter with an introduction and four scenarios with a mum-to-be. Flash lectures cover a craft-foam flag for on-camera flash, a white shopping bag as a diffuser, a dark background outdoors, a film-noir style shot and a rainy-window portrait finished briefly in Photoshop. All videos are downloadable.

Pricing: Paid Udemy course: list price US$54.99 at research time (Udemy discounts it often). Lifetime access and a certificate of completion are included.

Who this course is for

Beginner and intermediate photographers who want more creative portraits.

Photographers who shoot friends, families and children rather than professional models.

More experienced photographers looking for fresh lighting and location ideas.

Who it is not for

Complete beginners who do not yet know their camera.

People looking for a studio-lighting or retouching course.

What you will learn

  • Portrait lighting patterns and portrait camera settings.
  • Three ways to use window light.
  • Using top shade and ordinary locations for strong backgrounds.
  • Getting natural expressions from adults and children.
  • Family and maternity session approaches.
  • Simple on- and off-camera flash ideas for dramatic portraits.

Strengths

  • Live sessions show the instructor's interaction with subjects.
  • Mix of natural light and flash ideas.
  • Real families and children, not only models.
  • Downloadable videos.

Limitations

  • Last updated in 2018.
  • Needs a DSLR or mirrorless camera.
  • Idea-driven rather than a step-by-step lighting course.

Comparison with other courses

Photography - Individual & Family Posing - Live Sessions (Bernie Raffe AMPA, Udemy): the same instructor's course dedicated to posing individuals, couples and families.

Photography - The Ultimate Guide to Using Off-Camera Flash (Bernie Raffe AMPA, Udemy): goes much deeper into off-camera flash for portraits.

Course FAQ

What camera do I need?

A DSLR or mirrorless camera and a basic understanding of it.

How long is it?

3 h 13 min across 32 lectures in 10 sections.

Is it free?

No, it is a paid Udemy course (US$54.99 list price at research time).

Updated on October 29, 2026 by CoursesAdvisors Editorial Team - How we review courses

Similar courses - Photography/Portrait