Artistic Self Portrait Photography: 11 Tips You Need to Know

Would you like to learn all about artistic self portrait photography?

Then read on because in today’s post I give you 11 tips for taking more aesthetic self portraits at home using different techniques such as creating a narrative for your images, using lighting in a painterly way, creating effects with your camera settings, and lots more.

You can work your way through the list and try all of the strategies or simply pick the one that you’re most drawn to.

All you’ll need is a camera and a bit of time to experiment.

Let’s get started!

(Just so you know: This post contains affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases).

1) Create a Narrative for Your Picture

If you want to give your artistic self portrait photography more depth, it can help to develop some kind of concept before you take the shot. 

Doing this will give your image more meaning and make it more interesting to the viewer.

So, for your next self-portrait shoot, start with an idea or concept you want to express.

Here are some suggestions:

• Start with how you’re currently feeling and express that emotion in your image through body language, make-up, colours, posing or props. For example, I once created this self-portrait when I had a big crush on somebody and everything felt really light and dreamy (hence the pink tones and cherry blossoms in the photo):

• Use an experience from your past and turn that into an image. For example, look at this photo:

The butterflies stuck in the black liquid symbolise my being unable to express myself creatively due to a lot of injuries, something I went through a few years back.

• Convey a message that is important to you. For example, maybe you’re concerned about environmental issues, the political situation in your country, gender and identity issues, animal rights, etc. and want to raise awareness – why not do it through the medium of self-portrait photography? To put this into practice, think about how you can express your thoughts in a visual manner, possibly using make-up and/or props. If you need some inspiration, check out the work of Kristina Varaksina who examines topics like femininity and motherhood in her self portraits.

2) Get Inspired by Poses from Classical Paintings

Have you ever walked through a museum and noticed art students sketching the works of the Old Masters? 

Well, I think that studying and copying paintings can be just as useful for self-portrait photographers because you can learn so much in terms of posing, particularly if you look at classical paintings by famous artists such as Manet, Ingres, Vermeer, da Vinci or Raphael.

So, from now on, whenever you go to a museum or exhibition, take photos of poses you like and keep them in a visual reference folder you can refer back to whenever needed. 

I think most people underestimate how hard it is to pose, especially when you’re also the photographer!

Why not make life easier for yourself and study classical paintings to get some inspiration and start creating more artistic self portrait photography?

You can even do this online if you don’t have access to museums and exhibitions – simply type “classical painting portrait pose” into Google or Pinterest and draw inspiration from the image results.

3) Use a Fine Art Backdrop

The next tip for artistic self portrait photography is to use a fine art backdrop.

For example, you could get a large sheet of cardboard, foamboard or canvas and paint it with a wide brush or sponge in order to create an interesting texture like this:

If you’re not the DIY type, you can also buy a fine art backdrop and either attach it to a bookshelf etc. using heavy duty tape/spring clamps, or to a dedicated backdrop stand.

I own a few fine art backdrops by the brand Kate Backdrop (see product tips below). I really like using them because they make it so easy to give my images a painterly look.

Here are some fine art backdrops by Kate Backdrops – these are just examples, they have loads of different ones!

Kate 5x7ft Fine Art Abstract Backdrop Vintage Brown Grey Texture

Kate 7x5ft Fine Art Pink Floral Backdrop for Photography

4) Work with Textures

You can also give your artistic self portrait photography a more painterly look in post production by adding textures in Photoshop.

To do this, open your self portrait in Photoshop and add a new layer.

Then, open the texture file, copy it and paste it onto the new layer.

Next, you can create a mask and use the Brush tool in white/black to conceal or hide the effect as needed.

You can also lower the opacity of the texture layer to make the effect less visible.

If you’re wondering where to get the texture files, you could actually shoot those yourself by simply photographing small pieces of canvas, burlap, textured fabric, rusty surfaces, marble, etc.

Or use providers of free stock photos to download textures, such as Unsplash or Pexels. 

Alternatively, if you’re willing to spend some money on textures, you can use the Adobe stock library. Their images are not free, but they do offer a great selection of different textures.

A little interruption to say…Did you know I’ve written a free e-book with 50 self portrait photography ideas? More info below:

…but now, back to the blog post!

5) Use lighting in a painterly way

Another way to achieve more artistic self portrait photography is to think strategically about lighting. 

If you only have natural light available, try using early morning or late evening light which has a more golden, magical quality to it.

Or look out for light patterns, such as shadows from a window blind or a plant, and make them part of your self-portrait.

If you prefer using artificial light, you can use a small light source like a bedside or table lamp for a cool cinematic effect.

Another great tool are sunset lamps which create a circle of coloured light reminiscent of a sunset.

I love these for creative self portraits because you can change the colour combinations and create very different effects depending on how close you position yourself to the lamp.

If you own a strobe or continuous light with the option to add modifiers such as soft boxes, try buying an attachment with honeycomb grid, for example a beauty dish – the grid restricts the light from spilling out to the sides and creates an extremely painterly, Rembrandt-style effect.

6) Play with your camera settings

When you first learn to use a camera, you usually stay in auto mode because you’re not yet familiar with the manual settings. 

However, using auto mode can be very limiting creatively because you’re not able to change the settings. 

If you want to take more artistic self portraits, I recommend you learn how to use manual mode as this will give you much more creative control.

By the way, this even applies if you don’t own an actual DSLR or mirrorless camera, but shoot on your phone – there are apps you can use that allow you to control the settings of your phone camera in the same way. 

If you want to learn more about using manual mode, read my previous articles on controlling shutter speed and aperture. I also recommend the following book which will teach you all the basics:

Digital Photography Complete Course: Learn Everything You Need to Know in 20 Weeks (DK Complete Courses)

Once you understand how to use manual mode, you can think strategically about your camera settings when you take a self-portrait.

For example, you can use a slow shutter speed in order to create motion blur like I did in this photo:

You could also use a very large aperture to create a beautiful blurry background, use a very fast shutter speed to freeze motion, and lots more.

The possibilities are endless once you know how to control your camera, so I highly recommend you invest some time in getting familiar with the exposure triangle.

7) Use symbolism

Another fantastic tool for creating artistic self portrait photography is to use symbols, i.e. objects that represent certain concepts. 

This is closely related to tip number 1, creating a narrative for your picture – symbols allow you to easily convey an abstract idea and give your image more depth.

Some common symbols are feathers and birds symbolising freedom, candles and skulls symbolising mortality, butterflies symbolising transformation, doves symbolising peace, or eggs symbolising new life and fertility. 

I love symbols because they are so easily incorporated into images in the shape of props – in fact, I have a whole prop box at home that I constantly add to. 

The best places to find props are eBay, flea markets and charity shops/thrift stores. 

If you want to do a deep dive into the topic of symbolism in photography, read my previous article here.

8) Use colour grading

When you look at images taken by professional photographers, they often seem to have “that” look – a kind of undefinable, elusive artsy touch that seems hard to achieve as a non-professional.

In many cases, that’s because professional photographers always colour grade their images to achieve a certain mood or sensibility.

Hence, a surefire way to create more artistic images is to learn how to colour grade your photos, i.e. to manipulate the individual hues and adjust them to your liking.

You can easily do this in Photoshop – if you’re not sure how, watch this video tutorial or read my in-depth article on the topic here.

9) Use mixed media

Sometimes, it can be really exciting to mix photography and traditional art media in order to create more artistic self portraits. 

For example, you could print out your images and then draw or paint on them; you could make a collage out of several images, or you could even embroider certain areas in the image. 

This kind of mixed media work requires a lot of experimentation, which can be a lot of fun. 

If you would like some guidance, read my previous post about mixed media photography.

There is also an excellent short course by the fine art photographer Danny Bittencourt called “Hybrid Photography for Creative Experimentation” – find it here. 

I’ve taken the course and found it very inspiring because Bittencourt demonstrates different methods for manipulating images – even with unusual substances such as coffee and tea.

10) Create a series

Next, a great way to create more artistic self portraits is to create a whole series.

This is actually something I’m doing at the moment – historically, I’ve taken mostly individual images which stand for themselves.

However, I apply to a lot of competitions and opportunities, and many organisations want to see a cohesive body of work rather than individual images.

So, channel your inner artist and develop a whole series of self portraits (7-10 images). 

When creating a series, it can be useful to develop a narrative for the images or find some kind of overarching theme, for example “ a day in your life”, “ important moments that have shaped you”, “ your favourite memories”, etc.

You should also know that when you create a self portrait series, you don’t necessarily have to be in every image – you can add in some detail shots (for example of your hands) or even some location or still life shots, too – this will make your series more interesting and create visual breathing space.

If you want to learn more about creating a fine art photography series, I recommend this course by the photographer Brooke Shaden that I found amazingly helpful:

Creating a Fine Art Series

11) Get inspired by other photographers

There are always days on which we feel totally uninspired and doubt our own work.

I think those are the days when you should step away from your camera and do some visual research to reignite your passion for self-portrait photography.

Looking at other people’s work will give you some fresh ideas and make you feel motivated again. When researching other images, pay particular attention to certain techniques you might want to try, for example using flash, and how other photographers use props, make up, clothes and lighting.

Obviously, don’t copy other people’s work, but do note down certain elements you like and reinterpret them in your own style.

To get started, read this post which introduces my favourite self-portrait photographers and their work.

Next Steps:

Do you want to learn even more about artistic self-portrait photography? Then check out my in-depth guide below: