Portrait photography can run the gamut in type and style—everything from the traditional “head and shoulders” shot to lifestyle and environmental, candid and street, glamour, boudoir, maternity sessions and much more. View some of the eye-catching portraits and photos of the week that caught our attention from our show brand WPPI’s The Annual Live Judging event and Honors of Excellence Awards ceremony in Las Vegas on August 18, and read the backstories on how they were created.

“When it comes to doing a First Look photo , I always focus more on the groom because I know I will spend more time with the bride at the wedding anyway,” Matthew Sowa explains.

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“When the bride was approaching, I knew by the groom’s facial expression that the scene might be very emotional, that something big may happen here. I think I was very lucky to capture the heartwarming result.”

Sowa says he took a few shots of the whole situation, then waited for more before the couple started looking at each other’s eyes. “Finally, I got one I was dreaming about, this shot of love.”

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During a wedding at Basking Ridge Country Club in New Jersey, Aly Kuler relied on a photojournalistic style and natural light for this outdoor ceremony coverage. “This is different than my signature style, which consist mainly of portraits that incorporate off-camera lighting and creative post-production.” The image took third place in WPPI’s Photojournalism category of the Wedding division.

“I love the kid’s expression and the repetitive dresses while maintaining a good ‘rule of thirds’ composition,” Kuler explains. “The crop gave more focus to the kid. And even though it’s black on black, the first thing that catches your eye is the kid. I was capturing the bride and groom reading their vows, and as it was taking so long, I noticed the kid getting tired and sitting down, then he started to take his shoes off as it was bothering him. I quickly zoomed in tight to capture the moment.”

This image by luxury wedding photographer Danny Dong took second place in the Pre-Wedding division under Bride or Groom Alone: Non-Wedding Day.

“I liked the lighting on this particular spot at the moment when I shot the image,” says Dong. “I used the shadow area to frame the main subject to have a black triangle frame. Then I positioned the bride in the center of the triangle frame and told her to hold her dress up so her body is also in a triangle shape and she is under the spot light. She naturally became a focus point in my camera frame and since she is under light, we are able to see all the texture details of her dress.”

The background building, he adds, is in shadow, so you don’t see the texture of the background. “This is so the bride can stand out from the background. The mood I wanted to express here is a peaceful and graceful moment of a bridal portrait.”

“I love getting lost in this image,” says Andrew Hiorth of Fable Studios, who took first place with it in Portrait – Groups + Families. “Just as I look up to the stars at night and get lost in the expansiveness of space, I get the same feeling when I stare at the negative spaces of the overall image. It’s a very therapeutic and thought-provoking image if you allow yourself the time to explore it and soak it in… While we are so small in the universe, family is everything.”

Paper choice and presentation, according to the WPPI judges’ feedback, were key in bringing this portrait to life. There was also a consensus that “the unique delivery of a family capture that isn’t a posed studio portrait is a refreshing take on the genre.”  

Taken in photographer Kelly Brown‘s Brisbane studio, the message here, according to Brown is, “there’s nothing better than an image of a pile of puppies!”

Turns out the renowned baby photographer is also a big dog lover. “I decided to start a personal project in 2018 photographing puppies while they slept, focusing purely on their innocent nature,” Brown explains.

The image took second place in Portrait – Animals + Pets in WPPI’s 2021 Honors of Excellence awards.

Dig into our Photo of the Day archives for even more compelling imagery.