The question, Is photography an art form? gets us into deepest aesthetics and is a most important question.

An often neglected form of art in photography is that of portrait photography. A portrait is the basic rendering of someone’s likeness. A good portrait photographer, not only wants to capture the true likeness, but also the personality of the individual. The photographer needs to be proficient not only in the workings and setting of the camera, but also needs to understand form and lighting. Great lighting and positioning can make someone appear at their best form if used correctly. Lighting and camera placement can also aid in correcting defects such as shortening a nose, making someone appear slimmer, etc. In this form of art, portrait photography takes on many roles, and can help create various moods that the individual is seeking.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Photography".