Honor an inspiring woman with a portrait

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Pay Tribute to a Woman You Admire
With an Inspirational Portrait

How to take a portrait, add illustrations and truly capture her greatness.

A stunning portrait can make your hero look as inspiring to the world as she does to you every day. That’s why, for International Women’s Day, we want to make it easy for you to create a portrait using basic portrait photography tips, illustration tricks and the Galaxy S21 Ultra. By the end of this article, you’ll be able to transform a photo of your favourite lady into an extraordinary portrait—one to frame, give as a gift or share on social media.

Choose your hero

To start, we asked New York-based fashion photographer Kristen Walther (@kwaltherphoto) to shoot portraits of three women who inspire her. She immediately embraced the assignment, saying how exciting it was to “not only photograph someone you admire, but to get the chance to let them know that.” Think about the rock star women in your own life—whether they’re close friends, co-workers or even just casual acquaintances you really appreciate. Who do you think deserves a shout-out?

Shital, Entrepreneur

@therealshitalpatel

“I find Shital so inspiring because of her strength and drive,” Walther says. “She’s not only broken through personal cultural boundaries but also broke into a traditional ‘man’s world’ to become a successful businesswoman.” Walther’s favourite part of this portrait is how Shital’s inner light and strength radiate outward. The colour of her top and Portrait Mode (with a blur of 4) amplify that effect.

Jennifer, Nurse

@jennifer.danger

“Jennifer is a psych nurse who helps kids who’ve gone through trauma or who have intellectual disabilities,” Walther says. “It’s not an easy job, and every day she tackles it with dedication, compassion and selflessness.” Walther likes how this portrait captures Jennifer’s kindness and strength. “I also love her style, which shows off her playful, bold side.”

Kalae, Model

@kalaenouveau

“Kalae’s confidence, her ability to be her true self and to put it out there for all the world to see, is an inspiration.” Walther says. “As a plus-size model, she’s breaking down archaic fashion boundaries, which is major and so empowering.” Walther had a blast with Kalae and believes it shows in the portraits, saying, “It’s hard not to smile and laugh along with her.”

8K Video Snap

Pull high-resolution images right from your 8K videos.

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Capture her essence

From using a favourite article of clothing to capturing a trademark facial expression, there are lots of ways to shoot a portrait that’s uniquely “her.” The turquoise wall in Kalae’s portrait is her favourite colour and reminds her of the Caribbean. The background painted brick wall in Jennifer’s portrait alludes to her long history as a New Yorker. Think about the personal details like this that you can include in your portrait.

In general, look for moments that feel uplifting and endearing; ones that draw the viewer into the image. Dynamic poses or motion can add a lot of energy to your shot. And negative space around your model can be super-impactful (and helpful if you want to add illustrations later).

The Galaxy S21’s Portrait Mode can artfully blur the background of an image, so the focus stays on the subject. Want more control? Pro mode lets you adjust every aspect of the image, including shutter speed, exposure and more. If you’re looking for an ultra-natural authentic moment, try 8K Video Snap. It shoots high-def video and lets you pick the perfect image from the footage.

PENUP

Paint, colour, share and more in this digital art app.

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Add colourful graphics for visual interest

If you completely love the photo portrait you’ve already created, there’s no need to go any further. Good work! But if you’re interested in adding some unique artistic flourishes, there are plenty of creative tools available on the Galaxy S21.

Two side-by-side portraits showing how to adjust opacity and select a brush in the PENUP app.

Step 1: Prep your photo

First, open the PENUP app and tap the “+” sign. Then tap Photodrawing to find your image. Turn the photo opacity to 100 percent and crop your image to show as much or as little of the background as you like.

Three side-by-side portraits showing how to select a colour and draw a cloud background in the PENUP app.

Step 2: Design your background

To reflect Shital’s love of nature, our illustrator added clouds to the background. Re-create this look by selecting the calligraphy brush, then a light yellow colour for drawing the cloud outlines. Next, switch to the marker brush and add blue shading at the bottom of the clouds. Switch between brushes as needed. Helpful hints: the marker brush maintains a consistent thickness. The calligraphy brush responds to the pressure you use with your S Pen.

Three side-by-side portraits showing how to switch colours and draw a flower and vine design around the portrait subject in the PENUP app.

Step 3: Decorate your subject

For the vine design, use the calligraphy brush at size 40. Pick your preferred colour and begin drawing vines and leaves. To make it look like the vines wrap around your subject, curve your lines and vary your pen pressure. For the flowers, pick your preferred flower hue, then use the marker brush at size 50 and make a single dot. Switch to size 30, then draw petals emerging from the dot. Finally, switch to size 5 in a lighter colour like golden yellow to add vibrance to the flower’s center.

Three side-by-side portraits showing how to add radiating lines to a portrait in the PENUP app.

Step 4: Just add radiance

To capture Shital’s radiant personality, we added eye-catching lines that literally radiate out from her. Try this technique by using the marker brush to create the thicker, interior part of your rays. We used orange, but feel free to pick whichever colour you like. Then outline your rays with the calligraphy brush (in white) to really make them pop.

Portrait showing how to add a illustrated frame to a portrait in the PENUP app.

Step 5: Give your masterpiece a frame

For a finishing touch that creates instant depth, add a simple blue frame around your subject. Just select the marker brush in blue at your preferred thickness. You can even draw the frame so that it extends behind your subject for a 3D-like effect.

A completed portrait of woman in a gold shirt, accompanied by cloud, flower, and ray illustrations.

Step 6: Worship her greatness

Now that you’ve captured her essence (and demonstrated your own creative chops), let her know how much she means to you.

Step 1: Prep your photo

First, open the PENUP app and tap the “+” sign. Then tap Photodrawing to find your image. Turn the photo opacity to 100 percent and crop your image to show as much or as little of the background as you like.
Step 2: Design your background

To reflect Shital’s love of nature, our illustrator added clouds to the background. Re-create this look by selecting the calligraphy brush, then a light yellow colour for drawing the cloud outlines. Next, switch to the marker brush and add blue shading at the bottom of the clouds. Switch between brushes as needed. Helpful hints: the marker brush maintains a consistent thickness. The calligraphy brush responds to the pressure you use with your S Pen.
Step 3: Decorate your subject

For the vine design, use the calligraphy brush at size 40. Pick your preferred colour and begin drawing vines and leaves. To make it look like the vines wrap around your subject, curve your lines and vary your pen pressure. For the flowers, pick your preferred flower hue, then use the marker brush at size 50 and make a single dot. Switch to size 30, then draw petals emerging from the dot. Finally, switch to size 5 in a lighter colour like golden yellow to add vibrance to the flower’s center.
Step 4: Just add radiance

To capture Shital’s radiant personality, we added eye-catching lines that literally radiate out from her. Try this technique by using the marker brush to create the thicker, interior part of your rays. We used orange, but feel free to pick whichever colour you like. Then outline your rays with the calligraphy brush (in white) to really make them pop.
Step 5: Give your masterpiece a frame

For a finishing touch that creates instant depth, add a simple blue frame around your subject. Just select the marker brush in blue at your preferred thickness. You can even draw the frame so that it extends behind your subject for a 3D-like effect.
Step 6: Worship her greatness

Now that you’ve captured her essence (and demonstrated your own creative chops), let her know how much she means to you.

Share your portrait with the world

Now that is a work of art. Put it out there for others to appreciate by ordering prints on your photo app—maybe in a larger size and with a frame. You can also keep things digital and share your portrait on social media (along with a flattering social media testimonial, of course). Tag your subject and let all of your followers know what a superstar this woman is.

Take your portraits to the next level

Everything you need to capture your own original, jaw-dropping portraits.

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Rear view of the Pink Gold Galaxy Tab S8 next to a rear view of the Silver Galaxy Tab S8+ and a front view of the Graphite Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra with an S Pen leaned against it.

Galaxy S22 | S22+ 5G

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Pay Tribute to a Woman You Admire With an Inspirational Portrait