Portrait Photography for Sale
Save your search and find it in your favorites
Save your search to find it quickly
Saved search
Your search is accessible from the favorites tab > My favorite searches
Unsaved search
A problem occurred
Moonlight Sonata (4)
Tyler Shields
Photography - 177.8 x 177.8 cm Photography - 70 x 70 inch
$50,000
Moonlight Sonata (3)
Tyler Shields
Photography - 152.4 x 152.4 cm Photography - 60 x 60 inch
$20,000
Moonlight Sonata (2)
Tyler Shields
Photography - 114.3 x 114.3 cm Photography - 45 x 45 inch
$10,000
George Bush Rubix Cube
Alison Jackson
Photography - 83.8 x 114.3 x 2.5 cm Photography - 33 x 45 x 1 inch
$8,000
Rossa (red)
Carlotta Baldazzi
Photography - 60 x 40 x 0.3 cm Photography - 23.6 x 15.7 x 0.1 inch
$633
Coluche - Iconic portraits
Arnaud Baumann
Photography - 60 x 40 x 0.1 cm Photography - 23.6 x 15.7 x 0 inch
$679
Beauté factice
Mathilde Oscar
Photography - 40 x 60 x 1 cm Photography - 15.7 x 23.6 x 0.4 inch
$848
Guardián de la llama de la conciencia
Rocio Villanueva
Photography - 50.8 x 50.8 cm Photography - 20 x 20 inch
$1,357
Cuarto Viaje: Frecuencia 639 HZ
Rocio Villanueva
Photography - 50.8 x 50.8 cm Photography - 20 x 20 inch
$1,357
Primer viaje: Vértice de la proyección interior II
Rocio Villanueva
Photography - 50.8 x 50.8 cm Photography - 20 x 20 inch
$1,357
Primer viaje: Vértice de la proyección interior I
Rocio Villanueva
Photography - 50.8 x 50.8 cm Photography - 20 x 20 inch
$1,357
Segundo Viaje: El portal de los sueños
Rocio Villanueva
Photography - 50.8 x 50.8 cm Photography - 20 x 20 inch
$1,923
Vuelo de pajaro solitario
Rocio Villanueva
Photography - 76.2 x 76.2 cm Photography - 30 x 30 inch
$1,923
Dreams Of Hong Kong (Lightbox)
David Drebin
Photography - 121.9 x 170.2 cm Photography - 48 x 67 inch
$36,000
Madone (défilé Marc le Bihan, Paris 2000)
Dominique DIEULOT
Photography - 80 x 55 x 4 cm Photography - 31.5 x 21.7 x 1.6 inch
$3,166
André Villers Photograph of Picasso's Atelier
André Villers
Photography - 48.9 x 41.28 x 0.1 cm Photography - 19.3 x 16.3 x 0 inch
$3,958
André Villers Photograph of Picasso
André Villers
Photography - 49.53 x 58.4 x 0.1 cm Photography - 19.5 x 23 x 0 inch
$3,958
André Villers Photograph of Picasso
André Villers
Photography - 53.34 x 48.26 x 0.1 cm Photography - 21 x 19 x 0 inch
$3,958
André Villers Photograph of Picasso
André Villers
Photography - 40.64 x 50.8 x 0.1 cm Photography - 16 x 20 x 0 inch
$3,958
André Villers Photograph of Picasso
André Villers
Photography - 40.64 x 50.8 x 0.1 cm Photography - 16 x 20 x 0 inch
$3,958
Who will fly you there
Grzegorz Sikorski
Photography - 80 x 80 x 0.1 cm Photography - 31.5 x 31.5 x 0 inch
$283 $213
Boxer Bruce
Sebastian Riemer
Photography - 125 x 100 x 3 cm Photography - 49.2 x 39.4 x 1.2 inch
$7,916
Corset, Portrait of an Equestrienne
Amrita Bilimoria
Photography - 45.7 x 34.8 x 0.5 cm Photography - 18 x 13.7 x 0.2 inch
$1,600
Fashion shoot for Amica magazine, New York
Martin Parr
Photography - 126 x 105 x 1 cm Photography - 49.6 x 41.3 x 0.4 inch
$45,236
Winter Gentleman
Dan Holmqvist
Photography - 140 x 118 x 0.2 cm Photography - 55.1 x 46.5 x 0.1 inch
$3,772
The Pianist
Dan Holmqvist
Photography - 101 x 78 x 0.2 cm Photography - 39.8 x 30.7 x 0.1 inch
$2,316
The Art of Distortion 8
Paula Golemo
Photography - 40 x 32 x 0.1 cm Photography - 15.7 x 12.6 x 0 inch
$204
Portrait 06, The Sugar Project
Amrita Bilimoria
Photography - 101.6 x 152.4 x 0.5 cm Photography - 40 x 60 x 0.2 inch
$5,000
The Secret of a Good Life
Thandiwe Muriu
Photography - 150 x 100 x 0.1 cm Photography - 59.1 x 39.4 x 0 inch
$19,225
Welcome Home
Thandiwe Muriu
Photography - 150 x 100 x 0.1 cm Photography - 59.1 x 39.4 x 0 inch
$19,225
Finders Keepers
Thandiwe Muriu
Photography - 90 x 60 x 0.1 cm Photography - 35.4 x 23.6 x 0 inch
$7,916
Discover the styles & movements
Discover the selection of our experts
Portrait Photography for Sale
In the 1830s, Nièpce discovered the process for setting images onto pewter plates. In 1833, upon Nièpce's death, Louis Daguerre and François Arago continued his experiments and invented the daguerreotype, a process which created a printed image on a silver plate that had been exposed to light. Photography was born.
Similarly to how portrait painting had dominated artistic output in previous centuries, portrait photography was to become the pillar of the Second French Empire's photographic industry. Lenses with a shorter focal length, which enabled reduced exposure times, gradually appear on the market. The required equipment was expensive and difficult to handle. Some photographers, called daguerreotypists, decided to open their own photography studios to make a profit from their endeavours. The daguerreotype process was temperamental, and photographers had to take their pictures with great precision and attention to detail. They welcomed many people into their studios and customers choose how they wished to be photographed from catalogue of poses. Originally only accessible to the bourgeoisie, lower prices resulting from the growing number of studios eventually attracted a wider customer base. This phenomenon infuriated the poet Charles Baudelaire who was frustrated by the sense of narcissism sparked by the daguerreotypists.
Despite his protests, the egotistical trend only grew with the emergence of 'carte de visite' portraits (small photographs, the size of today's business cards). These were the brainchild of Adolphe Eugène Disdéri came up with the idea of producing portraits akin to visiting cards in 1859. He printed eight portraits in a variety of poses onto a single plate and once developed they could be cut up into eight distinct “visiting cards". Very popular with the bourgeoisie, they highlighted the sitters' social status. 'Carte de visite' portraits featuring celebrities were also sold to customers, who could subsequently add them to their albums.
The photographer Nadar was one of the first to demonstrate a conscious artistic approach to producing these portraits. He emphasised facial expressions and ensured the sitter was comfortable and at ease before taking the photograph. He photographed the era's greatest thinkers and artists, including Honoré de Balzac, George Sand, and Victor Hugo. He even managed to reconcile Baudelaire with portraiture.
At the end of the 19th century, the art of photography started to enter the mainstream, with the arrival of the Kodak company. The use of the camera, and the taking of portraits, became everyday occurrences. A century later, it was the invention of the digital camera which challenged the status quo. Whereas before alterations could only be made to photographs when they were being taken or developed, with the digital camera editing became easier, quicker and more convenient. Digital photography has given photographers much more freedom when it comes to editing and new methods and techniques are constantly being explored.
Some of the photographers who have left their mark on the last century include: Cindy Sherman, who excelled in self-portraits, Annie Leibovitz, who captured celebrities, the wacky duo, Pierre and Gilles, as well as Diane Arbus, Irving Penn, Richard Avedon, Helmut Newton and Bettina Rheims.
So, do portraits help us to learn more about each other, to remember, to invent, to act, or to reconnect with ourselves? Find out on Artsper, by exploring the works of Formento & Formento, Naomi Vona, Ahmed Bennani, Chou Ching Hui, Samuel Cueto, Brno del Zou, Ren Hang, Markus + Indrani, Jerome Liebling as well as Annina Roescheisen.
A portrait photograph can be a photograph of a person's head and shoulders, but it can also be of an animal or of a different section of the subject's body such as their feet. Portrait photographs in art often tell or hint something about its subject to the viewer, such as an aspect of their personality, but still contain an element of mystery.
The three major types of portrait photography are posed portraits, candid or anonymous portraits, and conceptual portraits. The last type, conceptual or creative portraits, can be experimental and abstract, and may not represent an image close to a traditional portrait.
The six main types of portrait photography are fine art portraits, traditional portraits (for example posed portraits taken at school), lifestyle portraits, group portraits, street portraits and glamour portraits.