Portrait Photography for Sale
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Rendille Mother and Child
John Kenny
Photography - 67 x 45 x 2 cm Photography - 26.4 x 17.7 x 0.8 inch
$1,054
Beads of the Omo Valley
John Kenny
Photography - 67 x 45 x 2 cm Photography - 26.4 x 17.7 x 0.8 inch
$1,054
Lady of the Arbore
John Kenny
Photography - 67 x 45 x 2 cm Photography - 26.4 x 17.7 x 0.8 inch
$1,054
The pure Wodaabe
John Kenny
Photography - 67 x 45 x 2 cm Photography - 26.4 x 17.7 x 0.8 inch
$1,259
At the edge of the Jade Sea
John Kenny
Photography - 67 x 45 x 2 cm Photography - 26.4 x 17.7 x 0.8 inch
$1,259
Jean-Marc Barr
Arnaud Baumann
Photography - 40 x 40 x 0.1 cm Photography - 15.7 x 15.7 x 0 inch
$673
Les Nuls en Ripolin
Arnaud Baumann
Photography - 40 x 40 x 0.1 cm Photography - 15.7 x 15.7 x 0 inch
$673
Afar woman of Assaita
John Kenny
Photography - 67 x 45 x 2 cm Photography - 26.4 x 17.7 x 0.8 inch
$1,823
Frida Kahlo in the Blue House, Coyoacán, Mexico. (3)
Leo Matiz
Photography - 35.6 x 25.4 x 0.3 cm Photography - 14 x 10 x 0.1 inch
$1,800
Frida Kahlo in the Blue House, Coyoacán, Mexico. (1)
Leo Matiz
Photography - 35.6 x 25.4 x 0.3 cm Photography - 14 x 10 x 0.1 inch
$1,800
I am not a female asian artist
John Yuyi
Photography - 120 x 120 x 0.2 cm Photography - 47.2 x 47.2 x 0.1 inch
$6,166
Rêveries, de la série - Un été sans fin
Irène Jonas
Photography - 30 x 45 x 1 cm Photography - 11.8 x 17.7 x 0.4 inch
$1,345
Behind the Great Mosque in Djenne
John Kenny
Photography - 67 x 45 x 2 cm Photography - 26.4 x 17.7 x 0.8 inch
$1,054
Samburu adornment
John Kenny
Photography - 67 x 45 x 2 cm Photography - 26.4 x 17.7 x 0.8 inch
$1,054
Disruption II. Wall sculpture intervened by the artists.
Hunter & Gatti
Photography - 36 x 28 x 0.3 cm Photography - 14.2 x 11 x 0.1 inch
$1,500
Heart - Alexander Skarsgard Portrait. Photograph intervened by the artists.
Hunter & Gatti
Photography - 63.5 x 50.8 x 0.3 cm Photography - 25 x 20 x 0.1 inch
$2,000
Beauté factice
Mathilde Oscar
Photography - 40 x 60 x 1 cm Photography - 15.7 x 23.6 x 0.4 inch
$841
Miroir d'Elle
Tanguy Mendrisse
Photography - 40 x 30 x 0.1 cm Photography - 15.7 x 11.8 x 0 inch
$202
Soliloquy. Photograph intervened by the artists
Hunter & Gatti
Photography - 30.5 x 20.3 x 0.3 cm Photography - 12 x 8 x 0.1 inch
$1,500
Soul - Kate Hudson, Portrait. Photograph intervened by the artists.
Hunter & Gatti
Photography - 45.7 x 35.6 x 0.3 cm Photography - 18 x 14 x 0.1 inch
$2,000
Now - Bruno Mars, Portrait. Photograph intervened by the artists.
Hunter & Gatti
Photography - 50.8 x 35.6 x 0.3 cm Photography - 20 x 14 x 0.1 inch
$2,000
Pride - Jennifer Lopez. Portrait Photograph intervened by the artists.
Hunter & Gatti
Photography - 50.8 x 35.6 x 0.3 cm Photography - 20 x 14 x 0.1 inch
$2,000
Papillon Mon Amour
Jean-Michel Rousvoal
Photography - 120 x 90 x 0.1 cm Photography - 47.2 x 35.4 x 0 inch
$1,682
Les Hespérides L'Insouciance
Jean-Michel Rousvoal
Photography - 120 x 90 x 0.1 cm Photography - 47.2 x 35.4 x 0 inch
$1,682
Le Souffle de la Légèreté
Jean-Michel Rousvoal
Photography - 120 x 90 x 0.1 cm Photography - 47.2 x 35.4 x 0 inch
$1,682
Twiggy – at David Steen’s Home, Surrey
David Steen
Photography - 61 x 46 x 0.01 cm Photography - 24 x 18.1 x 0 inch
$1,547
The Beatles Posing Together, "Our World" Satellite Broadcast Press Event, EMI Studios, London
Glen Craig
Photography - 40.6 x 50.8 x 5.1 cm Photography - 16 x 20 x 2 inch
$1,750
The Beatles Posing with Balloons, "Our World" Satellite Broadcast Press Event, EMI Studios, London
Glen Craig
Photography - 50.8 x 40.6 x 5.1 cm Photography - 20 x 16 x 2 inch
$1,750
Tina Turner, Los Angeles
Glen Craig
Photography - 40.6 x 50.8 x 5.1 cm Photography - 16 x 20 x 2 inch
$1,500
Tina Turner Smiling with Ikettes, Tonight Show with Johnny Carson, November 23
Glen Craig
Photography - 40.6 x 50.8 x 5.1 cm Photography - 16 x 20 x 2 inch
$1,500
BB King Kodalith Performance - Close up, LA Forum
Glen Craig
Photography - 50.8 x 40.6 x 5.1 cm Photography - 20 x 16 x 2 inch
$1,750
Iggy Pop, Ann Arbor, MI, 1968
Glen Craig
Photography - 40.6 x 50.8 x 5.1 cm Photography - 16 x 20 x 2 inch
$1,500
Iggy Pop in the Studio, Ann Arbor, MI, 1969 (13)Iggy Pop, Ann Arbor, MI, 1969
Glen Craig
Photography - 40.6 x 50.8 x 5.1 cm Photography - 16 x 20 x 2 inch
$1,500
The Stooges, Ann Arbor, MI, 1969
Glen Craig
Photography - 50.8 x 40.6 x 5.1 cm Photography - 20 x 16 x 2 inch
$1,500
Tina Turner, Los Angeles, CA
Glen Craig
Photography - 40.6 x 50.8 x 5.1 cm Photography - 16 x 20 x 2 inch
$1,500
Miles Davis, Fillmore East, NYC, June 17, 1970 III
Glen Craig
Photography - 40.6 x 50.8 x 5.1 cm Photography - 16 x 20 x 2 inch
$1,500
The Rolling Stones Group Portrait, London, 1965
Glen Craig
Photography - 50.8 x 40.6 x 5.1 cm Photography - 20 x 16 x 2 inch
$1,750
Plexi'Art "Panther #1" (11)
JM Collell
Photography - 100 x 75 x 1.9 cm Photography - 39.4 x 29.5 x 0.7 inch
$1,233
Plexi'Art "Lagerfeld WS1" (7)
JM Collell
Photography - 80 x 80 x 1.9 cm Photography - 31.5 x 31.5 x 0.7 inch
$1,233
Renaissance woman 6
Léo Caillard
Photography - 120 x 90 x 1 cm Photography - 47.2 x 35.4 x 0.4 inch
$4,260
Renaissance woman 3
Léo Caillard
Photography - 120 x 90 x 1 cm Photography - 47.2 x 35.4 x 0.4 inch
$4,260
Renaissance woman 2
Léo Caillard
Photography - 120 x 90 x 1 cm Photography - 47.2 x 35.4 x 0.4 inch
$4,260
Photographie de Marilyn par Bert Stern
Bert Stern
Photography - 69 x 65 x 1 cm Photography - 27.2 x 25.6 x 0.4 inch
$5,493
Miles Davis le célèbre trompettiste en 1967 en Concert à la Salle Pleyel - série Jazz
Philippe Gras
Photography - 60 x 40 x 0.3 cm Photography - 23.6 x 15.7 x 0.1 inch
$1,065
Hipster in Stone XXXVII, Discobolus
Léo Caillard
Photography - 120 x 80 cm Photography - 47.2 x 31.5 inch
$4,036
Hipster 20s VII, Aristeus
Léo Caillard
Photography - 120 x 80 cm Photography - 47.2 x 31.5 inch
$4,036
Il peso degli anni, 1962 (Le poids de l’âge)
Fabrizio La Torre
Photography - 60 x 42 x 0.5 cm Photography - 23.6 x 16.5 x 0.2 inch
$1,850
Keith the New Barbarians
John Rowlands
Photography - 40.6 x 50.8 x 5.1 cm Photography - 16 x 20 x 2 inch
$1,350
Mick Jagger Rolling Stones Tour 1972
John Rowlands
Photography - 40.6 x 50.8 x 5.1 cm Photography - 16 x 20 x 2 inch
$1,350
Mick Jagger Rolling Stones Tour 1972
John Rowlands
Photography - 50.8 x 76.2 x 5.1 cm Photography - 20 x 30 x 2 inch
$1,600
Rush Black and White
Robert Knight
Photography - 40.6 x 50.8 x 5.1 cm Photography - 16 x 20 x 2 inch
$950
Elton John Sepia
Robert Knight
Photography - 33 x 44.5 x 5.1 cm Photography - 13 x 17.5 x 2 inch
$950
On the moon 13 - série portraits de femmes
Stéphane Vereecken
Photography - 50 x 50 x 2 cm Photography - 19.7 x 19.7 x 0.8 inch
$1,289
Paradis perdu 08 - série portraits de femmes
Stéphane Vereecken
Photography - 50 x 40 x 2 cm Photography - 19.7 x 15.7 x 0.8 inch
$1,177
Paradis perdu 02 - série portraits de femmes
Stéphane Vereecken
Photography - 50 x 50 x 2 cm Photography - 19.7 x 19.7 x 0.8 inch
$1,289
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.