For Best Kilt Pics...

[David Thorpe]

...Leads to big, round bellies, narrow shoulders, tiny heads, and pointy, bent up feet...

Wow! All these years and I didn't know the reason for mine! (bulbous tongue in hollow cheek)

Seriously, I'm glad you brought up the lens length issue. It makes a big difference! Portrait lenses for 35 mm cameras are normally slightly longer than 100 mm. That's twice the length of a "normal" lens (which is a compromise length) and 3 times as long as a moderate wide-angle lens. A longer lens decreases perspective distortion, which is why they are used in portraiture.

[Ryan Ross]

And actually, some of the best photos I've seen of kilts were taken more from ground level. By using the skew factor to advantage, a ground-level photo can make you seem like you 'tower'.

It works!

[opositive]

a little forced perspective from below looks a lot better after a diet. i need to wait for the jolly green giant shot.

[that is meant as a compliment on the weight loss, rr.]

[tundramanq]

I have had to be pretty hard core with some of the kilt makers on hem length. I tell them 22 inches total length from top of waist band to hem measured at the sides. I have to wear the kilt tops at the top of my hip bones. I get real specific when they only ask for my height, as there are way too many assumptions involved deriving hem from height.
I've already grumped about non standard waist sizing elswhere - That is with the straps adjusted where?

[English Bloke]

I find the best way to get a good kilt photo is hand the camera to my wife. She's a right dab hand. No lopped heads. No chopped feet. If she's not handy, another way is to get the camera person / camera on a timer, to stand a way off from the subject with the camera resolution (digital obviously) set to as high as possible. Makes for a massive file initially but it's a simple process to crop it then re-size it and it doesn't distort the perspective. Bit of a long way round but it works for me anyway.