Self-Portrait....post no.218.

THERE IS LOW-KEY LIGHTING, NORMAL (AS U SEE IN PHOTOS) AND HIGH-KEY LIGHTING....Here I used low-key lightin in this profile portrait....The light was on spot-light from side-back, so I cud get the outlines of my face structure.....
-----Whether u use a compact or DSLR, YOU MUST KNOW EACH MODE.....here the light was coming from back and affecting the lens of the camera, I covered with a black sheet held by my left hand.Thus, u will know that u are not wasting much of ur time and losing control on lighting.
-----Look at the expressions, as you are ur own master here....However, there is no restriction....u can use as many emotions as u can and finalize the best ones.....Some  homework can be done on your computer or mobile with online photoshop facilities to make it a choice of ur portrait......Keep some space in front as u can set ur eyes with some space in the frame, not juxtapositioning the face with frame......YOU can take help of friends or ur spouse, in case u cannot handle in a single mood....this will help a lot to get the result what u want without any tension.
-----Reg. backgrounds......in low-key pix the background tend to be darker while as opposite in high-key pix, the bg is shown to be white with subject in the same tone................just try.