Saving the World One Pixel at a Time

…it’s about interaction with your subjects and getting them to trust you and relax. A portrait shoot is a team effort so discuss what you would like to accomplish during a shoot. So many times I’ve seen photographers shooting models and expecting them to do all the work. Sometimes that works, sometime it doesn’t because there are two types of photo subjects:

1/80 sec at f/4 and ISO 200

Inner-directed people are the Energizer bunnies of photo subjects. You tell them to stand “over there,” point the camera at them, and they will change poses as fast as you can click the shutter. You will get lots of good poses, some great ones, and a few that are not so good because the subject isn’t getting any feedback, except from themselves. The other downside is that you will also shoot more photos, which in turn takes more editing time and will require bigger memory cards. This type of subject probably represents 20% of the subjects that you’ll get to photograph.

Anna Lieb (above left) is one of the best professional models I’ve ever photographed and one way to increase you posing skills is to work with such subjects because it’s impossible to make a bad photograph of them, so watch what they do and remember the poses! That doesn’t mean you can’t direct them after they’ve thrown what they think is her best pose. It’s a collaborative effort and working together you’ll come up with that perfect pose. Image made with Canon EOS 50D and EF 28-105mm lens with an EX 550 speedlight used for fill.

1/60 sec at f/4.5 and ISO 100

Outer directed subjects represent the other 80% of photo subjects and expect you to tell them what to do. Shooting this type of subject takes longer but if you take the time to communicate what you want the subject to do. The best ones will respond better if you show them what the photograph looks like on the LCD screen—big screens really help with this. The bottom line is that it’s up to you to tell them how to pose and in order to do that, you need to know what you want but you also what that direction to be gentle and allow them to be who they really are. The photograph at right is a first shoot with an aspiring model. Her shyness is visible from the pose that she assumed when I asked her to lean up against this tree but her natural charm shines through and she went on to be one of the best models I ever photographed.

Joe is the author of “Posing for Portrait & Glamour Photography” which is available at your friendly neighborhood bookstore or Amazon.com.

1/125 sec at f/14 and ISO 125

There is an old photographer’s expression—ESP—Expression Sells Portraits. The expression on a subject’s face tells the story of who they are. If they only have one look on their face, their portfolio will look monotonous. Be sure to look at both sides of a subject’s face. Most people—even supermodels—have one side of their face that photographs better than the other side but don’t let that stop you from posing them one way or another

Old Question: Eyes open or closed? This was the first of a sequence of nine images made with the subject and I tried several variations with smiles but the shot with her eyes closed produced the best expression. The lighting set-up used one Elinchrom monolight with Portalite lightbanks at camera right and close to the subject. The second Elinchrom monolight with a Portalite mounted was placed at camera left and at the very back of my (not all that big) camera room. Shot with a Canon EOS 5D with EF 135mm f/2.8 lens.

1/200 sec at f/5.7 and ISO 500

One of the best pieces of advice that I ever got was one provided by the late Leon Kennamer. When he would bring a subject into a portrait session the first thing he would do is make a Polaroid test shot of them and then hand it to them asking “how do you like your hair?” And the truth boys and girls, is that if a subject doesn’t like their hair they’re not going to like the portrait no matter how skillfully lighted or posed it may be. This was back in the film days so we have it even easier now: So make a test shot and show the camera’s LCD to the subject and ask “how do you like your hair?” If they don’t, think about a hat. Hats can change the look of a subject’s portrait too; look for fun and interesting hats in thrift and discount stores.

H is for Hat. A combination of a two good props adds something extra to this portrait. The subject is relaxed because she’s leaning on a split-rail fence and I just asked her to bring her hand under her chin and notice that I had her make a fist so there’s no dangling fingers near her face. Yes, there are some dangling fingers resting on the fence rail but some burning using Photoshop Burn tool lowered the tones. I used a Canon EOS 5D with an EX 550 speedlight to add light under the hat brim, otherwise part of her face would have been in shadow.

Joe is the author of “Posing for Portrait & Glamour Photography” which is available at your friendly neighborhood bookstore or Amazon.com.

One of the most important elements in creating saleable portraits is knowing how to pose your subjects. You may be able to photograph a beautiful woman but if her pose is awkward, clumsy, or just unattractive, it will greatly reduce your ability to sell prints. And because often you’ll often be working with people that have not been photographed since their wedding or senior portraits, it’s also important to develop a good understanding of posing techniques and assist your subject as they move in front of your camera.

1/125 sec at f/7.1 and ISO 100

B is for the Basics: Here is the basic glamour pose that I start with and use it as my “first pose” in a session. I ask the subject to put their weight on the foot that’s away from the camera placing them in a three-quarter pose. Here is something I’m going to repeat endlessly throughout this series of posts: Once you have a pose you like, refine it with a head tilt or ask the subject to slightly move their hands and arms all the while changing your camera angle and zooming (or walking around) to tighten or loosen the shot. For this photograph the main light used a Dynalite head fired through Booth Photographic’s 75-inch white umbrella in shoot-through mode. There was no light on the background and even the hair light added only marginally to the shot. I’ll bet I could have made the same finished image with just the umbrella. Shot with Canon EOS 1D Mark II N and EF 135mm f/2.8 SF lens.

1/125 sec at f/7.1 and ISO 100

One of the most challenging parts of working in the studio—without props—there’s nothing for the subject to interact with or naturally do with their hands. Tip: To get started, I talk to the subject while moving my hands around my face and head and watch how the subject mimics my poses. They don’t always do the same thing; sometimes what the subject does is better! I really liked what Noelle did here. Working with the two Elinchrom Portalite lightbanks I placed one at camera left and behind me and the other Portalite was placed at camera right and close behind Noelle, who reminds me of Fringe’s Anna Torv. Shot with a Canon EOS 5D with EF 135mm f/2.8 SF lens.

Joe is the author of “Posing for Portrait & Glamour Photography” which is available at your friendly neighborhood bookstore or Amazon.com.

Many photographers are intrigued at the prospect of creating glamour photographs but may feel that not having the “proper” equipment makes this goal unattainable. Nothing is farther from the truth. My  approach to glamour photography doesn’t require a studio and, as Wilford Brimley might have said, “You don’t even need any fancy studio lighting equipment.”

Before

All that’s really necessary to produce professional quality glamour images is a camera that accepts interchangeable lenses, a few simple photographic accessories, such as reflector and speedlight, and models willing to pose for you. Here’s a few  tips that will help make your first glamour photography session go a little bit better. For the before and after examples shown here, the model, lighting, camera, lens and background are exactly the same.

1. Avoid flashy jewelry. Make your model’s face, especially her eyes, the focus of the photograph.

2. Ask your subject to wear solid colors. Nothing detracts more than clothes covered with busy patterns and prints. See last Friday’s post for more details.

3. Make sure the clothing fits. If a model’s clothes don’t fit, use clips or the old stand-by spring-loaded clothespins (out of camera range) to snug them up. This happens more often than you might think.

After

4. Change Hairstyles. Ask the model to style their hair differently for each change of clothing to add variety to the session and the photos that she can have in her portfolio. One of my favorite techniques is to have the model wet her hair, as shown in the “after” example.

5. Expression. Some models look great with a smile, others look better without one. Shoot a few test shots each way and make a determination what looks best for her. It will be obvious, right there on your camera’s LCD screen.

6. Make-up. When changing hairstyles or outfits, ask the model to changes her make up style and color too. It doesn’t have to be drastic, maybe a different lipstick color or darker eye shadow. I happen to think that red lipstick rocks. Ask her to try it.

7. The Right Footwear. For a more a statuesque posture, ask the model to wear her highest heels. No high heels? Ask her to stand on her toes for a few shots.

8. Relax. A glamour shoot is a team effort. Model and photographer must work together to achieve the best possible images.

Joe is the author of  “Joe Farace’s Glamour Photography” thats available on Amazon and your favorite book or camera store.

I recently received a few author’s copies of my new book “Posing for Portrait and Glamour Photography: Techniques for Digital Photographers” that is currently available at Amazon.com for $29.75. Since I believe that posing is one of the most important aspects of successful portrait and glamour photography, I’m going to give away two signed copies of the book on December 31st. That way two lucky photographers can start the new year with a few new ideas and, I hope, some inspiration to make 2013 your most successful—creatively and financially—in a long time.

The rules for the contest are simple: On December 31st my wife Mary will randomly select two of my current Twitter followers to receive a signed copy of the book. If you’re already following me on Twitter, you didn’t have to do anything! You are already entered in the contest. If you’re not already following me but are a reader of this blog, please take the time to click on that big Twitter button at right and follow me on Twitter.

Reminder: Don’t forget the December series of face-to-face portfolio reviews for charity ends today. Click HERE for details.