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11/03/2005 04:58:56 PM · #1 |
Models...what I've learned!
Beautiful people are not always good models. *lol*
I have a beautiful fiance. But in truth, most of the time she's a horrible model. Point a camera and she wants it done and right when you get everything lined up right...she'll move. Then when you tell her you're not done...oh. You fuss trying to get that same capture you just saw. And you can't....and now..."why is it taking so long".
Now, in her case it probably stems from two reasons. My fiance is very ADHD. Second, she's a photographer herself.
;)
So, yes...in modelling...I think the most important criteria is someone who is patient and comfortable with just sitting and/or posing. So if you are trying to learn how to do model shots. Don't pick your cutest friend. Pick the one with a good temperament for it...
- The Saj
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11/03/2005 05:01:00 PM · #2 |
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11/03/2005 06:56:22 PM · #3 |
| I think I would second that. my exgirlfriend was very nice to look at but not very nice to photograph. |
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11/03/2005 07:19:11 PM · #4 |
Half of it is the photographer. If you have someone behind the camera, fiddling with the camera, acting unsure of what they are doing, fooling with the lights etc. The model is not going to get the most out of the model.
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11/03/2005 07:36:45 PM · #5 |
Originally posted by Spazmo99:
Half of it is the photographer. If you have someone behind the camera, fiddling with the camera, acting unsure of what they are doing, fooling with the lights etc. The model is not going to get the most out of the model. |
true.
I would suggest if you are wanting to work in this area for the rest of your life get a job someplace in a studio even if it is something like JCPenny or something, it teaches you how to handel yourself behind the camera and also how to sell your work. |
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11/03/2005 09:32:45 PM · #6 |
Originally posted by gi_joe05:
I think I would second that. my exgirlfriend was very nice to look at but not very nice to photograph. |
I have the same problem with my wife. Stresses me out, so I don't bother anymore.
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11/03/2005 09:40:19 PM · #7 |
Originally posted by Spazmo99:
Half of it is the photographer. If you have someone behind the camera, fiddling with the camera, acting unsure of what they are doing, fooling with the lights etc. The model is not going to get the most out of the model. |
I agree, too. With much practice, I can now change settings rather quickly, but it took lots of practice and experience.
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11/03/2005 10:31:43 PM · #8 |
These are a couple of my favorite models .. and they are very cooperative!!
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11/03/2005 10:33:58 PM · #9 |
I think that using only "pretty people" really limits the possibilities. Just because someone is plain or doesn't look like a movie star doesn't mean that they might not make a fantastic model.
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11/03/2005 10:37:51 PM · #10 |
it helps when the model is as excited about the result, or more, than you are.
my gf couldn't wait to see how this shoot turned out, and how we'd place. if only we noticed how annoying that blue sheet in front was... but still one of my best people shots ever.
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11/04/2005 06:44:12 AM · #11 |
My wife hasn't got the patience either and is megga megga megga critical of any images I take. She is not fat or anything, just healthily built, but I think to photograph her I need a lens that distorts vartically and a camera with built in neat image set to extreme parameters. Occasionally I get a photo she likes, but that is usually after many many rejections.
I have much better experience with other models, normally more patient, and more interested in honest pictures. |
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11/04/2005 07:21:37 AM · #12 |
 My wife does a great job, she's patient with my inability to describe what I want :) |
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11/04/2005 08:09:51 AM · #13 |
This is poignant and somewhat humorous. When I first started shooting for myself people asked why I wanted to photograph others who wanted to break into modeling or acting. Several people asked me why I didn't photograph my wife. She even got frustrated. She quickly realized what I understood the first time we shot together: this is something I do because I love it and want to do it. A 16-hour shoot drains me but I have so friggin much fun I want to do it again (after some sleep). In the last 3 months I haven't shot with anyone for modeling and then got to shoot some for accreditation for some TV promo print work and we "worked" all day.
I love my wife but this just isn't something she wants to do and her patience with shooting is next to nil. Likewise, my daughter. I have a studio in the house and getting photos of my daughter dressed up are about as easy to come by as hen's teeth. Of course, over the last few years I've learned about myself and my drive a little more so I've learned not to take my equipment to family functions or to just bring the 20D and take some snapshots so that I can still participate in whatever we're doing and bring home a few pics for the fridge door. I normally leave the editing of those family events to my wife, too.
Pic of wife from Atlanta GTG
Pic of daughter - this was while she was playing around
Pics from photoshoot
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11/04/2005 10:16:32 AM · #14 |
I like any type of person who listens to me. The thing most of the time they're not beautiful, I mean they are my friends, it's my job to make them look beautiful through the camera (I must say I'm pretty good at it).
I really don't like having someone that I don't know modeling. I've done it a couple of times and DID not like it. I take conceptual photographs so the model doesn't only look at the camera and smile, and we have to make a whole story behind the lens. This takes work, you've got to be comfortable and I like to boss people around :P With a stranger apparently it's impolite.
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11/04/2005 11:04:31 AM · #15 |
I have done some work with models and your point about not simply selecting the 'pretty people' is excellent advice. I have shot with a couple of women who were quite beautiful and had a very strong presence in social settings yet even after hours of effort the results were much less interesting than expected. I think Spazmo99 pointed out that much of this is up to the photographer and I agree when we are discussing portrait photography. If you are using a model for editorial or stock images you need everything the photographer brings to the shoot PLUS all of the skills a model can add. Good models seem to know, maybe intuitively:
- where their hands are and how they will impact the image
- how their arms, legs, and body create lines that add interest and expression to an image
- where the light is and how they will use it
I'm going to include a few examples of work with Jess and Desiree. Neither of these women would strike you as 'models' if you encountered them on the street yet I believe they do amazing work.
  
I've posted these before, but I'm showing here now to make a point about the models. In the first two, the model knew where the light was and worked with it. In each of these cases the model found an expressive pose that fit the scene we were trying to create. At this point it isn't just about the photographer's vision, it's about a collaboration between the photographer and the model.
Back to the original point of the thread, if you are doing any editorial, fashion, or stock photograpy that features people, you will want to look beyond the 'pretty people' and find somebody who is patient and physically expressive. |
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11/08/2005 12:57:02 AM · #16 |
Originally posted by Spazmo99:
Half of it is the photographer. If you have someone behind the camera, fiddling with the camera, acting unsure of what they are doing, fooling with the lights etc. The model is not going to get the most out of the model. |
My fiance is ADHDDDDDDDD....
More than 5 seconds, is too long...for the whole photo shoot *lol*
Also, I am not talking about the result of the photo not coming out right because, I, the photographer didn't pose the model's hands. But rather, those people who have no heart or mind for being a model. My fiance for example just doesn't have the patience to adjust her arms...or position. But I love her and hope to have her by my side with a second camera.
;)
Message edited by author 2005-11-08 01:05:43. |
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