I’ve been watching the Sue Bryce posing video and following her posing tips and I love her style. It takes a while for models to get used to listening properly to what you are telling them though but when it works - it really works
There are times when its useful to share photos with specific people without sharing them with the world. This is particularly true where you are ‘commissioned’ to take photographs of someone and they want to make the final selection of images.
I use Flickr. I’m sure there are many other equally good/useful ways of doing this. but this is the quickest way for me.
To start you will need to have a Flickr account. The basic Flickr account is free but it limits the number and size of uploads per day. If you are only planning to upload a handful of images then the free account is fine but if you, like me, upload hundreds at the time then you will need to shell out $24.99 dollars per year.
Start by having your images to a small size and resolution. I use ADOBE BRIDGE CS5 to do this as a batch job but Lightroom or Photoshop does that too. make sure you save these as JPGS. Some people copyright stamp light-box images to protect from unauthorised use ( click this link for a tutorial ). At the end of this process I have a folder called Low_res_jpgs_modelname with all the images in it.
In your Flickr account click the Upload link at the top of the page. Note that occasionally Flickr launches their basic uploader and as that’s not useful to us for this purpose you will need to click the upload link again to get to the right uploader.
Next click on the Choose photos and videos link. The correct uploader will launch a browser dialogue box and from there simply navigate to your low_res_jpgs_modelname folder. Once there click on the first file in the list, scroll down to the last file in the list. Hold down the SHIFT key and click to highlight all of the files in your list. Click Open.
You should then see the type of screen illustrated below with all your files listed and the total upload size. The next step is VERY IMPORTANT. Set your privacy to Private (only you see them). Click upload and make yourself a coffee.
Once the upload is complete Flickr will prompt you to ‘give your photos a title’. Click on this link and here’s another important step that will save you a lot of time for later. Click on the set link and select the Create new Set option. Give your set a name and save all of the upload file to this set. This set will appear at the top of your screen when you click the You link on the Flickr navigation bar. Click on the set to open it.
Click on the Envelope icon in the top right corner above the set thumbnails. This will bring up a share dialogue box. Type in the email address of the person(s) you would like tissue guest-passes to. Type in a message and then click the Some of the items in this set aren’t public. Include content marked as: Private (only you) Tick-box. This will bring up the thumbnails in the left hand pane of the dialogue box. Click send and your clients will now receive an email inviting them to view these private photographs. You should consider asking them to view their images in the Flickr Slideshow mode by clicking the slideshow link above the set thumbnails.
Once the client/model have selected their images you can “expire’ their guest-passes OR simply delete the files from Flickr using the Organize & Create menu option.
While re-creating my website I had the opportunity to make some interesting observations about my own photographs and I was quite stunned at the unconscious effort I clearly make to satisfy my idea of good visual stimulus. I am not talking about my ‘style’ here. Style is a result of conscious decision making in taking and processing images but what I saw is something quite different and I found it very disturbing that I was so unaware of it. I flatter myself for having a good understanding of visual impact and excellent emotional intelligence yet I didn’t spot this at all.
That prompted me to go and look at other photographers work to see if I could find similar patterns. Some of my colleagues have such distinct styles that I feel confident that I would be able to pick them out from a collection of many other photographs but do they also have that subconscious samey traits that I have just discovered in my own photographs. The answer is that some do and some don’t.
Take one of my colleagues. We call him The Executioner because he always lines his models up against a wall and shoots them. On closer inspection his models always have a bent left arm (just like my models are always looking in a particular direction) and his models predominantly look over their left shoulder. I wonder if he is aware of this.
Another friend and colleague who I tend to think of as the more Arty Photographer always says to models and anyone else that he ‘DOESN’T DO’ potatoshopping (as he calls it) but then spends hours and hours and hours doing lovely looking Instagram edits… but more to the point; his models are always leaning . Against walls trees or even thin air, but lean they do.
So my models look from left to right. So much so that I had to flip some of the photographs in Photoshop now that I’ve noticed. Hopefully in future you’ll be seeing images of models presenting their best side and not the side that I direct them into to satisfy my subconscious creature of habit.
I have read quite a few blogs about being a photographers Assistant and each of them have so many good points to consider. Normally when I shoot I do so with a colleague and we provide each other with more informal assistance. The beauty of that is that you know each other shooting styles well enough to make informed decisions of lighting and the approach of the assistant. But I know that many photographers are reluctant to take on new assistants on a more informal basis because of bad experiences.
This is my personal take on what makes a good (and bad) assistant.
If you agree to assist me I will expect……
… you to read the information I send you. I am good at preparation and always produce a casting brief and moodboard. Do not arrive without having read through it.
… you to be on time at the location!
… you not to bring a camera unless I have specifically asked you to do so. This is your chance to observe and assist not to get in a few shots
… you not to shoot right behind me and trigger my lights right before I try to. This to me is a sacking offence
… you to be the person, at the level you are. I do not need you to be a lighting expert or a photography/photoshop whizz. I’m happy to explain as I go along.
… you to pay attention when I shoot and not daydream right behind me so that you trip me up
… you to to stand in for the model while we test the lights and not be coy about having your photo taken.
… you to help the model, the make-up artist and myself carry kit, cases and sometimes what feels like whole wardrobes without being asked to do so.
… you to fetch coffee for me when I need it. I do not expect you to pay but I do expect you to remember that I hate milk and not bring me a cappuchino
… you to point out to me if models have labels sticking out at the top of the jumper, have fluff on their black tights and generally help me see
… you to know your own limits. If I ask too much or you get too cold/fed up - I do expect you to make every effort to keep up but I do not expect you to be superhuman. Don’t ask me to be a mindreader either tho - so tell me!
… you to be polite and helpful to everyone on set and be particularly observant of a models need for privacy
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Who said I’m afraid of shadows…..
Test shoot at Dock House Studio with Mihaela and Diana. I admit I have a problem with shadows and tend to gravitate towards a more high key look.
Mihaela at Dock House Studio. I’ve wanted to work with some projected backgrounds for a while and this is my first effort.
