Collaboration breaks the ice

Before Jackie and I shot at the Rose Garden fountain in Tyler, Texas (as seen here), we were nearly strangers. Being a photographer often means jumping into work with people you don’t always know at all, even if you’d strongly prefer to have some knowledge and background on people whenever possible. Some fear meeting new people, and the concept of photographing them can be even more terrifying.

The sunset was in full force for this shot. Note the golden glow. Unfortunately, the weather prevented much of that warmth from showing up in more images.

The interaction between subject and photographer is called “rapport.” I’ve found the key to keeping things natural is to put it out of your mind. Heck, you even have an automatic in: You’re a photographer and your subject is apparently a model or has done something to warrant you taking pictures. In this case, Jackie is a model. So what else better to talk about than our experiences?

Another key to working with someone new is to understand how they photograph. Some people photograph incredibly well at certain angles, and not as well at others. I’m not the greatest posing person in the world, but I just started with a basic look, and Jackie added her own embellishments. I made sure to work high and low angles, and angles from both sides and so on. That way, I knew what worked and what didn’t in fairly quick order.

Don’t be afraid to go out of the ordinary, either. It had been raining, and we agreed quickly that she was ok with sitting or even laying on the soaked steps and decks at the park. This came in handy when we made it to the fountain, obviously!

When you’re working with a model/subject, you both contribute to the image. I despise treating people like puppets, and I usually find a person’s natural gestures to be satisfactory, with just a little modification at most. More experienced models and subjects will bring more to the table, making your life easier (most of the time).

Remembering a few helpful pointers, such as putting weight on one leg, at least slightly bending legs and arms, keeping limbs from looking amputated (as in being entirely obscured by the body or otherwise bent out of view) and usually keeping eyes mostly on-center (avoiding “wall-eye”) will contribute to you deftly guiding someone’s natural stances and gestures into something you can work with.

Once a conversation starts, it can often sustain itself, but don’t worry if you have a couple of quiet spells while you work out things. Just make sure you don’t ignore your subject to twiddle knobs and settings. That’s where understanding your equipment and being prepared helps the most. To this effect, I left my off-camera lighting in the car and shot with natural light to simplify our interaction, since the lighting appeared favorable anyway.

Also, make sure to be supportive, just don’t overdo it. I personally don’t enjoy doing stuff like “oh, you’re hot!” or “beautiful!” I usually keep it to the picture with things such as “this is a great shot,” or “you’re doing well.” … Not forcing it at all, mind you. If you tell subjects to “hold it” or “hold this” in reference to a pose, that usually sends a signal that they are doing well. No need to go “Austin Powers” on them.

There’s plenty more to it, but if you put it out of your mind and just get to work, you might surprise yourself at how well things go naturally as long as you’re prepared. Experience pays off, too, and things will get much easier most of the time.

In brief: Stop thinking, start working!