Feedback at a photoshoot. The importance of communication or how every model can tell you are an amateur (if you are)

Very often, my colleagues and I get complimented, "Wow, you are so professional, you know exactly what to do; I don't have to tell you anything!"

Today, I want to explain why these nice words indicate something that is not necessarily positive.

When I hear those words, it usually means one of two things - the photographer is either intimidated by the model's professionalism and lets her lead the shooting, which will be basically just a documentation, not a creative process. Or he doesn't know how to/is too lazy/doesn't want to talk.

So I would like to explain today why "not saying anything to a model" is a bad choice. And I am not talking about a social aspect of it - some of us are introverts, and we don't really need any small talk, but as soon as a professional model sees that the photographer is not fixing anything of what he sees, the model knows it is going to be a photo shoot that won't differ from any other.

It is great when two people work together, so if a model offers something - a pose, a movement, an emotion, a photographer should react to it with his opinion, cause photographers are "the eyes" in this situation and no matter how professional is the model, we can not see what the photographer sees, 

What do models want to hear at a photo shoot:

Pretty much any suggestion about how to make a photo look better - 

- Move chin up/down/towards the light

-Please stay in this area of light, don't come too far/too close

- Keep hands up/down

- Keep your posing natural/ bring more expression

- Bring some movement (yes, please, don't be afraid to photograph something dynamic)

- Act *this emotion*

- Fix your hair/make-up (most of the time, we don't see ourselves during posing (and I think it is better this way to be honest, the mirror in front of the model is always distracting and doesn't give the same image as a photographer sees) so the photographer is expected to be our mirror, and if there was a strand of hair getting lose or clothes don't lay well or our skin needs some powder - please tell us. Or have a stylist/makeup artist keep an eye on those details for you

-The photographer's thought process. If you are changing the settings of a camera, please tell the model cause we can not always see why you stopped taking photos. If you are not happy with the light, composition etc - also say that. Nobody would get upset about it, but the communication will feel much nicer 

What do models not want to hear at a photo shoot?

- Wow, nice boobs! (honestly, this happened to me more than once, and no, compliments to a model's body is never appropriate) Models don't need an appreciation of their looks, only for professionalism, creativity etc. And for sure nude models don't want any sexual appreciation.

- "Not like that. Bad. Wrong. I don't like it". If you ask a model to show some emotion or movement and don't like the result - negative feedback won't help you. it only discourages the model and forces her to do only "standard poses" and the same "safe" face in each picture. Instead, say what she should change. 

- Haha, you look funny. it is nobody's fault if you caught a silly face/pose in a photo, but showing a model an unflattering image might break her trust, and again, you will lose an opportunity to create something unique

- don't pose. My personal "favorite." Especially cause the phrase "don't pose" never means that. Cause me standing in front of your camera is already posing. Asking a model not to pose is like asking not to breathe. What people want to change is, in fact, "act more natural," "don't change your poses too fast," "don't move at all," or "don't look at the camera."

More tips if you want to improve the quality of the creative process

If you shoot with a digital camera, it might be helpful to show the photos to a model, so she knows how you frame the photos and how the light looks, is her makeup good, is the hairstyle ok, or something needs to be improved. Don't be afraid to discuss the photos during the creation process; it is much easier to improve your work while it is still in progress. 

And play some music in the background - not too loud, so everyone still can talk. But in this case, even if you are not giving too much feedback, the shooting feels more emotionally comfortable :) 

And don't forget that both a photographer and a model are playing in the same team - all of us are at a photo shoot with one goal - to take good photos :) So even if there are some miscommunications, remember that people around you are there to help you, not to fight against you ;) 

Ph James Wigger