Model photography - Bring all your hats!

Afternoon, I thought i'd give you a photo breakdown today so you get to see what is involved when working with models/ people.  It's rarely as simple as just pressing your shutter release.

You will need the minimum of your following virtual hats for model photography:

- Photographer hat (Know your camera gear and what kit best suits the model)

- Clothes stylist hat (Request clothes for your shoot and re-style as needed on set/ location)

- Choreographer hat (Know how to pose the human body to get beautiful shapes and elegance)

- Art director hat (You need to direct the model, find the location and light the scene as needed for the look you want to create)

- Life coach hat (Bring out the best in people so they trust you and feel confident / elegant/ beautiful/ relaxed/ involved/ excited..)

Making this image:

1) Find the location (I might do a full post on this)

2) Find nice lighting or bring it with you

3) Request suitable clothing for your vision

4) Envisage the final frame before you see it

It's the small details that make the difference:

OK so picture the scene, girl standing next to a tree in long dress and trainers with the tree behind her. My tick list

1) Walk 90 degree off agree so I can see the tree and the model side on

2) Ask nicely to raise the dress to make the legs look longer/ sexier

3) One foot on the tree to create a triangle

4) Take her trainers off

5) Have lower foot on her toes so not flat footed

6) Pose bum slightly to camera to get light on the back of the dress (was blocked by the tree)

7) Frame in camera. CLICK.

For my photos i'm normally styling the hair, clothes, directing the posing, building the mood, everything I can to try to make incremental improvements to an image.  The camera is such a small part of my model photography process.

*This is not the best photo in the world but I wanted to explain how we build up an image by gradually improving each component.

**I'll share some new images to our Patreon Flickr group as I can't post to socials.