Girlfriend posing C&C

nrois02 · Sep 8, 2009

Here are a couple of photos I took over the weekend. What do you all think of when you see these? and how do you think they are put together composition wise and color wise? Thanks!!!

edited version... toned down the harshness of the white. let me know what you think!

bigtwinky · Sep 8, 2009

Interesting shots.

1- She looks a little soft / out of focus. I like the overall composition, but I think by zooming in more (or cropping out) the left side of the image to have less of the shack, having her more on the side of the image and letting the direction she is facing impact the photo more, would be good.

I like the trees, but not the section right on top of the shack, as its pretty bright.
So a crop of the image might be worthwhile.

2- I like the idea here, and I love the colours and grittyness (sp) of the boat`s floor. I like the light and dark sides of the image and how she is looking into the light side, but I find its just a bit too bright, some parts of her arm and dress seem blown out

nrois02 · Sep 8, 2009

ok thanks for the feed back. ill try and touch them up later tonight!

TimmyJP · Sep 8, 2009

I think in the first image she looks a little uncomfortable or awkward; just the shape of her neck and head looks awkward to me. Other than that the colours and composition are very nice, but as bigtwinky says, she does look slightly out of focus.

I love the second picture, the sea looks wonderful, and the bottom of the boat is beautifully weathered. Again the colours and framing are lovely; just be careful with blowing out the highlights on the dress!

Timmy

nrois02 · Sep 8, 2009

i think the focus thing is because i eased u on the sharpness of her and that is giving the illusion of being out of focus. ill fix that tomorrow. and thats how she poses.

and the second one i did. ill put up after posting this. thanks for the comments!!

vegasvisionstudios · Sep 9, 2009

nrois02 said:
and thats how she poses.

Well not to bag on your girl but there are a few things wrong with the pose. First the way she has her head and eyes turned away from the camera gives the pose a tense and defensive posture. If she was going for that aloof, detached I am a cloths hanger couture fashion look then unfortunately she missed, mostly because of the way she has pulled her eyes all the way around. The result is that the camera only sees the whites of the eyes which gives a subconscious danger signal.

The placement of her feet are back wards. With the inside foot toed into the wall and the outside footed toed to the camera the inside foot is holding her off the wall making it it difficult for her to relax into it. This results in her shoulders being leveled and giving the further impression of tension in the image.

The tense theme continues with the right arm and the stiff just barely hanging on by the tip pinky which tenses the forearm and the wrist.

The straight to the side placement of the left arm closes in the body and only serves to add bulk to her by making her appear to be wider then she actually is. She obviously has some nice curve to her body but that arm dead at the side blocks it off.

As photographers working with models it is inherently our job to direct the model into a pose that flatters her figure and form, contributes to the composition of the images and produces angles and curves that will help guide the viewers eye through the image in a pleasant way.

I think had you directed her to reverse her feet, turn her right hip all the way into the wall raise the right arm up and over her head while rotating to her left at the waist, roll the left shoulder up and forward so she could lower her chin into the side of it as she turned her head to the left her eyes would have still been turned off the central access of the lens but the lens would have still captured the iris of the eye rather then just whites. Last but not least have her bend the elbow of her left arm bringing the hand softly up the hip and create some space and angle between the body and the arm.

Now you have a very feminine pose with a hint of sexy and a hint of aloofness and disinterest on the models part where she conveys the fashion look I believe she was aiming for.

In the end slowing down and directing the pose will benefit both model and photographer. You will be come more comfortable in directing and composing and and will find yourself taking control of the creation of your own images rather then simply taking pictures. This will allow your images to consistently rise to a new level of technical and artistic quality.

Your models will also benefit by becoming more aware of how their body moves, what angles are flattering to her and which ones are not. She will also learn the importance of working with her photographers to achieve images that fit the needs of photographer, model, client and end user.

All of us models and photographers alike want to create the best images we can and it all starts with the fundamentals of posing which in reality are the fundamentals of geometry. Give the eye something to follow and keep it in the image as long as possible and you keep the viewer inside your image longer. The longer the viewer stays inside an image the more likely they are to make an emotional connection with it. If they connect emotionally then they are more likely to buy the image or you as a photographer the next time they need images.

I know this was a long post and while not all positive it is constructively offered to share my personal experience as a fashion and glamour photographer with you on the topic of posing.

nrois02 · Sep 9, 2009

well thank you for the lengthy post. i take almost all peoples post as constructive and i appreciate the feedback. what i forgot to mention was that i am doing a 5 photo series going with the emotion of distance, abandonment and loneliness, and using her in a white outfit. This is my first time (trying to do it as professional as i can) photographing people so i thank you for the comment.

what did you think of the second...well, third photograph? id like to hear what you have to say about that one get your input so i can try these tips on the rest of them! thanks again!

vegasvisionstudios · Sep 10, 2009

I really like the shot in the row boat it truly feels natural. The boat it's self has a ton of character. Not sure she gives me the impression abandonment or loneliness but the distance is definitely there with the far shore on the horizon. Would love to see this shot, actually both of them done early on a foggy morning. That would add some real drama and emotion to both settings.

The only things I would offer as an after thought are

1. While her body position does look natural I think you could improve it by having her actually flex her biceps and lean her back into the oars a little as if she were actually rowing for the distant shore.

2. The sun coming in from high camera left is creating a really strong shadow of her right arm and oar across her lap. While not a huge distraction if the image were mine I would either clone it out or would have tried to position her arm a little further back (would happen naturally if she were leaning back into the oars that little bit I mentioned.) Doing this would pull the shadow off the body where much of it would be lost in the color tone and texture of the boat bottom and the small section that would cross the bright spot on the seat would be a snap to clone out.

nrois02 · Sep 10, 2009

ahhh thank you very much. and the funny thing is that the sun was rising but before I woke up around 7 and there was fog on the lake and i tried to wake her up for the shot but she wasent having it. lol thanks for the tips. these are the tips ill kepp in my mind from now on! thanks again!!

newrmdmike · Sep 10, 2009

theres something uneasy about the first shot, something awkward. . . and because its your gf i'm hoping it was intentional, i like it . . . lots. The softness ruins it a little for me, perhaps it can be sharpened. some people cringe at not seeing the whites on either side of a subjects eyes, it doesn't bother me here. BUT, i like the concept a lot.

mammarazzi · Sep 11, 2009

I love photos with the eyes turned away but I think in #1 it's a bit to much. You see mostly the whites of her eyes. I would have her look a little more towards camera next time.

5DManiac · Sep 11, 2009

2nd one is loads better although framing is a bit weird. Its off center a bit but i understand you were on a boat and staying afloat would be my priority too :lmao: