Posing workshop

[tirediron]

Replace the word "Formal" with "Classic" or "Traditional". Does that help? These are the types of poses that the masters of portrait photography have used for a very, very long time because they work in the best form of showing the "likeness" of the subject.

Think of it as having to learn the exposure triangle. Learn the foundations first, then start the bending process.

Thanks for sharing John.

Nicely put! Thank-you!

 

[tirediron]

I see the moire, even on the high rez version.

Looking at it with my crappy work monitor, I can see it as well, but oddly, not on my good monitor at home. Good point to note however, these sort of 'cable-knit' sweaters are NOT ideal clothing.

I don't know why people are being so hard on the lighting and the model. There is plenty of room for improvement...but overall, they're still better than 80% of the people shots I see on here everyday.

IMO, there is nothing wrong with studying and practicing the 'classic' techniques...no matter what field we're talking about.

Thanks Mike!

 

[tirediron]

They used it for a very very long time because Photography took a very very long time (like minute long exposures), much less (or more) actual sittings. They don't really show the best form, they're just poses that can be kept for the eon or so it would take.

There is certainly some truth to that, but, in the same vein, Don Quixote might not be regarded as an interesting novel by today's standard by most people, but, a classic is still a classic!

Learning to see and learning to feel is far more important than learning to "pose."

That's one opinion. Personally, I feel that all aspects of photography are important, and I like to take every opportunity to learn, even if I don't directly use what I've learned, there's really no such thing as 'bad' knowledge. Bill's work might not be to everyone's taste, but at the end of the day, he's been a professional for 30+ years and makes a VERY good living at it. He's obviously doing something right.

I agree, an experienced model might be a better idea.

Actually, Caitlin is a very exerienced model and a VERY patient one; given that the class ranged from people of my experience level to those who didn't understand how to put their speedlight into a manual mode, and she never once appeared to get even slightly annoyed by all of the requests to do this or that, and on many occasions made good suggestions to the photographers to improve the pose they had suggested, I would say that is very unfair comment.

 

[DiskoJoe]

Well this would be a typical cliche pose. So in that respect you nailed it. But to me its boring and I hate to shoot poses like this. So lifeless and impersonal.

Well, it was a posing workshop, geared toward formal, studio-type portraiture...

Hey I know plenty of people that look for exactly what is being served up here. There are plenty of lucrative opportunities out there for work like this. Just because I dont like it doesnt mean I wouldnt do it for someone offering to pay me a decent sum. By decent sum I mean you could offer $20 and Id jump all over it.