We’ve discussed the things you need to be a successful model;
Support group or person
Time
Financial means/Support
Dedication
Ability to accept rejection
Archives
Christine came in this February past. She took part of a Valentines day special I had run for the month. I will look for those images and post them later. I had her back in a few days ago because I missed her look. Here’s a 5 light setup:
13 years ago I realized that photography was more than just a hobby, it was my life. I couldn’t imagine life with out it so I wanted to get better at it. I was living in Duluth, MN and didn’t have any good photographers there. I found a fauxtographer in the cities and went to him to learn. Very shortly into that mentor relationship, I realized the fauxtographer wasn’t someone I wanted to be associated with so I started looking for real photographers to learn from. I found Art Ketchum in Chicago, IL and decided to go see what he was about.
One of the things I strongly dislike…alright, hate, is when a client is asking about her friend joining. If it’s a male, I don’t mind, but if it’s a female, it makes it difficult. Why? Simple; I tend to navigate to the more dominant personality. That person is the more outgoing and spunky one. I don’t know why I am, but I just am. The other reason I hate doing two people shoots is unless it’s corny family posing, I only know how to put sauce on the poses. Meaning they need to be hot, sexy and sensual. Those are the best kinds of couples photos imho, so that’s what I shoot.
I’m going to break this info up over a few posts. I want to spend a bit of time on each of what I consider to be main points. Most people think being a model is being hot and everyone will flock to you, sadly, that’s just not the case. Being a model-being a SUCCESSFUL model requires a LOT of hard work and determination. It requires money and dedication. It also requires support and the ability to take a licking and keep on ticking. Let’s get started shall we?
If you’ve been following along, you’ve learned that I first;
Start off easy. By starting easy, you let them know you don’t want to get them naked. You want to create a connection with them first and foremost. You are starting in Casual attire. I usually say “Lets start with whatever you’d be most comfortable in” By doing this, we let them know it’s ok if they want to start with more clothes until they get used to the idea of being half naked in front of a stranger. Regardless of how much they love your work, you’re still a stranger.
If you’ve been following along, this Anatomy of a Jay Kilgore shoot should leave you up to the models “Highest level of comfort” as I call it. In all my shoots, unless I have a very long working history AND am very comfortable with the client, I don’t jump right into lingerie and up. Why? After 10 years of doing this, I’m still if not more nervous of the shoot than the client. I put a lot of pressure on myself (that and I suffer from test anxiety) and until that first frame is fired, I am super nervous.
When I’m talking to clients-potential clients, one of the things that is always brought up is the fact that either I shoot only “sexy” images or “You only shoot nudes” Long ago, this used to bother me because I don’t shoot only nudes. In fact, the number of topless vs the number of full nude shoots are at a huge contrast. I shoot FAR more topless than full nude! Anyway, one of the things I point out is plain and simple numbers; If I post a photo onFacebook that is fully clothed, I’ll get maybe 3-5 comments.
The purpose of shooting in clothes is to let the model know that I’m into her, not just her being nude or in little to no clothing. The poses we do are typical poses, nothing too outrageous. By this time of the shoot, she and I for that matter, are no longer nervous. I am nervous for every shoot I do. For as long as I’ve been doing this, I’ve not really gotten over the fact that I could totally blow a shoot and to be honest, I like that feeling.
Majority of my shoots are about two hours (depending on how much talking, three) long. Before every shoot I take a few minutes, about 10, to sit down and get to know the client. Get to know who she is, what goals she has regarding modeling and how I can best help her. This is my time to “study” her, find out what makes her tick, what turns her off, her little facial idiosyncrasies-things that are important for the shoot itself;