I’ve had a number of chats with folks over the years
about the style of photography they like or even love. As per usual for me, I have no specialty simply because my eyes are hardwired to my heart. I love to shoot whatever my eyes feed my heart when I feel that little skip.
What I truly find fascinating are people who don’t photograph people. They just love landscapes or architecture, animals and a million other subjects. Which I also love!!
I had the opportunity to do some workshops over the years
for groups of photographers, and I honestly enjoyed it so very much. I make a solid effort to never inject my style into someone else’s style so I don’t wreck their groove. Beware the groove!
I think the question I got the most
was how to manage a shoot with people because they are for sure not your favourite bird feeder bird, waterfall or flower. People are a mystery and full of wonderful depth, layers, texture and colours. Every person I meet moves me in some way. I think it may be my favourite thing about being human. Those animated interactions are just wonderful. And the not knowing. Oh the not knowing! Too fun!
With this shoot in particular I had this young lady and her little man with his cowboy hat and she was expecting her next little one. She was actually working as a waitress and I met her when she was my server. She was just wonderful as a server and we chatted as she came back to check on me. As it turned out, we ended up talking about photos and she was hoping to get some nice pictures done before she was much further along with her pregnancy. As fate would have it, I was shooting as a pro at the time, and my heart went out to her so I offered to do a free shoot and the rest is history :)
So I guess when I am managing a shoot,
I really try to be relaxed first and foremost. We take subtle cues from each other as humans, and when it comes to artistic endeavours in particular, our human interactions are intensified or magnified greatly. After that I go with the flow in a general sense and I do my best to get as many ‘looks’ from someone as possible. I will always work with whoever is in front of me and I have never had any ‘goto’ style that I implement. If anything, I am seeking ‘the truth’ in one or two moments.
There is a series of shots taken with her standing and leaning against a tree. You can practically see me talking to her by her reactions. I have some shots that are pretty usual and then I told a joke to make her laugh and then the baby kicked and she was so startled and happy. All of these moments are supported by good tools like cameras, lenses and flashes. But they are just tools, and the reality is, I could get the same results with a high level smartphone. Understanding light is key. Knowing composition helps. Being relaxed and dedicated and supportive of your subject is completely priceless and can’t be purchased anywhere at any price.
For what it’s worth, the editing for each image is specific to each photo and to my taste. I did not batch edit as if submitting to a client, but rather edited each photo as a stand alone image.
In case no one told you today, you are beautiful.
Love Bug