Photo Skills vs. People Skills

The title for this post is probably misleading. I don't mean to infer that a shooter's photography skills are in competition with his or her people skills. Obviously, they are each a separate set of skills that should compliment each other.

In many of the posts I've already written, I've touched on--sometimes in big ways and sometimes in small ways--the importance of people skills when shooting people. I keep coming back to this because it seems to me these skills, these people skills, are sometimes overlooked as necessary and vital components to effective people photography.

It's my opinion that people skills are as important as your photography skills when shooting glamour, tease, portraits, weddings, well, just about any genre of photography that puts people in front of your camera. But I'll focus on glamour and tease because, mostly, that's what I shoot.

I've attended enough photo sets where the shooter became so preoccupied with the mechanics of shooting the model that the model felt like a prop. I even know a few photographers who believe the model IS little more than a prop. Most of the time, however, the photographer didn't intend to treat the model in this way. But that was the end result. When that happens, when the model is neglected except in courteous and minimal ways--intentionally or unintentionally--the result is, most often, less than dynamic images. When the model feels like a prop, especially if she is relatively inexperienced, she is, more than likely, going to act like a prop. If you're into shooting props, I suggest you take up product photography or still life imagery.

As photographers, we're capturing frozen moments in time. But that shouldn't mean images should evoke perceptions of frozen moments. A great glamour image evokes so much more. It conveys, or should convey, emotion and intimacy. It requires the model to give herself to the moment, to sell herself, to bare herself both emotionally and, sometimes, physically. And for that to happen, to take place effectively, requires photographers doing everything they can to pull the emotion out of the model and create those intimate moments.

What are the people skills I'm writing about? They include the ability to relax a model, to make her feel entirely comfortable with you, to build rapport and, in so doing, to induce a model to give her all to the camera-- i.e, not simply to be a lump of clay that you, being the great, visionary artist that you are, will mold into something beautiful and sexy and enticing. I'm talking about the model as living, breathing, animated. self-molding clay who (with the help of your direction and skills) molds herself into something exquisitely beautiful, captivating, sexy, and alive with emotion.

I know everyone isn't what is commonly called a people person. Not everyone has a knack for these so-called people skills. That's okay. It just means you're going to have work harder and train yourself to develop those social skills you do possess and make them effectively work for you. The key? Communication. Here's a tip: Don't flit about paying more attention to your camera, your lights, anything and everything but the model. Your attention should be focused, primarily and squarely, on the model and, pretty much, at all times. The last thing you want happening is a model feeling like she's alone during a shoot. The fact is, she knows she's not alone. She knows you're there. She just simply can't figure out why you're acting like she's alone except in the most perfunctory of ways.

I've heard photographers say things like, "Just forget I'm here and let yourself go." Nice approach. Here's another tip: No matter what you say to this effect, the model is NOT going to forget you're there. She knows you're there and she knows most all of your visual attention is on her and any words to the contrary aren't going to make her feel like you're not there. Don't assume your model is an accomplished and trained actress possessing the abilities to assume the role of a character and block out everything else.

Communicate, commmunicate, communicate.

If you're not as familiar with your gear as you should be, that's okay. But you do need to get familiar with it and do so on your own time. If you're having problems, technical problems, communicate that to the model. Let her know you're having a problem with this or that. She's not going to think less of you because you're being honest with her. Everyone, at times, has technical problems. If you don't communicate what you're doing or what you're trying to overcome, she's going to think SHE is the problem. That's going to make her feel a bit insecure. Insecurity doesn't, as a rule, play well in front of a camera. Certainly not in glamour photography.

Remember this saying: It takes two to tango. I think it's a fairly appropriate adage for glamour shooting. Glamour photography is an ensemble production. Sometimes the ensemble also includes MUAs, stylists, assistants, and others. Sometimes it's just you and the model. Either way, everyone's contribution is a big part of the process as well as the results. But once the shooting begins, when it's mostly just you and the model, well, like I said, It takes two to tango.

Although your photo skills vs. people skills shouldn't be in competition with each other, they should not conflict with each other either.

The gratuitous eye-candy included with this post is Roxy.