First Corporate Head Shot

OK Ray,

So it looks like everything has been just about covered and this one has been nit picked to death, so here are my two cents on things you can do for next time.

1.Offer to do a re-shoot just to see, no pressure, just say you need the practice. This might loosen things up for both of you.

2. Get yourself a lovely roll of seamless paper. Your back drop right now says two things to me, "home made" or "hippy", neither are what you want for a head shot. The tie dye is great for kids and pets, even some families, but not for something we are going to put on business cards.

3. When you are working with her use a step or a small chair to get above her eye level, making her lift her chin. This will help with slimming her face.

4. Did she joke "Can you make me look thinner?" before the shoot? It's never a joke. They really want to look thinner. I ask my clients to do some "light yoga" with me while they are posing. Face them 90 degrees away from the camera with their arms clasped in front of them then twist their upper body back toward you as much as they can without hurting themselves. I tell them the more you stretch the thinner you look and they always try harder. :D

5. Another alternative to the arms crossed pose, which to me says "I'm not listening, I'm telling.", is the old chestnut where the client has a small step (very small for ladies in skirts) that they put one foot up on, then lean forward resting their weight on their knees via their arms or elbows (depending on the size of the step). It forces their necks to elongate, their chins to rise and brings their shoulders into square while giving them something to do with their arms. This pose always says to me, 'I'm engaged and interested' and is a solid pose for business use.

6. And to combat the "Cheese" factor, because everyone reverts to 3rd grade when they are put in front of a back drop, say something like, "Please look directly at me and give me your best 'I'm going to sell you a big policy' smile." Or something to that effect. :rolleyes: Remind them this is for business and what we are selling is confidence in competence.:thumbsup:


Hope that helps for your next time!

Thanks, CL. It's Friday, I'm tired, and it would have probably taken me all day to carefully critique Ray's shot and make the same points you did... :thumbsup:

One thing I can add is about the backdrop. Ray, you can probably get away with a tie-dye design like that if you blow out the focus. Otherwise, it screams senior portrait...

The crop is better but the skin colour is still not right yet and neither is the hair colour or the eyes. I would be inclined also to lose the earing and make the jacket a dark green to match the auburn hair and the eye colour.

Ronnoco

Thanks for the suggestions, C.L.! Lots of good stuff here to keep in mind.

Although she was happy with the pictures, I did offer to reshoot when I got different backdrops. I also suggested the idea of different wardrobes as well. So in meantime I will study different poses and some of the other items suggested by others on this thread.

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Originally Posted by CLKunst

OK Ray,

So it looks like everything has been just about covered and this one has been nit picked to death, so here are my two cents on things you can do for next time.

1.Offer to do a re-shoot just to see, no pressure, just say you need the practice. This might loosen things up for both of you.

2. Get yourself a lovely roll of seamless paper. Your back drop right now says two things to me, "home made" or "hippy", neither are what you want for a head shot. The tie dye is great for kids and pets, even some families, but not for something we are going to put on business cards.

3. When you are working with her use a step or a small chair to get above her eye level, making her lift her chin. This will help with slimming her face.

4. Did she joke "Can you make me look thinner?" before the shoot? It's never a joke. They really want to look thinner. I ask my clients to do some "light yoga" with me while they are posing. Face them 90 degrees away from the camera with their arms clasped in front of them then twist their upper body back toward you as much as they can without hurting themselves. I tell them the more you stretch the thinner you look and they always try harder. :D

5. Another alternative to the arms crossed pose, which to me says "I'm not listening, I'm telling.", is the old chestnut where the client has a small step (very small for ladies in skirts) that they put one foot up on, then lean forward resting their weight on their knees via their arms or elbows (depending on the size of the step). It forces their necks to elongate, their chins to rise and brings their shoulders into square while giving them something to do with their arms. This pose always says to me, 'I'm engaged and interested' and is a solid pose for business use.

6. And to combat the "Cheese" factor, because everyone reverts to 3rd grade when they are put in front of a back drop, say something like, "Please look directly at me and give me your best 'I'm going to sell you a big policy' smile." Or something to that effect. :rolleyes: Remind them this is for business and what we are selling is confidence in competence.:thumbsup:


Hope that helps for your next time!

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Originally Posted by schrackman

So in meantime I will study different poses and some of the other items suggested by others on this thread...

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At least anyone who does this for a living. Ray, few of us just step in and take perfect commercial headshots from day one. It's a lot trickier than it looks...

While I feel I could do this kind of thing in my sleep now, early on I made every mistake in the book. What I did was use more successful photos as my guide, and I analyzed them to figure out why mine didn't measure up, then decided what changes I needed to make.

The more you do it, the easier it gets...

I commend you for throwing your images to "the sharks" in this thread. I think your shots will improve much more quickly because of that...

BTW, something it took me a long time to learn is this: people know what they look like. What I mean is for the longest time it drove me crazy that I couldn't make everyone look fantastic in my photos. I would be disappointed if my subjects didn't look very attractive from my light and technique.

Well, you know what happened? Folks would praise me for shots of them I didn't particularly think were that great. Many times they would say it was the best photo ever taken of them.

One day it finally dawned on me. All you can do is make your subject look the best you possible can. They usually know full well what they look like and where they stand in the "beauty" hiarchy.

And if you manage to make them look better than they do on an average day, they're almost always HAPPY! They don't expect to look like Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie...

Remembering this simple thing has really helped me relax when I take portraits of "normal" looking people. I no longer try to do the impossible...

Well said, Steve, and thanks for your input.

The kind of feedback I got is exactly what I was expecting. Brutally honest. But that is what's needed to learn and grow as a photographer, especially if one intends to make money doing it.

You are correct in that people are generally more happy than the photographer with how the images came out. While I was reviewing the photos with my client, several of her co-workers were watching on. All liked the photos as well, and one may even have me take her daughter's senior portraits.

Despite this, however, I recognize that there is some serious work that I have to do in terms of improving my technique and approach to portraiture. Personally, I would like to do much better than what I did. Of course, one has to start somewhere.

Thanks everyone, for your comments and critique. It is much appreciated!

I would also suggest to ditch the blue background, unless you are dealing with blond hair and blue eyes. You need a background that emphasizes auburn hair and green eyes. The black power suit does not go with the hair and eyes and the inside open area does not fit the professional jacket. A full blouse or dress sweater would be better and colurs need to match the eye and hair colouring.

The hair of course needs work. I do not understand how the green eyes and skin suggest natural red hair and yet it looks jet black toward the bottom. It seems like a really bad colour job. If that is the case, then a hair light becomes very important to emphasize the auburn highlights and colour toward the top as well as making the really dark areas looking lighter. A comb is absolutely mandatory.

Study lighting and how it can affect the apparent look of facial structure. The manipulation of light shadows is a real challenge but worth the effort.

Ronnoco

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Originally Posted by MarcusK

Roger - I wouldn't quite agree about the "if she's happy" since she doesn't exactly know whether to be happy or not... she wants to be, and since this is not a miserable failure, she took it....

Marc

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Marc

I did preface my comment by the fact I don't take many portraits, however I believe that if someone is happy with something you shouldn't upset the apple cart.

I am not saying that Ray can't improve but in business you have to know someone very well or know that you have the skills to improve things exponentially to not upset the relationship. It is better to keep the relationship if she's happy and get some more work from it; then do some more to practice and then offer to improve once your skills have improved.

Just my experience in business.

Roger

Roger, i do realize i did not exactly state my point smoothly... i agree as to the subtlety of the situation, and yes it has to be handled as you said, i was referring to the way things should be in general... in the end, you must take the right business decision even if artistically you think you can do better...

From this forum, and specifically the "Photo Critique" section, i have learned a lot and improved a lot both as an artist and in the way i approach the business... In the end, as Scott Adams said, "creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes..." :D

And i say it again, good effort and great spirit on the shot...

Marc

it all becomes much easier with someone who is sure of their own photogenic qualities..

perhaps camera manuals should include a psychology section and "how to be a corporate head" manuals a section on how to pose for photographs.. he he he

i have to admit to taking "posed" pictures of people a real problem.. with some of them its almost impossible..

trog

Shrackman, since you seem keen on examples, I can show you an edit of how with the limitations of what you have (particularly the hair problems), you can still make some improvements as well as change the colour of her jacket to match her eyes and hair.

Your decision and choice.

Ronnoco

Yes, I would love to see that Ron!

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Originally Posted by Ronnoco

Shrackman, since you seem keen on examples, I can show you an edit of how with the limitations of what you have (particularly the hair problems), you can still make some improvements as well as change the colour of her jacket to match her eyes and hair.

Your decision and choice.

Ronnoco

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u are a brave man ronnoco.. he he

trog

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Originally Posted by trog100

u are a brave man ronnoco.. he he

trog

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More like absolutely insane, given the reaction I often get. :D :D

Ronnoco

shrackman, I think your ratio is not strong enough. There's a book that I have that you should check out. It's called lighting and the dramatic portrait. Basically it outlines different setups and describes what different setups can do for the face. The set-up you have here accentuates too much of her negative features, and makes her face look much too wide. try shooting with a higher ratio, or even a 2:1 key to fill ratio, and it should help to thin her face a bit more. and in my opinion, the background doesn't work too well. don't get me wrong, I like it and I have on myself, but I think asylum steve said that it basically works for senior portraits and other fun stuff. Business shots...I'm not too sure. A low-key background would probably work better, but I know it's tough to get access to one.

As far as the pose in the second one, I like the arms crossed look for the reason that you said (you can depend on me) but at the same time, the psychology of it is that when arms are crossed it is meant as protection and not feeling comfortable with the situation.

I'm not sure how I feel about the desaturated background, since i think it makes the scene a bit too monochromatic.

WHat I would suggest, if you get the chance to reshoot, is this: Lower your key light a bit, and shoot through an umbrella (if you aren't already). At this point the light isn't entering her smile lines enough. Have her face the other direction and illuminate the right side of her face at a little less than a 45 degree angle. using a reflector, illuminate the other side of her face. Take that other bb-50 and put it high in the air, using as a hair light to seperate her from the background. or you can try having her face basically the way is now, still illuminate the right side of her face, same with the reflector, and use the other bb as a kicker on the left side of her face. though I think the first method would look best. Also, pull the blue background and replace it with something more subtle. Joann fabrics is great for this.

I basically echo everything AS said. He knows what he's talking about. Mind if I edit the image?

Well, here is a touch up. Fast and far from perfect, but I hope it gives you some ideas.
I worked a little on the hair, eyes, nose, skin, colour, and punch. I was considering changing the colour of the background too, but left it alone because I was slow trying to make up my mind which colour would fit best. Put the original and my touch up side by side to see the differences.

Ronnoco

Something tells me if she actually looked like that last post, her eyes would glow in the dark and she'd die from lack of oxygen seeing as how she has NO pores or skin for that matter.

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Originally Posted by molaselake

Something tells me if she actually looked like that last post, her eyes would glow in the dark and she'd die from lack of oxygen seeing as how she has NO pores or skin for that matter.

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Ah, in portraiture, the photographer is not supposed to show the pores in the skin. Photography 101 and a ton of other literature on portraiture by various experts will confirm it. Bright eyes are certainly better than dead eyes and give her more visual "power" which fits with the corporate shot too.

Ronnoco

i downloaded the first image and had a play with it just for amusment..

my conclusion.. it dosnt really look that bad in the first place and short of a complete reshoot nothing worth while could or perhaps should be done with it,..

not so sure i am keen on rons green velvet jacket approach thow.. he he he he.. thow he has made her look bright eyed and healthy..

and i hope for everyones sake if she is reading this thread she has a damn good sense of humour.. he he he

trog

Hmm..I never thought she looked like she had "dead" eyes. The edit just makes her look fake. Whether or not making a subject look that way is part of the guidelines of portrait photography, it doesn't work for me. If we're talking about color as a whole, the initial photograph was lacking in punch.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by trog100

i downloaded the first image and had a play with it just for amusment..

my conclusion.. it dosnt really look that bad in the first place and short of a complete reshoot nothing worth while could or perhaps should be done with it,..

not so sure i am keen on rons green velvet jacket approach thow.. he he he he.. thow he has made her look bright eyed and healthy..trog

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Well, trog, black certainly does not work with auburn hair and green eyes, so what colour does work better for the jacket?

Ronnoco

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Originally Posted by molaselake

Hmm..I never thought she looked like she had "dead" eyes. The edit just makes her look fake. Whether or not making a subject look that way is part of the guidelines of portrait photography, it doesn't work for me. If we're talking about color as a whole, the initial photograph was lacking in punch.

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Well, the point is to make her look as good as possible "on her best day" as Steve pointed out. Trog admitted she looked bright eyed and healthy in my edit.

So, feel free to demonstrate how you would make her look as good as possible, with the proper colour and look.

Ronnoco

Ok, I gave it a go. Bear in mind this is the first time I've used photoshop (I downloaded a trial version). Soooo...yeah.

ron when i said u are a brave man i meant it.. at least u had go i wouldnt dare.. i think different countries have different ideas.. we dont even have "corporate heads" where i live.. he he

but i think u brought out the subjects feminine side.. right from the beginning being as i am old fashioned and think power (or at least the appearance of it) is still a male thing i would have gone for the more masculine side.. to me women in suits and trousers are still trying to look like men whether they admit to it or not.. he he

i also put my foot in my mouth quite often as well.. he he

trog

the easiest way to switch the bg color is to select the color (blue in this case) from the hue/saturation tab, then change the hue to match the color you want and adjust saturation and brightness accordingly. In this case I just switched it to green, but it eliminates need for magic wand/lasso.

http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/9...ie1copygy3.jpg