Military senior portrait help

<p>I've been asked by some friends to shoot senior portraits of their son who is joining the National Guard (army, I think). Specifically, they want photos of him in his fatigues. I suppose I could take a standard portrait pose in which he happens to be wearing his fatigues, but what's the point of that? Can any of you offer any suggestions for usable senior portrait environments/poses that will also highlight his outfit and future military career? Searching Flickr's database yielded exactly two such shots, both from the same photographer.</p>

<p>This will be my first senior portrait session. I'm presently an advanced amateur with a pretty good eye for lighting. I would like to work into shooting for a living someday, so I want to make the most of a low-pressure request like this from friends.</p>

<p>Males are generally easier (and at the same time more difficult) than females for Senior Portraits. </p>

<p>I'd suggest doing an indoor shot of him in fatigues with a plain background - grey or black - avoid blue (IMHO) - for an outdoor spot find a nice park with water and some trees - that typically makes a good back ground - get a couple of him sitting on the ground - avoid the stand at attention facing directly at the camera. Find a boulder / rock - that makes a good sitting / bench / prop.</p>

<p>Boys are easier because typically they don't care too much about their look / style - girls fuss over all the details - boys also tend not to communicate much in terms of what's working - what they want / like / don't like - Girls will communicate and let you know what's working / not working in spades.</p>

<p>Dave</p>

 

<p>Is there a local National Guard station nearby? Perhaps, since he's joining, you might be able to get permission to go on the base there and shoot him on or against some tanks or vehicles or something.</p>

<p>A normal response would be to shoot him against a USA flag background.<br>

Would it be interesting to shoot him against his STATE flag? Maybe the USA too.</p>

<p>2 cents</p>

<p>I'll fully second the flag idea - maybe not as a background but as a clearly visible element in the image. Maybe having him salute (in which, mind you, he HAS to be wearing his cap, otherwise you're normally not allowed to salute), maybe looking away (say, to your left and higher up than you, quarter turned to that quadrant) and have a flag flap in the wind behind, to the right and slightly lower than him.</p>

<p>Another idea would be (more moody though) at a bus station, with his army duffel bag, maybe at dawn (with him gazing towards the rising sun), his back half turned towards you (so his face is fully profiled to you and lit by the sunrise), carrying the bag - soft of the starting of a new part of his life....</p>

<p>Kinda building on Marios's suggestion, have him dressed out standing in front of his house, or apartment or whatever, parents in the backgound, shallow DOF on him so they are out of focus but not so shallow you can't tell they're there.</p>

<p>Fatigues? Aren't formal military portraits are usually done in a dress uniform? Excuse my ignorance of proper terminology but I think there is a "Class A" uniform in between, the equivalent of business attire vs formal attire. Fatigues of course might be fine for an informal shot, like climbing around on tanks. If you go back to WWII images there are many variations on the "soldier off to war" photo, Normal Rockwell-style photos and illustrations that could provide great inspiration.</p>

<p>I have no experience shooting seniors or military people, so I am probably not even qualified to offer an opinion here - but assuming someone came to me with this request, I would immediately think of using light and location to create interest and help tell a story. For example:</p>

<ul>

<li>Shoot a background of dust, or purchase one from a stock site (<a href="http://www.istockphoto.com/stock-photo-1650448-dusty-street-scene.php">http://www.istockphoto.com/stock-photo-1650448-dusty-street-scene.php</a>) and then photograph him against a white background with dramatic light and past him over the dusty background. This would tell a story of working in hard conditions and overcoming difficulties</li>

<li>Photograph him with fatigues and helmet, frontally, with rim lights on each side, camouflage paint on his face and a grid spot on the face. The story is taking risks at nigh defending the nation</li>

<li>Photograph him leaning against a military vehicle, in a casual pose, showing him confident and fearless</li>

<li>Consider showing him with his fatigues and a military sack, in front of his house, walking, with his parents blurred in the background. The idea is to signify the transition from being at home as a youngster to becoming a soldier. Or something like that.</li>

</ul>

<p>This is an opportunity to create a unique image, not one that simply has him posing with his fatigues, but one that has meaning and will inspire for years to come.</p>

<p>If you are looking to do a formal portrait of someone going into the Guard, photograph him against a neutral background with the American flag to the left and his state flag to the right.</p>

<p>A formal portrait should not be shot in "fatigues" (I think we stopped calling them that around 1979 :-) ), it should be in a dress uniform. With or without cover is your option.</p>

<p>Now if you are looking for an unusual photo, have him get dressed up in his working uniform ("fatigues") and cammie up. Now THAT will make a unique senior portrait! </p>

<p>Thanks for everybody's suggestions. This was a supplementary shoot, as the primary photographer only allowed a single outfit. It turns out we had to schedule the shoot for a crazy-windy day, but ended up doing the entire shoot inside the hangar where they park the UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters. It was a unique environment in which to work, even if we did miss some of the more traditional outdoor shots I was hoping to get around the base. The session went... OK. I know that I missed a lot of shots that I should have gotten, but the client is ecstatic with what I provided, them, so all is well.</p>

<p>If you're curious, I've uploaded a handful of the shots to a public flickr gallery at<br>

http://www.flickr.com/photos/obi-wan-yj/sets/72157625267021462/</p>