Best advice to give to an amateur model pre-during-and-post shoot

[snapsnapgringrin]

Hello all,

 

Thanks for looking in on this question. I'm an amateur

photographer, I'm actually just a poet with a camera, trying to meld

my two loves. A friend is looking to help me as a model for a few

poems. As I've only worked a few times with models behind the

camera, and she is completely new to the process, I was hoping to

hear from more experiences photographer to hear about their

experiences and suggestions relating to this topic.

 

Again, thanks for your help, and happy shooting! :)

 

Sean

[zapped]

"Poet with a camera"? Hmmm, a haiku for you then, pre-during-post shoot...<br><br><br>

 

<b><i>

Have A Glass of Wine.<br>

Clothes Get In The Way, Don't They?<br>

Please Sign This Release...<br>

</b></i>

 

<br><br>

Sorry, couldn't resist :)

[twmeyer]

if she's a friend, you shouldn't have a problem. Be sure to buy her dinner, or give her a token of your appreciation that should be determined by the nature of your friendship and the effort she must put into the job of modeling for you. Your job will be to find the right setting and light, to be clear and honest in your requests to her, and to stay on task. Provide refreshments if it's in her nature to enjoy them, but be moderate unless your poems are about drunk girls. How about posting an example of your literary work as well as an image?<div></div>

[mark_lapolt___new_haven__c]

Sean,

 

Check out http://www.evolvingbeauty.com/ for one form of poet/ photographer interaction.

[oliver_sharp1]

Sean, I think you would get more useful advice if you gave us an idea of the type of photograph you will be doing. Are you doing an abstract black and white nude, or a blurred motion shot, or an evocative headshot? Shooting her running through the water at the beach or a studio shot? The kind of advice you give her might include what to wear, what hair and makeup styling to do, where to look, what to think about in order to get the expression you are looking for, props to bring, who to have along, etc - it's pretty hard to come up with something generally appropriate for all the possible images you might be trying to create.

[snapsnapgringrin]

First off, thanks to everyone who has replied so far. (keep 'em coming!)

 

Mr. Zapped - nice haiku. ;) I'll pass it by my lawyer ;) (j/k)

 

Tom - I'll definitely make sure I get her a little something. Also, I've attached a preliminary work - it isn't my poem, but it is going to be the basis on a future photograph/poem I have in mind.

 

Mark - Thanks for the site, I'll investigate it tonight.

 

Oliver - Mainly these photos will be in and around a castle nearby, color shots that at their most extreme will be representative, but mainly reflective of the poem's content. (As I'm sans studio, I'll mostly be working outside.. but fortunately I'm only 12 miles outside of NYC.) I hope this covers the specifics. I'm working on a new digital camera, so we'll see how things work out. (I'm going to spend the next week and a half covering all the bases before the model and I do the shoot.)<div></div>

[twmeyer]

that is one killer piece of poetry. Really expresses my own feelings quite precisely. I love the formality of the language used with such contemporary sensibility. You'll need a touch more contrast in the image to match that literary execution.<p>That sort of image should be very effective, especially when it's so appropriate to the content of the poem. Did you consider including her hand in the shot? perhaps just touching the collar? I'd also prefer a lighter version of that font. It looks a little heavy for so airy an image. You want the subtlety of her body under the light weight fabric of the shirt to be more present. <p>What's the poet's name? (since we know the photographer).... t<div></div>

[twmeyer]

Robert Herrick... duh... t