Lost for words!

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Vic

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I'm studying togging right now and I am just starting to realise that sitting learning in a classroom isnt going to get me very far so I have started to do some tog jobs outside of college.

I've done a few music gigs on my own and recently photographed a dance squad and a portrait of an artist. The images came out pretty decent, I still need a lot of practice but I know what I need to do to improve this.

However my main problem is talking! I'm generally not very shy but neither am I not very loud. But when I was doing these shoots, I got completely lost for words. I got away with it with the dance squad as we had music on and there were 15 of them in there so they chatted away to no end.

However the artist was so uncomfortable, previous to photographing him I had a good conversation flowing but as soon he stepped in front of the camera, I had no idea what to say and had real trouble trying to give him direction.:(

Its really knocked my confidence of wether photography is for me. I know you guys cant exactly teach me confidence however did anyone else have this problem when they started out and managed to overcome it. Or has anybody got any useful tips?

Cheers
Vicky
 
Vic said:
I'm studying togging right now and I am just starting to realise that sitting learning in a classroom isnt going to get me very far so I have started to do some tog jobs outside of college.

I've done a few music gigs on my own and recently photographed a dance squad and a portrait of an artist. The images came out pretty decent, I still need a lot of practice but I know what I need to do to improve this.

However my main problem is talking! I'm generally not very shy but neither am I not very loud. But when I was doing these shoots, I got completely lost for words. I got away with it with the dance squad as we had music on and there were 15 of them in there so they chatted away to no end.

However the artist was so uncomfortable, previous to photographing him I had a good conversation flowing but as soon he stepped in front of the camera, I had no idea what to say and had real trouble trying to give him direction.:(

Its really knocked my confidence of wether photography is for me. I know you guys cant exactly teach me confidence however did anyone else have this problem when they started out and managed to overcome it. Or has anybody got any useful tips?

Cheers
Vicky
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Mate confidence is a part of everythig in life, it will soon come to you.My advice would be to practise on some friends etc before hand.
ATB
Gav
 
Hi Maybe doing work experience with a potrait photographer or doing a photography workshop will help your confidence, for now practise on family and friends :). Sometimes photography magazines do features on potrait photography and tell you what camera settings to use for potraits, the more you learn about what you're photographing, the more confident you will become :). Heres some links for workshops on potrait photography:

http://www.goingdigital.co.uk/photographycourses/portraitnaturallight.htm

http://www.photographyworkshops.co.uk/

Not sure what level you're at,one of these workshops might help you. Hope that helps.
 
Thanks guys for the advice :D

I know what you are saying about practicing on family and friends but I think that is maybe whats spoiled me. All the portrait work i've done personally or for college has been on one of my friends or my family and they are so easy to talk to and have banter with. But you're right that maybe they will be good to practice on giving direction.

Thanks HappySnapper for the tutorial, Ill check it out when I get home! :thumbs:

Vicky.
 
Vic said:
Thanks guys for the advice :D

I know what you are saying about practicing on family and friends but I think that is maybe whats spoiled me. All the portrait work i've done personally or for college has been on one of my friends or my family and they are so easy to talk to and have banter with. But you're right that maybe they will be good to practice on giving direction.

Thanks HappySnapper for the tutorial, Ill check it out when I get home! :thumbs:

Vicky.
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Hi Vicky Thats ok, I hope the workshops are helpful, if you're into potrait photography, I have a photography book called The Studio Photographer's Lighting Bible by Calvey Taylor-Haw, its a good book,it covers product photography, pets and potraits. In the potrait section it tells you what equipment to use, it covers Family Potrait, Mother and Baby, Classic Potrait, Creative Potrait and Standard Potrait Lighting :)

Natasha
 
HappySnapper said:
Hi Vicky Thats ok, I hope the workshops are helpful, if you're into potrait photography, I have a photography book called The Studio Photographer's Lighting Bible by Calvey Taylor-Haw, its a good book,it covers product photography, pets and potraits. In the potrait section it tells you what equipment to use, it covers Family Potrait, Mother and Baby, Classic Potrait, Creative Potrait and Standard Potrait Lighting :)

Natasha
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Thanks Natasha, just checked it out on Amazon and it sounds good. Think I might treat myself to it! :D
 
Vic said:
Thanks Natasha, just checked it out on Amazon and it sounds good. Think I might treat myself to it! :D
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Hi Vicky Thats great you're gonna treat yourself, its a very good book and has helped me with my photography, would definitely reccommend it to anyone whoes interested in product photography,still life photography, potraits or pets. I hope the book helps you with your potrait photography :)

Natasha
 
I think you gave the answer yourself back there. You said you had a long conversatino with the artist until you started shooting. So forget about poses etc - just sit the subject where you want them and carry on the conversation. You're going to relax them and yourself and get more natural looking pictures.

If it's a model then perhaps you need to direct more but even then it doesn't mean you can't just carry on chatting about anything that comes to mind and get the pictures at the same time.
 
Gary said:
how is working in a duvet factory going to help?
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I can see this has been ignored by everyone else, so I felt the need to comment.

I couldn't let this moment pass without giving you a virtual slapping for such a groanworthy joke :D

You're fired....get your coat :coat: lol
 
Marcel said:
I can see this has been ignored by everyone else, so I felt the need to comment.

I couldn't let this moment pass without giving you a virtual slapping for such a groanworthy joke :D

You're fired....get your coat :coat: lol
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I chose to ingnore it :thumbs:

Gav
 
HappySnapper said:
Hi Vicky Thats great you're gonna treat yourself, its a very good book and has helped me with my photography, would definitely reccommend it to anyone whoes interested in product photography,still life photography, potraits or pets. I hope the book helps you with your potrait photography :)

Natasha
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Thanks Natasha, Ill let you know how I get on! :thumbs:

I think you gave the answer yourself back there. You said you had a long conversatino with the artist until you started shooting. So forget about poses etc - just sit the subject where you want them and carry on the conversation. You're going to relax them and yourself and get more natural looking pictures.

If it's a model then perhaps you need to direct more but even then it doesn't mean you can't just carry on chatting about anything that comes to mind and get the pictures at the same time.
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Thanks Andy, I know you're right. Probably just working myself up. I'm doing a re-shoot with him next week, so will try and be a bit more confident and keep the conversation going.:)

how is working in a duvet factory going to help?
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Sorry for ignoring the joke Gary, I assumed the punchline was maybe coming later :D
 
Aren't jokes supposed to be funny? ;)
 
Marcel said:
I can see this has been ignored by everyone else, so I felt the need to comment.

I couldn't let this moment pass without giving you a virtual slapping for such a groanworthy joke :D

You're fired....get your coat :coat: lol
Click to expand...

I still don't get it :shrug::lol:
 
hi, i read in a photography magazine that a good way of keeping a conversation while photographing a person in a studio environment (or other i guess) is to keep telling them what your'e doing etc.
So... if you're not taking a photo and fiddling with your camera - tell them what your doing to the settings and why your changing them etc.
It might not work with everyone - some may not have interest but its a good thing to try i think.

Keep at it and I Hope this helps!

Dion!
 
Vic, in my line of work (photographing anglers for magazines) I meet a lot of guys who have A) never done a shoot before and/or B) don't know what's expected of them while on the shoot. Much of the time I don't know these guys from Adam so instantly, the question of building up a rapport is essential. The common link I have with the subjects is angling – we both love it – but that in itself is not always enough to make them feel comfortable and me feel like I can control the situation. They look at me as the experienced pro who's full of confidence - I'm not (the latter that is) – so the best way of dealing with this is starting the day off not meeting at the lake or river, but at brekkie or over a cuppa where we can have a quick chat about all sorts of things.

There's no need to pry into these people's lives but talking about what was on telly the previous night or the footy results from the weekend are always a good ice-breaker. You often know instantly if you can get a cheeky rapport going (a bit of leg pulling etc) but if that's not the case, even the quietest person can be made to feel comfortable with a few minutes chatting rubbish.

One of the first job I did when I started in this game was to meet my her, former-world champion Tom Pickering, a guy I'd idolised since I was about 8-years-old. I just met him for a cuppa, calmed my nerves, let him suss me out and within half an hour we were getting on like a house on fire. it made the shoot got much smoother and I got some of the shots I knew I had to get.

Also, like a few others have suggested, getting them involved in the process, telling them what yu want to achieve (and being enthusiastic about it) works well because they see you're proud and excited about the project, and this often makes people think, "hey, this guy really wants this to work so i'll buy into it."

Confidence is a strange thing; some people have it in spades, others, like me, have to work had to appear we have it. either way, getting to know your subjects is miles more essential than getting started on the shots you want. Even if you only get half the shots you want but end up making a friend, it's more of a result than seeming like a pr**k and getting shots that you know the subject wasn't comfortable being in.
 
hi, i read in a photography magazine that a good way of keeping a conversation while photographing a person in a studio environment (or other i guess) is to keep telling them what your'e doing etc.
So... if you're not taking a photo and fiddling with your camera - tell them what your doing to the settings and why your changing them etc.
It might not work with everyone - some may not have interest but its a good thing to try i think.
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Thanks Dion, thats good advice and I think I'll try that next time!


SpecialMan - Thanks very much for that post. That's really gave me some good pointers. I'm probably a lot like you and I'll just have to try and appear to have confidence! I'll definitely try meeting up beforehand and at least getting comfortable with them.
 
Part of the course I did was with portrait and it surprised me to say we spent more time talking about speakign to the model than on how to photograph them. However when it came to our turn it's amazing how quickly you run out of things to say.

I found that I took the first couple of test shots and checked the settings then never bothered looking again, just kept talking and shooting, I didn't try to direct much. I think raport is the most important thing.
 
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