If you’ve never done a nude figure shoot before, or if you have, but were unhappy with the results you achieved, here is a little primer, based upon accepted professional practice, basic human relations, and my own experiences over the years.
Let me point out that these ‘rules’ apply to all figure photography; even if you only shoot your wife, husband, or significant other, you will find the experience more pleasant for all involved if you apply these principals just as if you were shooting a professional model.
Please note that I refer to the model in the feminine throughout this article, but all of these ‘rules’ apply to models and photographers of either sex.
One – Reality Check
Put yourself in your model’s position – how would you feel standing in the nude in front of a stranger? A stranger with a camera, no less? And knowing that photographs of your body – wrinkles, bumps, bulges and all – might appear in print or on a gallery wall?
Think about that for a bit.
Now thank your lucky stars that you have actually found someone who will pose for you.
Two – Confidence
1. This is your show, and it’s imperative that you direct it well. You can accomplish this with good planning.
2. Prepare your model before the shoot. Give your model clear instructions about what to bring to the shoot, and how to prepare. Make sure she has good directions to your location. Make sure you have exchanged phone numbers in case some problem arises at the last minute. Ask her to bring a warm robe and slippers. Discuss any hair or makeup arrangements beforehand so she can bring the necessary materials. If you are going to use a makeup artist, make sure that your model and your artist are on the same page and communicating. Many photographers ask their models to refrain from wearing brassieres, tight panties or briefs the day of the shoot to alleviate compression marks on the skin. Personally, I don’t bring this issue up for a first shoot as I find it a bit too private; I may mention it in advance of a second shoot, if necessary. Use your own best judgment.
3. Develop a clear plan for your shoot. Define your goals. Be sure that you can articulate those goals to your model clearly. Saying “Well, let’s just move around and see what happens” is not a useful approach. Helmut Newton may have been able to get away with that, but not you (nor me) – yet.
4. Plan specific poses that you want to explore. Keep your plan available during the shoot to stay on track. You will probably deviate from the plan as things develop during the shoot, but keep going back to it whenever possible – it will help you to keep the shoot moving forward and prevent getting sidetracked into a dead-end.
5. If you’re just starting out in this field, your morgue file will be your best friend. You do have a morgue file, don’t you?* Choose a selection of images that you would like to experiment with during your shoot, and share these with your model. Explain that your intention is not to copy the images, but to use them as starting points for the poses you will attempt together.
6. Your model expects you to have a plan and an intention to create good work. If you do have a solid plan in place, your model will sense this and she will work with you as best she can. However, if your model senses that you are adrift and unsure of where you are going, she will lose confidence in your ability to portray her effectively.
7. Loss of confidence on the part of your model is deadly. A professional model may feel compelled to ‘take over’ and direct the shoot herself in an attempt to salvage the situation. Don’t forget – it is HER in the photographs, not you. She may feel compelled to ‘defend’ herself if she feels she will be portrayed poorly. She may simply quit then and there. A less experienced model will probably stick it out, but the work will suffer as the insecurity of the situation takes its toll – stiff poses, weak facial expressions, and body language that reflects discomfort and stress.
8. Remember that our faces and bodies always reflect our inner emotional state. A trained actor can weep tears while thinking about her stock portfolio, but most models are not accomplished actors.
9. Resist the temptation to over-direct the shoot. After you have explained your plan for a particular pose, allow your model to try it out and find her own comfort zone in that particular position. Let her adjust her balance and ‘get a feel’ for the pose. Then, if the body position needs changing to suit your eye, briefly explain the problem, and ask her to help you find the position you require. Unless your model ‘buys into’ the pose, chances are it will look awkward, stiff and unnatural.
10. Politely resist your model’s attempts to pose herself, unless you have specifically requested her to. If you have communicated your plan properly, this will be rare, but some models do arrive with very firm ideas about “how I look best” or insisting that “my back looks most graceful when I do this”. She may very well be correct – and you should listen to her suggestions – but if it’s simply not right for you, don’t be afraid to tell her so. Diplomatically. Refer her again to your notes or reference images.
11. If the shoot begins to go awry for any reason, don’t be afraid to take a ‘time out’. Explain that there is a problem and you need time to solve it. If it’s a technical problem, give your model a break and take the time to resolve it correctly. If it’s a creative problem, give your model a break and go clear your head for awhile. Pushing ahead at all costs to ‘get done’ will, in the end, get you nowhere. You’ll just be sorry later when you look at your results.
12. Have your lights, props and costuming in place and ready to go before shoot time. Your model will be ‘going on stage’; set the scene for her beforehand and focus your attentions on her when she arrives. Watching you putter around the studio is not a very inspiring way for her to begin her session.
13. Accept the fact that, sometimes, it just won’t work out. There will be times when a photographer and a model simply do not see eye to eye, and progress grinds to a halt. If that happens, there is nothing you can do but gracefully accept it. Thank your model for her time, make sure that you fulfill all of your commitments to her, and go on from there.
Three – Reality Check
If you are interested in figure work as a way to meet girls, you’re not a photographer – you’re just a creep with a camera. Hitting on a model, professional or otherwise, will get you blacklisted in the photographic community faster than you can say “Oops.”
‘Nuff said.
Four – Respect
1. Whether your model is working for love, TFP (Time For Print) or for $200 per hour, she is your guest.
2. Provide a private dressing area, with a mirror, if possible. Your model requires privacy to dress and undress. The privacy of a dressing area is, aside from just a common courtesy, also a transitional space for the model, both physically and emotionally. She needs that transition time to put herself in the proper frame of mind and body before she is ready to work.
3. If a private dressing area is not possible, make sure she has a mirror, tissues, and a place to hang her clothes and put her belongings. When she’s ready to change, leave her alone in the workspace, shut the door tight and wait for her to call you back in to begin work.
4. Make a point of offering her a robe when she is not actually in a pose. Do not make her sit in the nude while you think, make adjustments to your lights, or putter around.
5. Keep an eye on the temperature in the studio – you’re not nude – she is!
6. All models need, indeed, deserve, compliments and encouragement, but be cautious giving compliments which might be misinterpreted. Any hint of sexual innuendo in your conversation will kill the entire shoot. And probably lose you your model.
7. Compliment her grace, her intelligence, her wit, her cooperation, her taste, her strength. Refer to a specific body part only in relation to the pose itself. For example, it’s perfectly appropriate to say something like “Please arch your back more to lift your breast..” It’s glaringly inappropriate to say something like – well, you get the picture.
8. Never touch your model without her permission. Period.
9. As a guest, your model deserves something to drink and snack on while working. Not a banquet, just a courtesy.
10. Encourage your model to bring an escort to the shoot if she wishes. Well, perhaps not if your model is your wife or husband :-) This is especially important for amateur models and first shoots. Having a friend along will make your model more relaxed and comfortable in a new environment. Some photographers dislike escorts and find them distracting; personally I have never found this to be so. To me, the benefits far outweigh an occasional annoyance.
Five – Collaboration
1. If you treat your model like a puppet, you’ll get photographs of a puppet.
2. If you involve your model in the creative process, you will make more successful photographs. Give your model a clear idea of what you are trying to accomplish, tell her why it’s important to you, and ask for her help in finding a way to accomplish that goal. The chances are excellent that she will work with far more enthusiasm if she feels that she is making a real artistic or creative contribution. Wouldn’t you?
3. It’s OK to admit that you don’t have all of the answers. Your model has her own wealth of experiences, perceptions, and emotions that may hold some of those answers for you. If you hit a dead end, take a break, brew some tea, and talk it over. That being said, maintain control of your working environment. Don’t allow your photo session to turn into a social occasion. Stay focused on the work at hand.
4. Share the results of the shoot with your model. If you’re shooting TFP then of course your model will see, and receive, the best of the work. But even the busiest professional model will still want to see the final results of the shoot., especially if you have established a collaborative relationship.
5. Don’t be afraid to show your model some of the shots that failed – a bit of discussion might reveal a way to get it right next time.
6. If all has gone well and the work is successful, you may be rewarded by having your model bring further ideas and projects to you! That is the best of all possible worlds for the figure photographer.
7. Keep your promises. Deliver the CD on time. Pay promptly. Do the right thing. Life, and figure photography, is so much easier that way.
CR
* A morgue file is a collection of photos, images or other materials which you have collected for reference. The term was originally coined in the newspaper industry, meaning a file of old stories and photos on a particular news event or topic. Old news, hence ‘morgue’. Use your morgue file as a creative tool. Pull out some favorite images and consider why you admire them, how they were created, and how you could add your own ‘spin’ to that image. There is nothing wrong with ‘copying’ another’s photograph. Go to any museum and you will see people sketching and painting the art on the walls – it’s a time-honored tradition. Over time your own voice will emerge and your ‘copies’ will take on their own life and personality. Pablo Picasso said: “Good artists copy. Great artists steal.”. I’m not gonna touch that one – suffice it to say that we all copy other work, in form or intent, either consciously or unconsciously. And that’s OK.
