Last couple of weeks we’ve been busy in Las Vegas lots of people asking for our Corporate Head shots , it’s interesting what some clients expect, mostly pretty low expectations coupled with a low price, so it goes that you get what you pay for. well in most cases that may b e true but as a Photographer in Las vegas we do strive to hit a higher level, it’s part of our work ethic.
The biggest challenge is camera shy people, I get it I personally hate having my picture taken, as did my Father before me, he by the way was a Camera man for the BBC way back in the ’60’s so maybe it”s an inherited phobia ?
But I always find away to make my subject comfortable, in the days of film I would shoot dummy rolls , basically empty canisters of 35 mm film, the theory being that few people are at ease for the first 50 or so shots so why waste the film? Well as technology has done away with film that’s no longer an issue but it still takes a little time for our client feel comfortable, even the smallest line an make a difference or the angle of the head can send a completely different message and when it comes to head-shots , it’s the massage in that first second that can leave that lasting impression making you the next movie star or not , not an easy task .
Then you can get a subject that is incredibly diverse, from city slicker to pro boxer , these are the kind of shoots I like, sure they are more challenging lighting wise and on occasion location wise , not every one has a studio or can afford the extra cost, it is very worth while in my opinion.
But when the challenge arises great things can be done.
This image of Boxer Anthony Cox was just one of those events , very nice nice young man with a lot of talent, he knew pretty much what he wanted and needed for his Zed card and in the same session we shot some promotional images for his act and his Boxing career, not the easiest of shoots, limited in just about every aspect but the end result was well worth the effort photographically.
Point being I suppose that you don’t necessarily need a huge set up to get great shots , it helps sure but if you have an aspiring actor , or artist who needs help in this way, why not go out of your way to help make their dreams come true, good Karma on all levels .
Artistically speaking there are times when you have a vision and it just wont work, at least this
might be how you feel during the shoot, may be your subject just isn’t comfortable in front of the camera, yet you struggle through go back to the office load the images and get a little discouraged. I find by putting images away for a while and with less stress going back to re-evaluate you might find with a little cutting and cropping you really have a good looking picture , in this case the very image I was hoping for , or at least very close , for all kinds of reasons this shot was important and perhaps that’s why i found it more of a challenge than most, I hadn’t figured on the size of the Lion head and I particularly wanted a black back ground , that was fine un-till we bought out the black lions heads , Canon 5d .3 or not this just was not going to work, even the 10 ft back drop wasn’t enough in this case a real studio would have been so much easier , but that’s just not in the budget so we have to be inventive photographically and that is good exercise for your imagination and skill as a master photographer to get it to work regardless of the situations you find your self in.
By Costellophoto
Costellophoto.com
702 459 3121
5.27.2013
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