Jeff Smith's Guide to Head and Shoulders Portrait Photography

(Wang) #1

Corrective Posing.


Don’t Rely on Digital Fixes.Once we went digital, it took our staff about six
months to get out of the “we can fix anything” mindset. Every time an em-
ployee told a client we could fix something, I would sit them down at a com-
puter station and tell them to fix it. When they were still trying to make the
problem area look natural an hour later, I would ask if we could “fix anything”
or not.
Time is money and problems need to be dealt with at the shoot, not fixed
later. Your client needs to know how to dress to look their best and hide their
flaws before the session day. If they don’t wear the clothing that you have sug-
gested, then they must be billed for the time it takes to fix the problems that
their decision created. This information has to be given to them in writing (in
a session brochure) or in the form of a video consultation. We use both, since
we want even the most clueless clients to be aware of how they should dress and
prepare for the session—and how much it could cost if they don’t!


LEFT AND FACING PAGE—When clients are
properly prepared, and you take care to
choose the right lighting and posing, your
images won’t require a lot of those time-
consuming digital fixes.

Problems need to be


dealt with at the shoot,


not fixed later.

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