Preparing Yourself for a Photo Portrait Session

Preparing for a Portrait Session:

                      WHAT TO WEAR

I have heard some people say, "Don't wear white"
This is not necessarily true.   It all depends on your complexion, the lighting used, background and where is the white.   If you are a bride or having photos done for a Christening, you can't help but wear white. 

~  Wear something appropriate.
        If summer, summer clothes                                      

        For holidays mailers, dress for

        the season

            

~  Be comfortable.  

      Try on your clothes before .

       your photo shoot.          

       Make sure the clothes fit

       Match the correct colors for

       you                              

       Neck Line - vee or scoop neck is

      good for full face or short neck

~  Keep it simple                                  

         Solid colors are best.                                                

         Unless you have great arms wear sleeves     

         Avoid large or bold patterns and bright colors.          

         Coordinate your attire for full lenghth poses

         They draw attention away from the face.                   

          Darker colors usually minimize body size

~  For group photos dress everyone in the same style

        Don't mix casual and formal                         

        Keep tones similar 

        Prints arefor ties & scarves, not shirts

        or blouses       

        Don't mix seasons

                       POSING IDEAS

Your photographer should be able to direct you on your poses, but

 here are some "heads up":

~  Relax
         If you are tense, uncomfortable nervous, this will reflect
         and show in your pictures.  Take a deep breath, blow
         out slowly. Literally shake it off.  
         Shake your shoulders. Laugh, giggle, think of a joke.
         (hopefully your photographer will work with you on this)
 

~  Shoulders back
         Posture is very important.   It projects your attitude,
         and improves your appearance including making you look
         slimmer, self confident and sexier

~  Straight on facing the camera like a DMV photo is not
          normally recommended. 
          Turn one should slightly away from the camera and then
           turn your face toward the camera.  This gives a slimming
           and very flattering effect.

           Occationally, straigh on head shots can work for a special
           effect.

~  Especially for women.  Tilt your head slightly This gives a more
            relaxed and impromptude appearance and very flattering
           for the ladies. 

~  Chin down.
         Unless the photographer is higher than you.   Many people
          feel they need to lift their chin to the air.  This gives a
          strained and haughty look to the subject.   Chin down eyes
          up makes your eyes look larger.  Listen to your
          photographer and remember, to minimumize  your
          movements.   When they tell you to look up, move just a
          little, they will tell you if you need to move more. 

         If the photographer is above you, lifting your chin is great and
         helps deminish double chins.

~  Turn your back to the camera and look over your shoulder.

          Don't strain.   Only as much as you can do comfortably

         

           

    

    

      

 

What I need to know before getting my Wedding Photographer

Question: What kind of things do I need to know, plan or ask for when getting my wedding photographer, and what type of photos should I do?
Answer: I don't think a lot of brides and grooms think about this when planning their weddings, or they have the question, but not the answer.
Several things to keep in mind before deciding on your photographer:


1. What kind of photos do I want.

- PREWEDDING PHOTOS - Bride getting dressed, bride's family and bridal party photos (no groom) Groom and groom's men photos with groom's family (no bride) Some couples do not stick to the traditional "bride and groom do not see each other prior to wedding" and opt for photos here. Keep in mind, any photos done prior to the wedding, will save time between the ceremony and reception, so your guests will not be waiting at the reception for you as long.

- CEREMONY PHOTOS - Outside or inside? If in a church, temple or other type of sanctuary, photography may be limited. Does the church allow flash photography, or any photography during the ceremony? How close can the photographer get? How dark is the room. Are you OK with mock-ups of certain events during the ceremony which may not be photograph able (ring exchange)

- POST WEDDING - Where and how much time are you wanting to spend on post wedding photos. Will the weather be good for outside? Do you have a back-up plan in case of in climate weather? I advise you not have your wedding guests wait longer than an hour if possible at the reception hall, waiting for you. (make sure you have music and food for them)

- RECEPTION - Inside or outside? What kind of photos do you want for your reception, and how long do you need to have the photographer at your reception? Most receptions lasts between 3 to 4 hours. Do you need to have the photographer there the entire time? Have your photo ops as early in the reception as possible. Entrance, cake cutting, toasts, bouquet toss, garter take off and toss, first dance, father daughter, mother son, etc. The sooner you get your guests on the dance floor, the longer they will stay and have fun. Don't let your guests get bored. Will the photographer be taking pictures during the dinner hour? Will you feed them? Again, after the essential photos are taken at the reception, do you really need to pay them to take photos of people hanging out and dancing?

2. What can I afford?
......Shop around for photographer's in your budget, and have the above information ready to help them help you determine how much time you need.
......How may photographers will be used?
......What type of packages or options do they offer.

3. How long after the wedding before you get your photos?
......Will you get a CD or DVD of your photos? and are they high resolution or low resolution?
......Is there a print release? Copy-right release? Are you required to get your prints from them? Will you photos be online?

4. Is the photographer experienced in wedding and portrait photography?
......Have you seen printed and online photos of the type of pictures your photographer takes?
......Are they open to poses you want, and do they have suggestions for you?
......Are they professional? Are they fun (good personality)
......Do they know this is "YOUR DAY" There are great photographers out there who take beautifully pictures, and creative ones, but this should not be a painful experience for you either.

5. Were your friends happy with their photographer? Learn from them.

I am currently working on a booklet to help the bride and groom decide what and who they need for their wedding photographs. Any suggestions to put in this would be helpful. I will post here or on my website when it is ready. I will offer it online as well as in print.

Karen
www.kbaughmanphotography.com
www.facebook.com/kbaughmanphotography

I spent last week, editing photos from the UD Party and getting posted online, and I am now updating and cleaning up my website this week and next. I feel there is just too much clutter in the index.

I am using Flickr to store some old photos for viewing and instead of having 6 or 7 weddings listed in the index, I will have one page referencing the different weddings, and then create links to view them elsewhere. I will still show have one or two most recent weddings and events to view, but the listing at the top of the page will be be smaller and less overwhelming.

I am hoping this will in turn make it easier for prospective clients to view.

I also used some creative time to print and frame more photos for the studio. The walls are filling up nicely.

Feel free to stop by either place and see (online or the studio on St Nicholas Ave) The studio is small, but I am trying to make the best of it until I can afford something larger.

I will need to update some of my studio photos soon. Once we get building issues resolved, I hope to have a grand opening and open house early this summer.

UD Party Photos

to view UD Party Photos from April 9, 2010 click the following link

www.flickr.com/photos/kbaughman/sets/72157623848308226/

or copy and paste the above address

Victorian Photos

I created these images in my studio using natural lighting from the picture window to the left and lots pf props (plants, vases, shear drapery). My goal was to create a portrait with a Victorian style setting almost apearing to be a painting as opposed to a photograph.

A friend of mine agreed to be my model for this set of photos. I have used her before and found her to be very effective. I particularly love the soft flow of the skirting around the knee in the far right photo and the classic "S" shape of the pose and lighting around her face.

The only editing I needed with these photos were a little cropping and some desaturation of color on two of the photos to help give a more period look. The third photo, I created a second layer and desaturated it. Then using variety of different opaque settings, deleted some of the desaturated layer to add color to the roses, the scarf, parasol, dress and and portions of the face. This gave the effect of a black and white photo which had been colorized.

I use Photoshop for almost all of my editing, and enjoy the variety and editing options offered. I have more of these photos posted on flickr. http://www.flickr.com/photos/kbaughman/4411412148/

My webpages

http://www.kbaughmanphotography.com/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kbaughman/
http://www.facebook.com/kbaughmanphotography/
http://www.pinterest.com/kbaughmanphoto/

How did this come about?

I plan on using this blog to not only promote my business, but to share with others, challenges and successes in my new career path and encourage others to seek after those things which bring them joy either professionally or personally. I will no doubt include personal information along with business experiences and how they help me as a photographer and a person. First let me share what brought this all about with a with a brief recently history of events.

In 2008 my employer announced that the department in which I worked was moving to another city. Due to family and other committments and issues, I chose not to move with my job. I was not the only one to make this decision, contrary to the belief of some of the upper management people who decided this was a good move for the company. Out of the over 250 people in the departments involved, less than a half a dozen employees made the move. The rest of us stayed in the Dayton Area and changed our career paths.



I have been taken photographs for many years; personally, and as part of an unofficial part of my job. I was greatful for the art and photography classes from years past, and for the opportunities to put into practice what I had learned and experiment with other styles and presentations. For years I had been taking photos of events and employees at work, many of which were used in publications and by the individuals in the photos for personal use. I have also been doing photography for friends and family of their weddings and other special events. Due to much encouragement and support by friends, family and other photography associates, I made my decision.



I took advantage of the schooling offered to me and took some additional photography classes and receive my Certification of Photography Technologies. I was able to enhance my skills and experiment with new and different techniques and improve my digital photography editing skills. Working from my home, I was able to network with others and create my own photography business. Weddings, Portraits, and Art Photos became a daily occurance. If I was not taking photographs, I was editing, experimenting and honing my skills in working with lighting, props, outside photography studio and developing my portfolio. I went from using my artistic side of my brain as recreation and distraction to it being a dominate part of my life, and I was enjoying every bit of it. Even with some of my experiments didn't quite work out the way I had hoped, I learned from it, and moved on to make the necessary changes.