Commercial Photography and Portraits

A few weeks ago during a commercial product shoot, the Art Director of a local ad agency asked me if I liked shooting products or people best. I told him I liked shooting both. He said that this was strange in that most photographers had a strong preference for one or the other.

This got me thinking about why I like shooting metal widgets for a catalog as much as shooting a model for her portfolio. I think it comes down to colaboration. When I’m shooting for an ad agency or a business, the AD or marketing director has an good idea of the type of image they are looking for. So, creating a great image becomes a team effort.

When I’m shooting a person, it is similar experience. An individual has an idea of the type of photo they want. I usually meet with them in advance of the actual shoot to discuss what they are looking for and how we’ll create it. Then when we are shooting my camera is tethered to a computer so we can see the results in real time. This again results in a colaberative effort where the final image is a team effort.

So I guess one of things I enjoy about being a photographer is that I get to work with people to create some really cool images. 

Below is an example. This photo was shot for the model’s portfolio. She had the mini-dress, boots, and wig that made up the look from the 1960’s. The trick was how to create the final image. We tried shooting on different backgrounds with different lighting schemes and, while we got some good shots, we did not get a great image. Then I got an inspiration as to how to create a “hippy” look with some VERY creative lighting technique. And the image fell together. There was no Photoshop on this image. It looked liked this straight out of the camera.

Anyway, I think that colaboration and creativity is the key to creating a remarkable image.