The Headshot: The Secrets to Creating Amazing Headshot Portraits (Voices That Matter) by Hurley Peter

Author:Hurley, Peter [Hurley, Peter]
Language: eng
Format: azw3, epub
Publisher: Pearson Education
Published: 2015-07-14T16:00:00+00:00

Doc Dougherty

Direct Direction

To me, direct direction is by far the most frequently used tool that we have in our toolbox as photographers. It’s simply telling your subject how you want them to move or position themselves. There are countless directions you could give to get them to do what you want them to do physically. For example: “Turn your head to the left, chin down, forehead out, drop your front shoulder, cross your arms, do this, do that.”

Ashton Woerz

We all need to know how to physically direct our subject into a position that is going to give us the most photogenic outcome. Having specific go-to moves that you can repeat with everyone is key. Adding this to your positive reinforcement can work wonders. You’re giving them the encouragement and the direct direction you need to get them into the position you want. Think to yourself, “What do I need from this person?” Sherlock Holmes them and figure out where you want them, and then strive to physically get them there by directly telling them what to do.

Now, the deal is that, as photographers, we’ve essentially always got them posing. Yep, we are posing them, but I can’t stand that word because I feel like it immediately stiffens people up. Not only that, it feels so inauthentic to stick people in a pose. I like my subjects to be really fluid, knowing that they can move freely. So I don’t ever use the word “pose.” I tell them I’m going to position them loosely. I’ll get them where I want them and then just tell them that there is no perfect position, so just chill out right there a bit. I even like them to shake it out a bit after I get them essentially where I want them to be.

Once you have them in the position you want, take the picture and then hit them with some positive reinforcement. You’re not going to tell them before you take the picture, “Oh my gosh, that position is gorgeous!” Instead, you’ll say something like, “You’re just perfect right there” or “Right there, don’t move.” But, after you take the picture and they perform properly—boom—it’s like the dog getting the treat. Say something like, “Nice work. That was amazing. We are going to work this position a bit with some subtle movements.” Now, just work on getting them to move in tiny increments from that spot.

Direct direction is really one of the biggest tools because without it, you can’t get them in the position that will make them physically look their best. Let’s say we’re doing our job properly, and we’re trying to pull the best out of this person. We’re trying to find out what attributes they have that we can emphasize and which ones we have to de-emphasize. Doing that through coaching and using direct direction is the only way to go. Since this is such a big deal, I’ll be adding a complete list of my favorite direct directions for you to try out later in the book.

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