photography camera Some Interesting Information On Posing...

   We received an email from one of our Inner-Circle Members last week, requesting some information on photographing the musicians of a community symphony orchestra.  He specifically requested information on posing in this situation.  I thought some of this information might be of interest to visitors to my photography business site here, so here are a few of the pointers I suggested when photographing the symphony...

(if you'd like to see some of my symphony photographs, as well as portrait & wedding work, click on the link below:)
Charles Lewis Photography Gallery

   The beauty of photographing projects such as a symphony or ballet, is that you are not bogged down by having to do traditional or "conservative" posing.  You can feel free to be very expressive and unique, and don't have to conform to the masses like we often have to do in our everyday photography.

   The first thing I would recommend is deciding which photographs will involve having the instrumentalist interacting directly with his or her instrument.  You see, you can either have the subject actually playing their instrument in the photograph, or you can have them "detached" from their instrument.  Most of the time, it's best to have them interacting with the instrument, but you can do some very creative stuff having the instrument in the background, lying on the floor beside them, etc.

   You want to try to make the poses look as natural as possible, and be exciting at the same time.  That's the beauty of photographing musicians with their instruments.  As they play their instruments, you will see poses that can never be achieved with any other subject.  Use these guidelines to set up your poses.  Watch the musicians play their instruments, and let them inspire the poses for you.  Just watch a violinist play, and try NOT to get inspired!

   Try to play up the "relationship" between the musician and his or her instrument.  This relationship is a very powerful one, and should be captured when you photograph them.  It's not enough to have the musician simply holding the instrument.  These performers LOVE these instruments in a way no non-musician can ever understand.  It truly is a "relationship" in the sense that it can be captured on film. 

   You can also play with full-length images versus close-ups.  For example, a photograph of a xylophone player may work better as a full-length, so you can get the entire instrument in the frame.  However, an extreme close-up of a viola player with her chin resting on the instrument, eyes closed, feeling the music, can be a very emotional image.

   One other thing to keep in mind:  It's recommended that you have the performers wear the clothing they wear for performances.  These are usually tuxes for the guys, and very nice dresses for the women.  This adds a sense of class to the images that can be very effective.  That's not to say you couldn't do some great stuff in casual clothing as well, but I strongly recommend going the formal route for these types of photographs.  Plus, this will help make the images more displayable in different venues throughout your community, which translates to great FREE advertising!

   I hope these ideas help you in creating fantastic images of symphony players.  These ideas can also apply to photographing graduating seniors with band instruments, and other subjects as well.

(if you'd like to see some of my symphony photographs, as well as portrait & wedding work, click on the link below:)
Charles Lewis Photography Gallery

 

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