1. Posing- I realized that I am very weak in this area. I have been under the impression that teenagers know how to pose, I mean, seriously they are in front of the camera all the time. They are always taking selfies for snapchat, and Instagram, and Facebook. With this in mind I really did not think that I needed to instruct her on posing. I realized in the first 10 minutes I was wrong. I am not sure if it was because mom was there or if was because she was not in control of the camera, but posing was not her thing. So I was having to give her guidance, and of course I was not prepared so I was flying on a wing and a prayer that it would look good. I must admit that God came through though and gave me amazing weather, not to mention a light breeze that assisted with a beautiful hair blown look with almost every single shot. I could not have been more pleased with the looks I got, even though I was not always pleased with the posing. Which is my fault as I had failed to be prepared for this particular issue.
2. Preparing my client- I realized when I got to my shoot that what I thought was going to happen in my head was not going to manifest into an actual photo on my camera. I had ideas of very specific shots, and with specific attitudes or well I am not really sure how to describe it. However I failed to prep my client and her mother. I also failed to be prepared for the visions of my client and her mother. This was a failure of communication. This makes me realize that prior to booking I really need to sit down with each client in person or on the phone and discuss my thoughts as well as there so that both sides are prepared and all expectations are out in the open.
3. Understanding rules and policies of the location or having a point of contact- This one sounds scary I know, but it is not as bad as it sounds. I didn't get into any trouble, however there was just a lot of stress. Our location was a botanical garden/zoo. Due to the fact that I knew we had to pay an entrance fee, I also assumed that there would be some sort of media rules. Of course there was. However I did not quite understand where I fell within the media policies. My biggest question was am I considered commercial or non commercial? There was no specific definition within their policy in order to differentiate, and there was only an outlier of rules for bridal shoots which left me to wonder if I may fall into that outlier. Of course with this in mind there was a potential of extra charges and such. However there was no way to determine by policy where I fell. I emailed the one point of contact, and of course I got no response. It finally came down to a phone call and finding a specific point of contact and speaking to a live person to get clarification. From all of this I learned it is much easier to have a point of contact and a person to speak with versus having to play the guessing game, or functioning on a hope and a prayer that I am not going to get in trouble. A liaison is the best way to go! This helps relieve your stress and that of your client.
3. Scope out where you are going- Yes I failed this one. I allowed myself to get cocky and think that I did not have to look at the location prior to the shoot. I figured that a botanical garden was a great place and there was nothing to worry about. Which it was not a worry. However had I looked at the location I think I would have planned out my shoot 100 times better! This place was beautiful, and full of nooks and crannies that were just amazing for such a tiny garden. It was overwhelming to look at and running from spot to spot, and now I wonder if there was a chance that I may have missed some amazing shots.
4. Being early is amazing!- We opted to do this shoot in the morning as soon as the garden opened. This was the best decision we could have made! We were the first ones in and we were over half way through our session before people really started to show up and becoming a problem with the shoot. It was amazing to not have to work around other people and worry about shots being inadvertently ruined by other guests. Not to mention the lighting was amazing for a 9AM shoot!
5. Editing- I noticed after the fact while I was editing that even though for most shots that I had great skies and I was super excited, however there were several shots that the sky failed me. It was flat, gray and just plain boring. This called for a sky replacement in Photoshop once I realized there was nothing that I could do in Lightroom to save the sky. I thought that I understood enough to be able to do this. However I realized several things. The first is that I am not great when it comes to more technical things in Photoshop, and two that I did not have the files to do what I wanted. I initially tried to use the sky from another portrait in the same shoot, but I just could not for the life of me make it realistic. Due to time constraints and the need to get these photos processed I did not feel that I had the time to do the research to teach myself how to do the replacement, and I did not have the extra money to purchase sky replacement files. So this left me at a loss. Sadly some of these portraits were amazing, but had I been able to replace the sky this would have made it perfect! So I have learned not only do I need to spend time behind the camera, but I need to invest more time learning to work with and learn Photoshop and Lightroom. I have the basics, but there are times that the basics, or a preset is just not enough.
With every shoot there is something new to learn and something new for me to share. I hope that in sharing where I have failed and the things that I need to work on that this will help you avoid my downfalls, and also help everyone to realize that no one is perfect. Mistakes happen, and as long as you learn from them there is not much more anyone could ask for.
5. Editing- I noticed after the fact while I was editing that even though for most shots that I had great skies and I was super excited, however there were several shots that the sky failed me. It was flat, gray and just plain boring. This called for a sky replacement in Photoshop once I realized there was nothing that I could do in Lightroom to save the sky. I thought that I understood enough to be able to do this. However I realized several things. The first is that I am not great when it comes to more technical things in Photoshop, and two that I did not have the files to do what I wanted. I initially tried to use the sky from another portrait in the same shoot, but I just could not for the life of me make it realistic. Due to time constraints and the need to get these photos processed I did not feel that I had the time to do the research to teach myself how to do the replacement, and I did not have the extra money to purchase sky replacement files. So this left me at a loss. Sadly some of these portraits were amazing, but had I been able to replace the sky this would have made it perfect! So I have learned not only do I need to spend time behind the camera, but I need to invest more time learning to work with and learn Photoshop and Lightroom. I have the basics, but there are times that the basics, or a preset is just not enough.
With every shoot there is something new to learn and something new for me to share. I hope that in sharing where I have failed and the things that I need to work on that this will help you avoid my downfalls, and also help everyone to realize that no one is perfect. Mistakes happen, and as long as you learn from them there is not much more anyone could ask for.
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