"Mark Murray of Woodstock is a philanthropist and artist as seen at Woodstock Public Library in Woodstock, Sunday, Feb. 22, 2009. Murray also teaches part-time at DePaul University in Chicago helping students find a way to turn their creative juices in the arts into a professional career."
I have been enjoying a few days off and haven't had anything to post but I thought that I would update with a portrait that I shot a few weeks ago. We (Northwest herald) have a question and answer series called "On the record with..." that focuses on a member of the community that you might not know but probably should. We shoot a lot of these well in advance for the weekly Sunday series which is why I'm just now posting this one.
I'm always interested in talking with my subjects and learning a little bit more about how they have got to where they are today. It allows them to talk about themselves which makes them feel comfortable and helps me prep them for being in front of the camera. 90% of the people that I photograph have never had a professional take their picture. They don't know how to act, pose, stand and a lot of the time just be their self. It's crucial to the photograph that they're calm, relaxed and open to my ideas. In order to accomplish all this I have to create a rapport with them in only a few minutes.
When I photographed Mark Murray (above) I got a sense from the get go that he was a little nervous, as most people are. I knew that if I didn't establish a relationship with him quickly the stiffness would show in the photo.
I like to think that I can connect best with business professionals and the like very easily because I come from a business background and I'm very professional on a shoot. The most important thing that I did during the shoot came long before Mark even showed up. I was there about 45 minutes early to scout a location at the library where we were shooting and get all my lights set up. Mark was impressed that I was not only on time but ready to go when he got there. People say that a first impression is built in the first 30 seconds when you meet someone. Being ready to go really got me going in the right direction.
I found a quick connection with Mark because I'm basically the end product of what he teaches his students. I freelance when I can and having a business background has really helped put me ahead of the game when it comes to dealing with clients, vendors, subjects, ect. I worked this angle and talked with him about his class, his art and his family. Keep in mind that I'm doing all of this while shooting a few different looks in two different locations. It can be tough to talk and shoot at the same time but I feel as though you have to keep conversation going throughout the shoot in order to keep things moving.
In about 15 minutes with the subject I was able to create four different looks that would give me some leeway during the edit. Although I knew that we were only going to run one portrait I still shoot all my portraits (time pending) as if they were an editorial magazine assignment where the art director will want at least four looks to play with.
The end result is a solid portrait for the paper and a business relationship all built in 15 minutes. Mark even asked me if I would like to come and be a guest speaker in one of his classes as an example that anyone do what they want to do with their art right out of college if you put your mind to it.
Ok, I've rambled enough for one evening. The moral to the story is that building rapport with your subject will lead to pictures that weren't possible otherwise. Take a few minutes the next time you work with someone to get to know them, I promise the end result will be better than you anticipated.
-JCE
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