How to Talk to Models

In 2018, I was in the mountains of Georgia at a bus Graveyard. I was working with a model named Christen Joy. At some point in the shoot, I took my shirt off. …I do not look good shirtless, by the way. I then handed my shirt to Christen and asked her to put it on, which she did. Somewhere out there is a picture of me- shirtless- shooting a model against a dirty, broken bus in Georgia.

Here’s the part of that story that I didn’t tell you. I asked before I did this. I didn’t simply bust out my nips. We had been shooting for a while and I asked her “I’m thinking about making it weird. Is that cool?” And she smiled, shrugged and said to go for it. I basically fell in love with her right then and there. (Not literally.)

Anyway, the point is that your communication with your subject is extremely important. Honestly, its about 40% of your job if you work with people or animals.

I’ve done a few shoots that involve multiple photographers and multiple models. They’re fun, but it ends up feeling like a meat market. 4 or more photographers gathered around the models, snapping away. Whenever it is my time to shoot, I literally do not take a single photograph unless I’ve asked the model what their name is. She/ he is a person. You should know their name and use it when shooting them. Ask them about themselves. Connect with your subject. You’ll get better results.

I was taking pictures of a couple earlier this year and the wife had mentioned that she used to model before she had kids and gained weight. Now she no longer feels comfortable when people take her picture. I stopped her. If you don’t feel comfortable on camera, it isn’t your fault. It is the photographer’s job to make you feel safe.

This isn’t just about working with professional models. Remember, your subject IS your model. The professional part is irrelevant.

I think perhaps this is a problem with photographers that doesn’t get talked about enough. I saw a video on instagram yesterday. A photographer had a multiple day studio shoot with two models. After finishing with one of them for the day, he apparently told the woman not to eat between then and the next session. Fortunately the model was confident and self-assured. She berated the man. The long and short of her speech was that one sentence like that could destroy a young model, not only fracturing her confidence, but possibly instigating an eating disorder.

In that story, the photographer is clearly just an asshole. But there is a problem to be addressed with a lot of people in my profession. If a survey were done, I would bet we’d find that a lot of shy, awkward people are drawn to standing behind a camera. For some, that camera stands as a barrier between them and the world, protecting them from their insecurities. And that’s a shame. You can’t be a great photographer unless you connect to your subjects.

Photographers- remember always that you aren’t snapping pictures. You’re photographing human beings. And models- remember your worth. No photographer has the right to belittle or abuse you.