Lisa Ramsay NYC Photographer

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Directing and Posing your Subjects 5 Easy Steps!

1. Speak with an even-toned voice. No one wants to be yelled at during a photography or videography shoot. Speak with an even-toned voice when talking and directing your model or subject.

2. Show your model the pose you desire. You can go into pose yourself and give your model a live example of what you want. Have image examples on hand so you can reference a pose to your model

3. Be patient. Directing models or people can be frustrating. Everyone will be looking to you for guidance and direction but also looking to you as to the mood in the visuals. If you let your frustration show, the whole mood of the shoot can head south.

4. Create imagery from different heights. Take advantage of your shooting space. Move around for different angles. That also helps your subject in giving you a variety of poses. with videography, having a second camera source (a cellphone or GoPro, if another camera is not available) that produces another point of view. This will round out your video and make it more engaging. 

5. Talk to your subject. Your subject will look to you for guidance. Talk to your subject often. Have them role-play. Ask them questions or tell a story. The more they are relaxed, the more they will perform in posing.