Hi all
I'm in a bit of a dilemma
I just received a headshot script from a company that has asked me to shoot their UK office headshots.
The script is from a Duch professional photographer this international company hired in Rotterdam he has done his shots I am the second photographer hired.
Does anyone have an issue with this script or is it just me?
There were photos attached to the PDF but I can't put them up but it does display what I thing is a real issue with this set of instructions
This is an instruction set to be sent to photographers in countries that this international company has offices for a unified style of headshots which I do agree with and think is a good idea.
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Script for [Company name] headshots
Portraits are shot on a white background.
There’s one big main light, right behind the camera. I used a big umbrella ( 1meter in diameter) on
a boom arm so I could shoot with the light coming from behind and above the camera.
The main light is filled in with a white reflection screen positioned at waist height from the subject.
The lens used is a 24mm wide angle, the height of the camera is slightly below eye level of the subject.
Aperture is f8.
ISO: 200.
Distance from the subject is about 90 cm - 1 meter.
Subjects are positioned on a stool with their legs touching the ground so they can slightly lean
towards the camera and (very important) straighten their backs so they have an energetic, strong
presence.
All the people photographed are looking in the lens, not away from it.
Shoulders can beat an angle but eyes are always towards the lens.
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IF you could see the photos the...its a lot of a giveaway :(
I am not going to put what I think is the issue just yet, wanted to see if it's just me and if any of you would raise this with the person that hired you and risk your payday
regards
_al
I think it fits the old adage, "the customer is always right". If they like the style the first photographer shot and want everything to match, that's their choice. You have the choice to do the shoot or pass on it. Personally, for headshots I would never use a 24mm lens due to distortions if too close or wasted pixels if too far away. group shots maybe but not headshots. But if I were to be asked to match a style and given specific parameters, I would do it. I would shake my head and scream "NO, NO, NO" to myself but I would do it.
Worse case scenario if you are still battling it in your head: Take the image as requested and then take an image the way you see it should be. Submit the requested image and follow up with the one you created noting the differences that you believe are more appealing or flattering to the subject or campaign. Maybe they will like your vision better, hire you for more work and make the other guy retake his shots to match yours. All depends on your relationship to the client [and the other photographers relationship] as well as the results in THEIR eyes.
I agree 24mm on a full frame would be to wide and it's nowhere near what I would use. But throw that 24mm on a crop body and it changes. They didn't outline that in their detail!
Hi and yes i came to the same conclusion yesterday and have asked the question, I feel a twit it didn't occur to me earlier, all i thought was on my equipment (Nikon D800) it would look so bad at 24mm at a 1m distance but a canon at x1.6 crop is around 40mm
but that said its a very important part of the global script as this conversation has made clear :)
Since you agree with the idea of a unified style of headshots and think it is good, I wonder where is your friction point exactly. Is it too far from your own perspective? Out of what you consider good taste?
In itself, the experience is not entirely uninteresting, you get paid for it, and you don't need to be mentioned as the author ;)
i know this company, they are not an "outside the box" or "Imagineering" type company, they are highly Corporate, just under the big top 3 in their field, professional people. these photos will be attached to B2B business proposals and international white papers, the last thing i would think they would want is to be looking like all their staff live behind jam-jars filled with water!
The client thats hired me has stressed how she wants a unified professional look to the images, this i do not think matches that But as i said if she is happy with the other photographers work, because i feel i would be letting myself down if i did not mention in quiet strongly, i will shoot it and ask that my name is not mentioned in the project.
Remember that the client probably can't see the difference like you or I would. That's why I suggest taking a second set the correct way and point out the differences. Once they see them side by side they SHOULD be able to see the difference. And if you explain and point out the distortions in a nice professional manner you may save them some face down the road. And If they don't see a difference...well, just give them what they want.
Thanks Guys, so I am not going mad, the photos are in my opinion terrible they look like a caricature of the people he has taken, I do have a little leeway with the hiring client
Yes, I agree the customer is always right, but I feel they have been taken for a ride here and I will have to talk with the client at the weekend.
but that said, I will shoot it screaming "NO NO NO!" in my head if needs be ... gotta bring home the bacon and keep the wolf from the door and all that
Joseph gave you a pretty good idea by talking the shots the customer's wants and then your way. Customers don't always know what they want so for me i would try to dig deeper and find out why the customer wants to distort the features of the headshot and not a true representation of the person. Also try to keep your explanations as simple as possible to allow them to follow your reasoning. If all fails just don't put your name against the work and just consider it a simple job. Be warned, when arguing your point please don't try to prove them wrong, this will put the customer on the defensive and i guarantee they'll think twice about using you again. Just try to get to the bottom of their reason for that style and show them there's a better way.
No offense but you are sounding pretty arrogant, that you know better what they want than they do.
Do you know the entire back story of this project? Do you know what decisions went into choosing this style?Since you are one of the 2nd photographers you may not be privy to all that went on in previous meetings.
Sounds to me that they, the other photographer and the company have decided on a specific look. From lighting and lens selection down to the feet touching the floor so all the subjects lean forward in the same way they have thought about this, it's not a random mistake.
Not every project has to be done in the same "correct" way. If you are strongly opposed to this style and willing to waste your time and the time of the subjects in order to prove that they do not know what they are doing you may want to pass on it.
The idea to keep your name off of this project may be somewhat shortsighted as to me this sounds like a fairly creative project that is NOT a run of the mill B2B boring headshot gig. It might free you up to take a chance....
I don't believe questioning something that you feel doesn't fit a particular companies image (that he apparently knows) is arrogant at all. Yes, the client may want all their people to look like caricature and that may have been a conscious decision on their part but, there is no reason he shouldn't question it and make certain? Maybe he doesn't know the back story but maybe you don't either. Maybe this was the "low bid" photographer that only has one light and one 24mm lens. Maybe it's someones nephew or son or friend of a friend trying to get their start in photography that doesn't even know about lens distortions. Communication is key to any shoot, business & relationship. If nothing else, they will confirm the look they want and he can go into the shoot knowing exactly how he needs to execute it. Why would you NOT want to communicate your concerns to a client?
OK, Bit more "backstory" I have been in negotiation with this client for a number of months about this project and another for the same company. I was the first photographer approached by this Managing director for her personal headshots, and invited to shoot other offices, while she lives in London but works at the main company headquarters is in another Europian country, I suggested they select a local photographer and at that point we discussed the idea of a script for other togs around the world to get a unified baseline. So to your point I have been in on this project from the start.
There is NO high brow super creative ideal behind this shoot, what they wanted was a "run of the mill B2B boring headshot gig" as you put is quiet equivalently put it mainly because that's what they needed!
Yes Creativity is always good BUT there is a fine point that the person viewing the photo ( in this case executive level and above of client companies) must understand that this is a creative photograph and as such needs to be seen in the correct context, where if it's not done with any consideration of the context the photo is used in, the photo used it can just come off as looking "wrong" in the viewers perspective and will create doubt, the person looking at it may not even know why it looks wrong, but the will just know that it is, and the way a lot of higher level execs think is "well, if they can't get a photo right , why would they get this proposal right" or simpler put "looks crap..is crap!" sad i know.
Thanks for clarifying that you were in on all this at the the beginning, and are aware of the planned use. I obviously do not know if your client knows what looks good, knows what they want or are in need of someone to set them straight and help them get what they want.
To me, such specific directions such as f-stop, ISO, lens choice and distance, leaning forward, with feet on the floor, straight back, strong look, eye contact indicate a plan, not because some one only has one light and a 24mm lens. It doesn't sound random to me but anything is possible these days. I guess ask them why these choices if you can.
I read it as they already shot the first group in the chosen /approved style and you are to repeat the style of the first group to keep the same look through the project.
Maybe they totally messed up the first time around, so you should confirm that they know what they want, and that you are wiling to produce it. Good luck.
thanks Mr H :)