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Snap Shots: by Harry Flashman
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How to take better group photographs
Along with the advent of “selfies”, we also have the group photos at some event
or other with a row of people all holding their thumbs up. No longer does this
mean “good” it now apparently means “like” after Mr. Zuckerberg was allowed to
massacre the English language with his pictogram.
This trend, and a mindless one I should add, can be seen every day in Facebook,
so if you do persist in wanting to upload photographs to FB, let’s try and make
them stand out from all the other shots at any event, without there being one
thumb, or two fingers in the peace or victory salute, quite inappropriate in the
vast majority of group shots.
Most owners of a half reasonable camera will have found that they were asked to
photograph somebody’s wedding. If you can, weasel out, weddings are a pain. One
very experienced wedding photographer even went so far as to call the craft,
“Hours of controlled patience, punctuated by moments of sheer terror and intense
bursts of creativity.”
So how do you get stand-out photographs from groups? The first thing not to do
is to line the subjects in a line, like army privates on parade, wave a hand in
the air and say “neung, song, sam” (one, two, three for non-Thais) followed by
“hawy” (another Thai word we won’t go into here, but will make Thai people
smile, much like “cheese” for westerners). And don’t suggest they use
Zuckerberg’s “like”.
So you know you will be taking photographs, so what now? This is the time to
remember what you learned in the Scouts - Be Prepared! Check the camera - how is
the charge in the battery? Are the lenses clean? Do you have enough lenses? And
what flash will you use?
Now, don’t turn on the camera yet, but have a look at where the shots are likely
to be taken. What sort of background is there? Plain and unobtrusive or
cluttered and distracting? Too bright? Too colorful?
What you have to think about, is why are these people there? A group has some
common theme in the people. Is it funny hat day? Is it a wedding? A BBQ? Having
worked out in your head what the common factor is, now look at how you are going
to show that factor. Taking the BBQ concept, for example, catch the men around
the BBQ plate with a beer each. Or get the ladies in the kitchen making the
salads. That you can have a hand in, but don’t have them all standing in a line
- get them doing something. I came across a fabulous quote the other day from
Australian photographer Russell Colvin who apparently often says, “All the gear
and no idea.” Don’t join that group - think about the situation and get an idea!
Now the weddings. Wedding photographers talk about the three P’s - preparation,
photography and presentation. My idea of wedding photography and the three P’s
are pain, persecution and panic.
However, looking at the accepted “preparation”. This is very important and will
make your job so much easier. This would include going to the church, temple,
registry office or whatever before the great day to see just what you can use as
backgrounds, and where you can position the happy couple, and their parents, and
their bridesmaids, and their friends, and the neighborhood dogs and everything
else that seems to be in wedding photographs. Just by doing this, you at least
will know ‘where’ you can take some photographs.
With weddings, there are always some stereotyped shots that the happy couple
expect, and you can’t get around these - bride and groom plus their parents, but
you still do not have to line them up like soldiers on parade with (gawdelpme)
their thumbs up!
There is bound to be a garden chair that you can seat the elders on, with the
youngsters around them, and even have the happy couple seated, and the in-laws
around them. Use some grey matter to get something different. It can be done -
even at weddings.
Try to take photographs of groups in a new or different way. Make your shots
stand out. It can be done!
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