Posing for portrait photography when you are a farmer is not something natural and regular in your daily professional life. Very often, it is a test or a complicated experience to approach, a moment more restrictive than anything else. The purpose of this article is to give you the necessary keys for you to appropriate this moment, to no longer suffer it, but to be one of the creators in parallel with the photographer with some simple tips and easy to implement.
Work on your outlook on yourself
In general, posing for a photo portrait session is about exposing yourself, putting yourself forward, being the attraction for a given moment. When you are a farmer, man or woman, you have an independent and often solitary activity in the work and your own image is not one of the concerns at that time. The objective of a farmer portrait photo session is to produce images so that the spectators put a face to a profession, a sector or a product. You will become a kind of visual ambassador of your activity, the people who will look at your portrait will unconsciously use their imagination and have a positive or negative a priori. The point of these lines is for it to be obviously positive no matter what.
By your image, you will have to make people “like” you, without knowing you and for that, you will have to love yourself, your own image.
To start, if you don’t like your image or you don’t know it, here’s a tip to help you accept yourself as you are.
The process is simple, you have to be alone and stand in front of your mirror, in your bedroom or your bathroom, no matter where, as long as there is a mirror.
Put yourself in front of your mirror and look at yourself, with, and this is important, benevolence towards you, do everything to have indulgence for your reflection. Look yourself in the eye and start a smile, very simple, it doesn’t have to be excessive, just a simple smile, the smile you give when you meet someone for the first time and you want to please them, that of the shopkeeper towards a customer. Do this experience every day until it is no longer a stress to look at you and to smile at you, that it becomes natural and at that moment, you will have tamed your image and you will be master of it in front of the photographer, because you will know what to give him for his photos.
What you must understand is that a person, when they look at a photo portrait, they are trying to capture the gaze of the person photographed, that there is an exchange of humanity between you two and that is why you have to work on your gaze on yourself so that you can look at the lens, in a confident, relaxed and emphatic way, all this to create the positive a priori of the spectator.
Do not hesitate to move in front of the mirror, to turn around to find the posture that you consider most suitable.
Important ! When shooting, take a good look at the lens, because by looking at the camera optics, you will be looking the viewer in the eye. If you ever look away from the lens, you will have a shifty gaze for the viewer and that is not good.
Don’t hesitate to laugh at yourself, you may feel ridiculous, but that’s normal, don’t worry, you’re alone and ridicule doesn’t kill you.
Do you feel silly, have a nervous laugh? This is normal and the goal is that the nervous side disappears to give way to a relaxed and confident smile. All of this may take a little time and practice, but it will come, rest assured, the secret lies in your desire to familiarize yourself with your image, the desire to make it your own.
There’s just !
What to wear for an agri portrait session?
To know how to dress, everything will depend on what the portrait is intended for and in which setting you must be photographed. If it is in the professional context, you can keep your coat, but avoid putting on a completely new one, because you will look like a Playmobil, take a coat that has been used, but which is relatively clean. If you don’t wear professional attire, take the outfit you wear on a daily basis, stay yourself, don’t try to cross-dress, it’s of no interest, unless there is a particular use specific to it. the photoshoot of course.
Think carefully if necessary about safety accessories if you have to be photographed in professional action, because you must be in total compliance with the rules and the law in your activity, this is an important aspect.
PPE is important for your safety and that of others and don’t forget them, even if you are independent, lead by example…
Nothing is worse than finding one of your photos taken as an example for a blooper on security or professional compliance, so be careful. Normally, the photographer if he is a pro will have to remind you of all this before starting, but it is better to be safe than sorry.
For a professional portrait photo shoot, but in a more civilian context, take outfits you feel comfortable in, it’s better to have patterns and color than plain outfits, but that’s only As an indication, everything will depend on the environment in which you will be photographed.
If you wear glasses on a daily basis, keep them on, but clean the lenses to avoid reflections on traces of impurity. If you wear jewelry, keep it too, because it’s part of your personality. Attention, in a strictly professional context, in the use of certain machines or devices, they may be prohibited, so in this case, it is preferable to remove them to be in compliance.
If you are used to wearing a cap, it will be good to do with and without even if without it is better for the light, but the photographer must do everything to respect the personality of his photographed subject.
In which places to be photographed, which environment
Everything will depend on the specifications of the photographer and the client. Be careful to avoid areas with a demeaning setting, settling basins, cinderblock wall, tarpaulin with tires, corrugated sheet wall… If the photographer has carte blanche and does not know what sauce to eat, here are some ideas of his own offer for quality portraits.
You need to create a more rewarding environment for your activity. If you are farming, you can be close to the animals or in the middle, depending on the conditions and the wishes of the different parties. If you are a milk producer, cows and/or milking are a relevant framework. The fodder stocks are quite classic, the perspective on an alley could be something interesting. Ask the photographer what he should do and based on that, you can make proposals. If you have to take pictures outdoors, remember to find a nice setting, but sheltered by a building in case the weather is bad. Nothing could be simpler than bringing a tractor or a telehandler under cover to take the photo with animals in the background, for example in a barn.
You can also be photographed in a cultivated field, but if the environment is too “empty”, you can offer to put a tractor in the photographer’s field of vision to build a more aesthetic and meaningful set for the viewer.
You can of course pose in an agricultural machine like a tractor, it’s classic, but it works very well of course, you can be in front of your machine park too, everything is possible, do not hesitate to make the proposal to the photographer.
For a beautiful light, even if it is the concern of the photographer, in broad daylight, prefer places in the shade, but close to the light for a reason of quality, of final rendering. If you have to be in direct sunlight, put your back to the sun, because with the sun in your face, you will be dazzled and you will close your eyes, it’s not great. The backlight will be better for you, it is up to the photographer to enlighten you either by his camera settings or with lighting, he is the one who sees, it is his problem.
Avoid having your photograph taken in your office, the administrative framework is of no interest in terms of your image, to show your profession and very often, you do not pay particular attention to the decor and the order present in your office ( don’t take this the wrong way, but from experience, the offices I had to see in agriculture weren’t great, like mine by the way…) and that’s not what people want to see , even if the administration, I am aware, unfortunately takes up more and more space in your work.
Last thing for the shooting location, if there are puddles in your yard, the paths are not clean, there is straw on the ground in the barn or oil stains under the tractor in the shed, don’t panic, it’s normal, we’re on a farm that lives, works every day and everything is fine. The photographer will tell you that he is making a portrait of you and not an inventory, it will not be seen…
Do not hesitate to ask to see the images on the camera to see the result if the photographer does not offer it to you.
What poses to take for agricultural portrait photography?
Again, everything will depend on the needs and the necessary framework for the client and the photographer, I will offer you a series of solutions to help you be more comfortable, more relaxed. In the process of posing, working in front of the mirror takes on its full meaning, because you will normally be more comfortable after having tamed your image in front of your mirror. You will look at the camera lens as if you were staring at your reflection in the mirror, it’s the same principle.
Whether you are a man or a woman, these recommendations will work, regardless of gender, it is up to you to adopt the postures and do not hesitate to modify them if you consider it necessary for the good of your image.
If you are standing, do not keep your arms hanging, first, break your hips by putting one foot in front of the other with the leg in front slightly bent, do not keep your feet together on the same plane. Broken hips will give you a more relaxed posture.
For the hands, you can have one hand on the hip and the other along the body or, instead of the hip, the hand can be with the thumb in the pocket of the pants.
You can turn 3/4 facing the photographer and pivot your shoulders slightly towards the photographer. You then have the option of crossing your arms, this is not a sign of inaction reserved for lazy people.
You then have the option of leaning against a wall, a pole, the rear tire of the tractor, bales of straw, while keeping your arms crossed or alternatively, with one hand along your body and the other in a pocket pants.
You can also have a sitting posture, on a boot, in a machine… there, you can alternate arms crossed, hand in the pocket and the other hanging then, both hands on the thighs for example.
You can just as well help yourself with a tool if it has a justification, take a suitable posture. Feeding the animals is also a very photogenic activity that prevents you from posing too much while remaining natural. Do not hesitate to propose photos with your animals, if you have a poultry farm, take one in your arms for example. If this is not the case, but you have pets, do not hesitate to show yourself with your dog or your cat if they obviously agree, because it is easier to say than ‘to do.
But a portrait with your animals, or your pets, will increase your sympathy capital with the spectators, you will be more human and appreciated for the empathy you have for your animals, it is a contribution to take into account and to do not neglect.
All these tips remain only tips, they are not obligations, adapt and divert these lines if you consider it necessary for your image. My goal is to help you transform a photo session into a pleasant and controlled moment for you, so that you do not feel dispossessed of your image, but that you are fully involved in the result.
If you have any comments, questions, leave me a comment and I will answer you quickly with pleasure.
Stephane
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