Customer Reviews

Posing Techniques for Photographing Model Portfolios

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Most of the "posing guides" I've seen fall into two catagories. There are the "show 'em a thousand pictures of a babe in a swimsuit in various poses" books. I find those totally useless. I'd rather tear pages out of fashion magazines and make my own book than look at the same girl posed a 1000 different ways in the same black swimsuit.

And then there are the books that are obviously done by someone specializing in senior (as in high school senior, not old folks...) pictures with the requisite wooden rail fence poses, the stairstep poses, and... well if you've seen the books you know exactly what I mean. In fact, Amherst, the publisher of this book, has several of them. I'm not knocking them, it's just that they really are not what I'm looking for...

So it was a pleasant surprise to discover Mr. Pegram's book. While he aims it at producing pictures for models portfolios, it's not to hard to figure out that models want to show off exceptional pictures in their portfolios. Thus the poses are contemporary, sexy -- when appropriate, and generally a cut above the run of the mill. Oh, did I mention the models are all female?

If you're expecting the usual 1/3 of the book on how to use a camera, choose lights, and read a light meter... Surprise, surprise... that ain't none of that. God bless Mr. Pegram!

The images are excellent, the models are attractive, the writing is succint and well done, and there is sufficient information that even a grizzled old pro photographer can probably pick up a few pointers.

[...]

Trust me, if you're looking for a posing guide that looks like pictures you'd want to make, take a look at this book.

I've not been shooting models for very long, so I'd say that I am in the beginner/intermediate category.

So far, I've been tearing out photos from Vogue, Numero, French and others and tried to duplicate and then improvise, but I've always felt that posing and placement of the models was kind of mysterious and "difficult" to get a real grip on. (how to elongate a model, how to make the butt smaller, how to pose the model in a way that leads the eye trough the photo etc)

-So I've basically used "what looks good" thus far (and I see after reading this book, that some of my past shoots have lots of room for improvement :) )

- It can be easy to get lost in the process during a shoot, thinking and stressing to get the light right, -and forget to instruct and help and tweak the model correctly, often resulting in photos that need to be cropped to hide bad hands, or simply scrapped due to a bad pose, caused by bad instructions, for example.
(I mainly work with new/inexperienced models and often need to instruct and tweak their pose, this is a great learning tool for both model and photographer)

I mean, I've managed "fair" trough improvisation, try/fail, but it was only after reading this book that I started to really understand more on how and why this and that works - and why some of my previous attempts have failed.

The book is comprehensive and well laid out, it covers and explains the cause and effect from posing the feet and legs, to fingers, hands and arms and also the body and face.

I think that the photos in the book compliment the text very well, what I really liked, was that the author not only show the "best" pose, he also often show everything from bad, to fair, to good to excellent posing -and all complemented with very understandable text captions.

I've seen enough tutorials from the classic 70's to know that this wasn't what I was looking for, this book is fresh, modern (imo) and is written by a guy that not only knows his craft, he also knows the industry very well.

Highly recommended!

OH
Norway

Unlike most books on modeling and model photography, this book has more than just a bunch of pictures of pretty women. The author takes the time to explain posing concepts like creating an 's curve' in the positioning of the body. Great detail is given to graceful hand posing. It is the little things that differentiate between a good photograph and a great one.

This is well written and well illustrated. Definetly worth the money

The entry-level is not beginners for this one. Can't be, to shoot a professional portfolio you must have a handsome bit of knowledge already. Having that, this books has still more to offer ! Billy Pegram leads you on the way to gradually improve you pictures. There is very much attention to details that are easily overlooked otherwise, like hands and feet positioning, or where to crop and why. It shows you the possibilities for shooting a portfolio that contains commercial, fashion, editorial etc. pictures, and what sets them apart. With a host of examples, Billy shows that apparently small changes can make quite a difference. It covers more than shooting for portfolio's, for this is info that you can use time and time again for all kinds of photographic activities that have to do with portraying people or making a statement using a model. Being a professional photographer I can only say: everyone can learn something here. Lots of images are a joy to see !

Posing Techniques by Billy Pegram is a very useful book, particularly for someone starting in the field of model photography. It is well illustrated with large pictures showing how (and occasionally, how not) to pose the model. All of the sections provide good tips. I found the section on hand positioning particularly helpful. The book leans more toward fashion shots than glamour and has some useful words on how to produce a port that contains what the model needs (rather than what you like).

Recommended for study.

rps

This book is all about the finer points of posing a model. It covers hands, feet and other subtle things to make a good portrait a great one. After reading this I have noticed shortcomings in my own work and how to fix them. This book teaches the body language that is used in portraits and you will notice it in every magazine you pick up afterwards. You should see improvement after reading this resource.

Bottom line - this book is just so so in terms of its depth and educational value. I noticed that many of the "instructional" sequences didn't line up with the images being presented and a number didn't have images to represent what was being taught at all. Maybe it's just me, but I'm a visual person, especially with posing, and cannot visualize a pose through reading about it. I have to see it. Call outs would have been nice to help pin-point the dynamics of the poses that were illustrated. I did get some basic value from the book, but not what I thought I'd get overall.

The title of this book suggests it is very specific and, indeed, two of it's six chapters are about posing techniques. The rest of it, though, is a mishmash of very general tips ("make a fake-portfolio of magazine images you like" or some variation of it is repeated over and over again) and useless definitions (there is an entire chapter defining what fashion, or glamour, or commercial photography is - someone buying a book as specific as the title suggests does not need this).

Even in the useful parts, the book suffers from lack of structure and many of the examples contradict the guidelines presented on the text. It really seems this book was made in a hurry, and the end result is a big disappointment. I gave it two stars because there is, indeed, good information lost in the confusion, but it really should have much more.

I'm planning on doing senior portraits for high school kids in the near future and wanted to know some of the finer points about posing people. This book does go into great detail on things that my other books (see my reviews) doesn't. For example, the hand can be placed in graceful positions or it can really throw off an other wise good shot. For a gal that wants to be a model, this will help you to understand what the photographer is trying to do, and how you can avoid positions that he would ask you to change. In posing a model, you are not just out to get a picture of the person, but you are using the person to sell the product. This book will show how to use the model to draw your attention to the product. Where as in a portrait shot you are probably just drawing your attention to the subjects eyes and the other features sort of take a secondary place. I think there is enough in this book to help you avoid some common errors. I rate books on how they might have prevented me from making an error that would cost me the price of the book. If you shoot a session and every shot has the same major flaw that the book showed was a no no, you have lost the price of the book many times over. On the other hand, if the book has showed you how to make that shot better, and you make a chunk of change from it, then the book has done its job. I think this book will pay for itself in the long run. Thanks, Ric.

A book that goes beyond the standard elements of posing and focuses on specialized techniques. Criteria is aimed at showcasing the model's ability and applying it to market demands. Ideal for both photographers new to model portfolios as well as those with experience.