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WORKING WITH NUDES
by
Heather Shimmin
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Working with Nudes
Photographing nudes is much more complex than just photographing people without their clothes on. The photographer must pay close attention to detail. Things which you can get away with in regular portraits become intense and glaring errors when shooting nudes. Three things to be aware of when working with nudes are reflections, poses and facial expressions.
REFLECTIVITY OF SKIN
When photographing nudes the biggest problem you are going to have is dealing with the all of the specular highlights on the skin. You are dealing with a lot of surface area from which the light will reflect. Think of a headshot and the hotspots that appear on the forehead. Or what a nightmare it is if the person is bald. Skin is hard to photograph because of its reflective quality. One way to remedy this is to use an anti-sheen powder. The powder takes away the shine. It is similar to foundation powder but is clear. You can use it on every skin tone and type and on men and women alike because it is colorless. Apply it to the shiny areas with a large round brush in even, circular strokes.
The other alternative is to use baby oil, which gives the skin a wet, shiny quality. I use this technique when shooting athletic men, with their chiseled, greek god-like bodies. Body type and look and feel of the final shot will determine whether or not you should use this technique.
BODY POSITIONING
How the model poses (or how you pose her) will make or break your shot. You must know beforehand the type of image you want to produce. If you want a classical, Ingres-like nude, look at examples. Don’t limit it to photographs either. Look at paintings and illustrations to see how they posed the models. Take notes and create a shot list of the poses you want to try. Doing research before the shoot will save you a lot of grief and frustration and make your shoot more successful. It also gives you direction and purpose in the shoot which you will need to communicate to your model.
FACIAL EXPRESSIONS
Like posing, facial expressions need your attention. A slight change in the lips, for example, can change the look and feel of the image. The image can go from innocent school girl to dominatrix in a single frame. I did a series on Biblical icons and was shooting Eve. The model kept giving me these seductive facial expressions, which was not the Eve I was looking for. Slight nuances in the way she smiled or held her head changed the shot from Eve to Jezebel. Again, it goes back to the look you want to achieve. If I had wanted Jezebel, I need to know how to achieve that look.
Working with nudes is challenging but also fun. The more homework you do beforehand, the better your chances of getting the shot you want.
