Who's in charge here?!?
/You Da Boss
In every shoot there needs to be a leader. If it's a commercial shoot there is an art director running the show. This is, no doubt, less than 1% of the shoots taking place on any given day. Most shoots are Trades and of those many are for fun and practice.
We will be talking about those trade shoots.
In every shoot someone needs to be in charge, someone who is watching it all and looking for opportunities to get a great shot. This is not to say there shouldn't be collaboration of ideas. Some of my best work came from the creative minds of others. This is a good time to point out that the sooner you can surround yourself with the best makeup and hair talent the better. It's always a mix of everyones style that make a shoot rock.
In any endeavor that involves a group of people there has to be someone guiding the group. I think there are many reasons this needs to be the photographer.
The photographer has the rights to the images. Why would the photographer allow a shoot to get out of hand and head in directions he or she knows are pictures they don't want or need?
There is only one person who can see what your camera sees, you, the photographer. You can see how the light is hitting the scene, what angles don't have a telephone pole sticking out of someone's head, and can move to get just the right framing. No one else can see what you can. That puts the entire responsibility on you to take the time to think, look, and imagine what can be done in any given situation to get that shot. Everyone else is counting on YOU to do just that.
And, last but far from least, your reputation is on the line. You are only as good as your last shoot. The only direction you want to go is up. Better. More creative.
Democracy
I never hesitate to try something, my idea or someone else's on the set. Some of what I thought were not stellar ideas turned out to totally rock. And some turned out to be, well, not stellar ideas.
But I always call the shots. Pun intended. My camera is down at my side most of a shoot. I have to see it in my head, then see it form up with the lights, and THEN I bring the camera up and start capturing it. The constant nagging of that little voice asking, "Is there a better angle?", "How's the lighting look?" is always there.
Failure is an option
To many times in the past I've sat down to go over a shoot at my workstation late at night, after all is shot and everyone has gone home to find myself saying, "What the hell is this!" or "What was I thinking?!?"
Failure is an option you can avoid.
So, now I'm also thinking about what I'm putting on that memory card and how my job will be to create from it. If I shoot crappy work there is nothing Photoshop is going to help me out of.
All the more reason why YOU have to be in charge of a shoot. Everyone is counting on YOU to bring out amazing shots from all the effort being put into it. YOU are most likely the most experienced of the group. You know your skills and limitations. You know what you can do with that shot in post.
Say NO when the little voice tells you to
One last thing, if you haven't guessed it yet. Say NO when that's the answer. Say this isn't working when it's not.
The finesse in saying no or this isn't working and not hurting anyone's feelings is a bit of a bedside manner and important to keep the creative energy and excitement high. For me it's usually something like 'that's a great idea but I can't get the angle or lighting to make that one rock'. I guess I take the responsibility of a failed idea on myself so it's not an issue for anyone to feel bad about, and then move to the next set quickly to keep it rolling. After all, there are no bad ideas...except around cliffs and rail road tracks.
Just remember, the photographer is in charge of a shoot. Period. As the captain you are the one that's going down with the ship if it sinks. It's on you.
There are times you CAN lay down on the job though....
