How to Work in Front of the Camera

Working in front of the camera can be harder than you think and practicing can go along way before booking your first job or scheduling your first test photography session. It does come natural for some however; most beginners require some guidance on the subject. Well, this may sound silly to you; I suggest practicing in front of the mirror with your favorite song playing in the background. Move around and take notice of your face and its angles. Do the same with your body positions. Find the ones that are most flattering for you and memorize them. Then practice smiling naturally. Later, you can tackle different emotions ranging from deliriously happy to tearful. Your ability to express these emotions to camera will go along way in your career.

Often times, an embarrassment holds us back from letting go and working the camera with confidence. If this is a problem for you, sign up for an improvisational acting class. This will require to act out various scenarios in front of a group of people. This should eventually ease your fears of looking silly. Look through various catalogs, magazines and advertise prints for different poses and expressions. Memorize at least 10. So if you are ever shooting and your nerves get the best of you, you have those to rely on. Remember when booking a job, time is money and you want to leave a good impression with the photographer and the client for future bookings.

When booking your very first job, the best advice I can give you is fake it until you make it. Pretend you know what you are doing until you actually know what you are doing. This is the advice I was given early on in my career and it served me well. And lastly, whatever you do in front of the camera, do it with confidence and leave your embarrassment at the door. This is Cristina Dehart on ExploreModeling.com.


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