Muse(s)
First time creating a blog in English. It really felt like the words were not catching on in Dutch, if you know what i mean.
The Dutch language is so easy to make a wrong interpretation with. And it just sounds dull half the time. So, sorry not sorry. Google translate is your friend if you want to read a Dutch version.
The Dutch language is so easy to make a wrong interpretation with. And it just sounds dull half the time. So, sorry not sorry. Google translate is your friend if you want to read a Dutch version.
The subject.
Muse(S), kind of self explainatory.
I have recorded a video on this, and that will drop at some point when it's edited and done...
But what does it mean? So many weird and wrong ideas about this going on. So it feels like some kind of explaination was needed.
not just explaination, but also a bit of a personal view on the subject.
not just explaination, but also a bit of a personal view on the subject.
The Explaination.
Please note, i'm not trying to exclude anyone with what i'm saying here.
Gender does not matter in this subject, muse can be anyone or anything.
I'm just saying this based on the majority. And how the majority seems to think. So i mean no offence in any way.
When you say muse as an artist, no matter if you are a painter, make drawings, or are a photographer, the majority gets this image in their head.
Muse, thats an attractive, cool, hot, pretty, tall and skinny girl, who you create your art with all the time, and you are probably married or in love or whatever else.
In some cases, yes. I know a few artists who married the person they also create most of their art with. Or they figured out that works best for them. Whatever reason you can think of.
Secondly, there is this thought lots of people seem to have. Muse = professional model, who nails every pose, every shot is gold, absolutely failproof,
I'll get back to this later.
If you ask me, and this will make me sound old (well, i am.... deal with it kiddo), but with all the social media and picture perfect stuff you get bombarded with, people seem to get a more and more twisted view on reality.
Everything is perfect elsewhere, nothing goes wrong, these other people have it so easy, they look so great, i can carry on with this forever.
None of what i have mentioned in this part of the blog has anything to do with the meaning about the subject.
Yet, the majority seems to think this way.
Just odd if you ask me.
Meaning.
There was this thing going around a while ago, some photographer said (litteral words) "I have to be in love with my model (the person modeling for them)"
That just took off.... Like a derailed train heading for a wreckage.
And hey, i get it! It took off because it sounded (kind of) creepy. And that certain photographer alreay seemed to have a bad reputation, so that did not help either.
But if i take this and those words apart, yeah. i can understand why it was said, just the way it was said in or the context was just (in the nicest way i can say it) bad timing.
But in a way, i get it. Let me explain it like i would explain it to my 7 year old.
Would you choose to constantly work with a classmate, who is, in your opinion a boring person? Or doesn't like you? Or doesn't understand you or the things you like? Or can only look at you like you are some piece of garbage? Or you can't seem to have a simple conversation with? Whatever else you can think of.
Hell no you would not! So, thats going to be someone you like, if you are working together constantly, or playing together as friends on the schoolyard. Right? Right!
Now read it in the adult world, and specifically in the art world,
Any random person, but one i don't like style-wise, or the way they act, or the way they treat me or whatever. No real chance i would vollunteer to work with them. Doesnt even have anything to do with physical attraction.
Now take the art of dali, Piccasso, Rembrandt. You either like it, you don't like it, you don't care about it, or don't understand it. Art is always a personal opinion or feeling.
Now translate that to someone who you work with a lot to create your art with. You will have to be in love (PHOTOGRAPHICALLY!) with them, or something they can do, in a way,
Does that automatically mean share the same bed, or wanting to share a bed, or anything else? No, ofcourse not.
Does that make sense?
Personal opinion.
Something you can't force, and grows or happens organically.
Waaaaaay back, when i first picked up a camera, my girlfriend at the time (just happened to be so, but if she wasn't and was just s friend it would have been the same) was a career model. I have talked about that in a different blog before, so i won't go into detail.
You know what the best part for me as a wannabe photographer was?
Not the fact that i thought she was the most beautiful woman in the world, not the fact we shared a bed, not the fact she made me happy.
But the fact that she was more than happy to just sit there, in a random damn grassfield or park or anywhere else, to just let me fiddle with my camera and lenses, without a single clue what i was doing.
And most of the pictures we took weren't even posed. But all centered around her eyes, or stare. Thats what made those shots. The rest, like the location, outfit, and sometimes pose were little things that added to the story, but never the main focus. Its just secondary to the main story in the eyes.
Someone you are comfortable around, who doesn't expect amazing pictures every single shoot, even if you deliver them anyway.
Even if it takes you hours to get your lighting set up, or your settings right.
This doesn't work if things feel awkward. If you feel rushed because your model or cliënt is there for a photoshoot and expects you to be ready and deliver your best work.
I can easily take this story to present time. When i decided i wanted to do something in the fine-art direction.
This style, the way i shoot it now, would have never existed without Elle being the model for that first try out.
I bought a new lightshaper for that photoshoot, no clue how i was going to work with that. The setup was kind of simple, Big oil drum and a black backdrop, which i changed in the edit to a more painterly feel.
But this just involved her sitting there, sitting there some more, waiting, hearing me damn all my equipment to hell and back. And yet, still being able to produce one of the pictures from my personal top 5 shots i made.
As pictured below.
I'm 99,9% certain anyone else would have told me to call when i got my shit sorted out with my lights, or got sick of me being a Dutch (Brabo) who does not have many kind words for stuff that doesnt work the way i want to.
Not the model tho, its more like, "damn this softbox, damn it straight to hell and have the devil shove it up her nose and send it back to me afterwards" And you would actually hear the voice change in tone when i say, "but not you, you're doing fabulous as always" Even when just playing a game on her phone or talking to me about random things.
I'm not that bad of a guy or something i guess, but it takes a special kind of person to understand how i do things and why.
This isn't really frustration or something, i know it would be dumb luck if a whole new set-up would work perfectly in one go. But you know, if you really try hard to accomplish something you just want it to work.
I mean there will be lots of models, and i will put that to the test just for statistics before i post this blog, who will say i would do that to help out or to get some cool pictures. And i'm sure they are all great people, but it's gonna be 90% people i don't know, am not comfortable around, or trust.
And straight away that would change the whole idea, or the way i feel (read rushed, or insecure, or like a faillure, lots of bad things)
Screenshot from a poll on my instagram where i asked, would you model or be a test subject for a photoshoot, even if it means getting no pictures, spending 90% of your day just sitting here waiting while i curse my lights and equipment to damnation?
Usually its a photographer that should make a model or cliënt feel comfortable and confident. And that is true!
But believe it or not, i'm not a robot, eventhough people who i have known for nearly all my life call me terminator.
With stuff like this i very much need someone who makes me feel confident.
With stuff like this i very much need someone who makes me feel confident.
And that translates to my head telling me, i am not going to fail, or the extended version i am not going to fail this person sitting here.
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People seem to be thinking i am this very cofident guy, well... not reaaly... not always.
Not in dayly life, but with photoshoots, i usually am not very confident and comfortable arround teenagers. Younger kids is even worse, but i don't really photograph them much anyway.
I ended up in this situation by doing a give away photoshoot.
I didn't mention you could only enter if 18 or above. Dumb mistake?
At this point i am very happy i forgot that part.
This at the time 14 year old girl, by now known as the dark princess, won this give away.
Something i never forget when contacting someone, is if you are under 18 at least one own parent or legal guardian needs to come along and stay present during the photoshoot.
So, needless to say that had to happen.
She actually won two give aways back to back. but the 2nd time i ended up drawing 2 extra winners because of that. Just to make sure this would not rub people the wrong way, thinking they never had a chance anyway,
But yeah, eventhough she looks cool. Now i'm doing a photoshoot with a teenager. I'm sure she was nervous, but me..... I'm sure my anxiety was visible from outer space.
Lieke, brought the coolest mom. Same sense of humor, and like i usually do when doing photoshoots, she immediatly relaxed the whole thing down. No stress, just have some fun, i'll just sit here with a cup of tea, and if you need anything, or if i can help just let me know.
Yeah.... still i'm working with a teenager, so i have to mind my attitude, mind my language, mind how i explain stuff, mind much more than i am used to. Help?!?!
You know what happened? I invited her to come back again, and again, and again. Ofcourse with her mon Anita tagging along, because eventhough this was such a great photoshoot, and not because i'm some kind of weird creep (well, maybe in a good way), no matter if any parent would trust me completely, Ofcourse i would make sure she would return home safely, and protect her with my life if needed, i just don't want to be responsible for someone else's children. But hey, with such a chill and cool mom, i'm happy she tags along. Hell, even her sister Tara tagged along the 3rd? shoot we did.
Sometimes, out of dumb luck you end up getting surrouded by the loveliest people in the world.
Let me just drop another picture in between......
So, this particular picture, the fake wound was made by me. This happened because i got a question on instagram, asking if there was something besides photographing someone that i would love to try?
So i said yeah, i used to create fake wounds but that has been so long ago i can't even remember the exact process. But a big backpiece would be so cool!
That triggered a lot of people to send me a dm, with if you need a test subject, i'm down for it.
One of them was Laura. And after actually already deleting the story because i was not really going to do that, because it basically involves having to touch someone. I said, well if you would be up for that, so am i.
But this litterally means me saying, ok, i trust you more than you even know.
Sounds odd huh? Because i'm not the one getting touched or having cutting tools near my skin to cut open some dried up liquid latex.
I just don't let many people close, i have my reasons. Physicality, even if its just putting one finger on someone's back to hold a corset lace in place, rather not, or i just say no mostly.
Same kind of story, that takes someone special (in the most positive way) otherwise i will gladly decline the idea no matter how cool it is.
The idea was, if we still have time we can take a few pictures. And we litterally had 5 minutes or so to do that, the make-up process took that long!
Love that shot, actually quite proud of it, But read it again, it was quite possible we never got tok take that shot due to time restrictions, it was not a mandate. Yet she sat there. Like a trooper. No complaints, no sighing out of boredom, just sitting there having a chat with me, while i applied the make-up.
And most people know by now i don't really shoot cosplays anymore. Unless its something i want to shoot.
But in this case, i'm down to shoot any cosplay she can throw at me, and i will absolutely love and enjoy doing that photoshoot.
It means you can create your art or contribute to the art of someone you have a lot of appreciation for. Bounce off eachother, lean on eachother, how ever you want to call it.
Inspirational.
It's being on the same wavelenght when it comes to liking stuff, art stuff or whatever else you can relate on. Literally someone who just feels your vibe or understands why you think the way you think.
But most of all, someone who inspires you, in any way. No matter if its their appearance, their aura, their sense of humor, their gerneral interests, can be anything.
For me it's as simple as seeing a very cool location or simple photo spot somewhere, and place a person on that spot in my mind, and trying to figure out what kind of outfit, or what kind of posing, or what kind of theme would make that image in my head, a work of art/my art.
And every now and than, this actually comes to life.
But inspirational can also be something complimentary to a creative mind.
Action/Reaction
I don't really know if everyone has this, but earlier in my life i have been involved in martial arts. One of the things tought to me was looking at body movement. 99% of people in the world have a patern of movements. Say they take a step to the left and turn out their hip, this is usually followed up by the same or similar to move. It's in their nature/system just like walking for instance. step left, step right, step left, step right......
Another thing that gives away possible follow up movements, is physically not being able to do a certain body movement from a particular position.
Say someone is standing with their legs as wide as possible facing you/the camera, fat chance they will turn their back to you without closing their legs (a little). At least i would never expect that to happen.
If you work with someone a lot, you can train yourself to start recongnising their paterns or movements,
As simple as knowing they way they walk.
Does someone swing their arms a lot when walking, or is it more like a stiff military march type of walk. Things like that.
I implemented what i learned in martial arts into my photography a little.
But it can also be as simple as triggering a reaction. Whatever you do can influence what the other person does.
Here is a part i will not go into in depth. Because its too easy to use in the wrong way. But photography can be very much a mind game.
I always make sure i never take a step closer to someone or get up quite close without them being ok with it. Know your damn boundaries!
But when you work with someone a lot, you should exactly know their boundaries and what is ok and what is not.
Imagine a wide lense (say 35mm) and wanting a close up shot, it means you have to be very close to the subject/model unless you want to crop the picture a lot.
I usyally use this lense for my high angle portraits. And eventhough i have to hold my camera up high and stand much higher than the model.
Fact. It can feel intimidating, like some kind of big angry giant staring down at you.
This is a story from back in the day (i'm old ok.....) when i took pictures with my girlfriend at the time. Actually how i picked this up.
She hated it if she felt (even more than she actually already was compared to me) little.
The way i still got to take cool shots from above, is pointing the camera where i want it to point, and lower my body a little more. even if that meant the shot could have been wider if i was standing up straight.
Even a blind man would have been able to see, that me lowering slightly, brought a lot more confidence in her, made her feel much more comfortable. It's as simple as that.
Whatever you do, will always trigger a reaction from the other person. sometimes a big reaction, sometimes just a little change in their eyes.
Pay attention the next photoshoot you do. Just a tip.....
Conclusion.
You already read all the parts about, understanding your way of thinking, making you feel comfortable/confident, not having expectations etc etc.
So, i won't repeat all of them again.
And what makes someone a good (art)muse.
But one of the best parts, i did not mention yet, is growing together and learning together.
They let you make mistakes, in order to learn. And i don't mean mistakes like "oops i touched your booty" and "oops i did it again" You're not Britney Spears dammit!
But they let you take shots that could turn out horrible, because of weird light, weird angles, odd compositions or whatever.
Vice versa i let them make mistakes. Even if i know a certain pose combined with a certain light will make it look like someone has 16 chins under their chin. I even show them the shots, i don't quickly delete them.
Because they know right away they should not do tha move again with that particular light.
Please don't do this to people you don't know or cliënts.... Trust me on that.
But someone i work with a lot will, without even knowing pick up how my light setup works, and they will (sometimes with some guidance from my side) base their moves and pose around that light.
I can tell you for a fact, this is the best form of working if you just want to create, experiment and learn.
And again, this is something that will grow organically. You can't force it.
I know a few photographers with very cool models, their pictures always look cool, and they look real. It's not a model playing an act.
But no matter how good of a model they are, no matter how experienced, no matter how good they can act.
I will NEVER get that exact look out of them, or that exact expression or stare or confidence or whatever else. No matter how good of a photographer i am.
Thats just the way the cookie crumbles.......
Final words
I create because i want to create. Not for social media, not for you, not for anyone or anything but me, and the person i am working with.
And if you ever thought, oh yeah right, easy for you to say, you have this nice camera, or nice studio, or this amazing model in your shot....
And you still think that.....
You might want to read this all again......
I/we don't nail every shot, have struggles here and there, don't barge into eachothers door every 5 minutes/every day/ every week, make mistakes, don't expect to always end up with that amazing work of art (even if we know its gonna be something cool anyway, regardless of what we do), and its always ok, to do something extra, or stop earlier, or plan two days in a row.
Like i said before, at some point i just realized i already am blessed to get to work with the (for me personally) best. And i would not trade that for anything in the world, not even if Natalie Portman (yes, the only more regular looking person i'm a fan of) would show up at my doorstep begging me to take her photo. Sorry Natalie.
Hell, the same week i realized this, i actually told a dream model who i would have loved to work with, and wanted to work with for a long time, No. No, i don't want to do this photoshoot with you.
People who need to know, they know. Don't ask me for details.
These people, have no idea how much they helped me troughout my photography journey.
And its not just them ofcourse, i mean, i had the chance to bring the stuff i learned in to practice here and there.
And when you receive feedback from someone telling you, "i did not know i could do this" and "damn i actually look sexy" and eventhough i had no doubt she could do this, and i told her, She threw that straight back to me with "yes, because i had you as the photographer, and made me feel confident and comfortable"
Worth much much more than any amount i could have charged for a photoshoot.
Worth much much more than any amount i could have charged for a photoshoot.
And one more, when you talk photographically in love..... See below,
Whoa..... You wanted to stop reading?
Final one.
I can talk about how great someone is all day long. Explain stuff to you, try to make you see or understand why i do what i do.
Here is the thing......
And here is the only reason you should envy me.
I can do all this weird crap, surround myself with the best people i could have wished for, but my wife still puts up with nall these shenannigans, us making a mess every footstep we take, shootin themes here and there that are all but suitable for the faint of heart.
Without her approval and trust i would not be doing this.
Take care now, bye bye then.................