The Fist The Claw and The Thunderbird. Hands have a life of their own. Even when the person is seemingly relaxed those hands betray everything you are feeling. The tension, the awkwardness can all be seen in the hands. I can always tell the skill level of a photographer by what the hands are doing in an image. Yes I break some old school hand rules, I’m a rule breaker. But my goal is to create Body language with my direction not Poses. Because Hands can’t pose either. I want to create a mood in my image, direct a style and a feeling. But what I really want is for the viewer to BELIEVE IT. To believe that she wasn’t ‘Posing’ but relaxed and looking like she believed she was the most beautiful girl in the world and not stiff and scared in front of a camera being posed by a photographer. SO now that you’re learning my rules tell me, when you look at the shots you are taking DO you believe them? or do they look like Poses?
Your homework this week, lots of hand work. Flow with the hands, soften to Ballet hands. Turn hands side on to the camera to make them smaller and more feminine. Bring the hands up to the face, but NOT clamped on to the side of the face. NEVER bring the hand up between the face and hair covering the ear. That is what I affectionately refer to as “Talking on the phone’ Play with hair, hands up to shoulders but don’t cross over the diamond. Changing hands in an image and changing expressions can change an image so much. Mix it up, direct your client to move. Shooting multiple static images with different expressions will sell you one shot. Changing hands expression and composition even slightly will give you One Pose Five compositions which = multiple sales.
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The most simple little hand gestures will change your images.
Wow…after studying your how to pose several times (and it is so hard to break old habits!) I take a look at what I thought were good images from previous sessions, and I want to shoot myself! I love the way you see, and how you teach..thank you for sharing. And thank you so much for the nearly daily emails..what an unexpected bonus!
The fist, claw and thunderbird…awesome reminder!
Thanks so much for sharing. We appreciate all that you do!!
I love your posts Sue!!! Such small changes can make such a dramatic difference. ♥
I’ve read what you offer your clients for portrait pieces…. I’m curious if you could do a post on some other product options that we could consider for putting together packages. I’m having a heck of a time trying to put myself in the clients shoes & set up some packages…. Thanks so much!
Funny, I totally noticed the thunderbird hands on a recent Groupon ad
There’s nothing tougher to overcome than double thunderbirds! Thanks so much, Sue, for adding this to our vocabularies.
I’ll work hard this week to diminish claws and thunderbirds from our work.
What about the HOOK Sue??
Why do you hate Pirates?
Aaaaargh!
You are amazing at what you do!
I have watched the downloads from Creative Live over and over again, and I each time I watch them, I have a new “aha” moment over something that has finally “sunk in”. Best money I have ever spent….thank you so much for sharing your talent and your heart!!
Ohh good to know! I have 3 shoots this week and am so guilty of the talking on the telephone hands!! Will work on this this week for sure THANKS!
Yes! Yes! Yes! Great pointers. Just some items we all have let fall tru the cracks.
Thanx Susan
I second the request for price lists & packaging? I live in a small town where our largest employer recently shut down. What were your prices starting out? My clients pay for their own hair/makeup at a local salon where I’ve offered a gift voucher for a free sitting, but haven’t actually determined my sitting fee. I also get requests for baby & maternity shoots, is it ok to have different price lists for different types of shoots or should I stick to one?
A great reminder after your creativelive workshop! Awesome tips! Thank you!
You have got to be thee best instructor I have ever seen! Loved your Creative Live sessions, and so glad I signed up for your blog postings!! I loved how you showed how to thin arms in PS without using warp but simply the transform tool, would you consider doing a quick demo of that again for a blog post sometime? Just like you commented – So much faster! Thank you so much for sharing your talents, wish I didn’t live on the other side of the world. So close but so far away, in Canada
sorry but what is a thunderbird hand?
thumb and fingers straight and close together
I’m so buying your CL DVD! Loved you. Kicking myself I didn’t take advantage of the $99 deal.
P
OK. What are thunderbird hands? Must have been doing the potty pose during that part… Is that when fingers are all splayed out and hands are flat?
Great to look at it again! I just watched it last night the chapter on your video about hands!! I never know what to do with them, I get to excited with light and backgrounds and always forget to look at their hands! Will be the cherry on my cake! MUST FOCUS ON HANDS!!!
take care!
<Miss you my dear! So great to watch you on the video! Felt like I was back in your old garage, having fun with the girls.
thank you. and what is claw hand?
I love love love your persona, technique, and teaching as a photographer. I caught bits and pieces of you on CL, but bought the package and cannot wait to watch it all ASAP. I’m honestly taking my business from one genre to another, just based on what you taught. I’d been trying to decide what to do and what’s right for me and your teaching gave me such clarity in what’s right for me. Thank you greatly! I look forward to your blogs and comments. Though, I do want to know where you purchased/found your CL traveling light set up that you recently showcased on a video blog via facebook?
thank you, Darcy Ferris
LOVE it – Sue have you seen this month Vanity Fair with Julia Roberts?
After training my eye with your generous help, I was underwhelmed with one of the spreads inside – I think it makes her look like one arm is amputated and her other hand looks clawish… http://bit.ly/zHnPv2 Is it just me? I feel like she should caress her hair on the outside with her right hand, and lay that left hand along the couch’s arm.
This is so cool your photos really show how elegant hands can look if place properly, great post, wonderful images.
Sue, I saw your subscribers post in my news feed this morning. I know you struggle with trying to get the grammar and punctuation correct, hell….a lot of us do. I just wanted you to know I read your blog for inspiration and I understand completely everything you’re saying and love your written voice. You’re a creative. You’re an amazing marketer. Regardless of misspelled words or wrong punctuation this is you. And… I like who you are! xxx
Sorry if you end up with this comment twice, but the first one I posted seemed to disappear !
I LOVED watching you on CreativeLive, I even watched the reruns. I am a keen amateur photographer and I learnt so much from watching and listening to you.
I thought you might be interested in my two latest blogs about my self portraits I took using your methods and me channeling you.
http://karen-somewhereovertherainbow.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/sue-bryce-inspired.html
http://karen-somewhereovertherainbow.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/impersonating-sue-bryce.html
Keep up the amazing work and I hope you get all the success you deserve.X
Thanks for sharing – never know what to do with hands so most useful!
We in the CreativeLive chats can’t stop seeing the term Double Thunderbird in the chat feeds… You have certainly made an impression with our audience. Since i was working upstairs, i didn’t have much of a chance to watch while you were filming. I have now watched through the show twice. So much to learn. Along with Chin Pan, I am now obsessed with hand shape.
ballet hands…
Is double thunderbird ok on a Newborn photo ..hahaahah JK
I LOVE your work Sue!!!! you are amazing and I wanted to thank you so much for your Creative Live you did and how much info you were able to get across to us in such a short amount of time. You truly are gifted! It was my favorite CL session. Keep doing what you do. We will all be watching in Awe
Great post – you need to believe the pose for it to be believable … that great advice. Thanks
thanks for sharing this Sue! your creative live bit was great too!
This was such a great class. Sue has taught me much! Many thanks.
Sue, I did this set-up/pose yesterday and flowed right through it. Every frame is absolutely amazing. It’s incredible how much I have taken from you and applied to my shooting. I used to have such a hard time with posing and now it is seamless. I can’t thank you enough.
Sue Bryce, I love you. Ilove what you do, who you are, what you give us. I watched creative live with you about 20 times by now and today I purchased your posing guide even that I can not afford it. You are just amazing, warm, inspiring, beautiful woman. Thank you
beautiful Jess!!