I had the honour of taking pictures of Atlanta Johnson, an actress who is based in London. She is amazing to photograph! She has such an expressive face and those baby blue eyes are captivating. I was amazed at how she came up with new poses within seconds and how she was able to emote so effortlessly. She really is a photographers dream and watching her in action was like attending a masterclass on modelling.
When I started this blog I quickly realised that modelling isn’t as easy as it looks. I remember being so frustrated with some of the early pictures I’d taken of myself. I struggled to understand why my pictures looked so lacklustre despite spending ages getting my makeup perfect. I used to think that you just needed to look nice and smile for the camera, but to get that ONE shot that communicates without words you need to build some solid modelling skills. I’ve now learnt that you have to be aware of your light source, the placement of every part of your body, how to work with your physical flaws, how little tweaks of your facial expression can change a whole picture – the list goes on and I’m constantly learning! Watching TV shows like America’s Next Top Model has actually provided me with lots of helpful tips on modelling and I especially love the last ten minutes of each show when the photographs of the models are critiqued (I usually fast forward to the end of each show to avoid all the cat fights, LOL!).
I’ve also discovered that modelling requires a lot of creativity and this is one reason why some models are sought after more so than others. You can have an amazing photographer but if the model isn’t able to bring some creativity to the shoot, the result is very mundane pictures that leave no lasting impression on the viewer. Modelling is like a language where one uses only their body and gestures to communicate. I’m comforted by the fact that learning to speak a language fluently takes time, thus with more practice I’ll hopefully get better and better. So the next time you’re about to take that selfie, think of what you want to create and have fun experimenting with modelling.
Enjoy the pictures below and watch out for Atlanta Johnson….something tells me we’ll be seeing more of her in the days to come. You can follow Atlanta on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
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