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Worst shoot ever
Hrm - worst... I'd have to say it would have been a promo job/shoot I did with a photographer friend mine and a the body painting artist I've worked with a couple of times. They were fantastic as usual, but the day went roughly like this: *Woke up at 3:30am. Stomach problems. Brief starting issues with car. Forgot to turn off coffee pot, had to run back in and turn it off. Left 15 min late. *Drove to photog's place to meet up and go to MUA's - MUA never woke up. *Drove to St. Pete to another model's home where she was painted (got a little lost on the way - had to stop for stomach trouble which thankfully didn't come back the rest of the day) *Followed other model's asshole husband to the stadium - very difficult to keep them in sight. Got there around 10am. *Was sweating and had to dry off before the paint could be applied. *Radio station people didn't like the pasties - wanted me to wear more around the boobs - had to find a last minute solution. *Only had a very small space to shoot in, people kept walking through, only got a couple of shots before the tube top was tied in place. *I hadn't realized I was going to be walking around in thongs, a tube top, and paint in front of about two thousand country music fans. I had fun, don't get me wrong, but it was a bit startling. *The paint ran in a few area due to sweat - particularly under the breasts. *Ant bites. Many. Mostly on my left foot, middle toe. *Anywhere there wasn't black paint, I got a sunburn. I guess black blocks the sun more. I still have a "W" on my chest and birds in flight on my right arm. *The radio station asked me to have a picture taken with a country music star. I said ok. They told me an hour later that I was to lie and say that I was a fan and had decided to get painted up of my own volition in order to win tickets to the show. I hate country music. But I did it. I had already agreed. *I had to put high heels back on after my paint was touched up so that I could walk through the stadium. I couldn't find where I was supposed to meet the radio station people, was given poor directions, and had to walk around the stadium for 30 minutes. My feet were in A LOT of pain at this point. *I finally found where I was supposed to go, and couldn't get there b/c I needed a wristband, and they were out of them. *A middle-aged woman grabbed my painted, bare ass after a full day of drunken redneck men managing to keep their hands off of it. *Found a radio station person, was led down to the meet & greet, took the picture, left, and actually cried from relief when I got to the car. I was sunburned, ant bitten, sweaty, hungry, tired, and in pain from the shoe situation. *Got to the car around 8pm. Got home around 10:30pm. *BTW - I hadn't eaten since 3:30am. *The picture with the country star is horrific. I mean really, really bad. Don't get me wrong, I had fun for the majority of the event, and I really like working with that photographer and the body painter. In fact, I fully plan on working with both of them again. It was just... well... a long, rough day. If anyone knows a way to get rid of the tan lines, I would appreciate some hints! Jul 14 06 10:46 am Link  e-string wrote: It natural to get aroused when shooting sexy pictures. On serveral occasions I'm certain that my model was also aroused. How you behave in this situtaion says whether you're a professional or not. Jul 14 06 02:03 pm Link Wow, Erica, what a great sport you were to do all of that!!! I think I would have bailed after the MUA refused to get out of bed... Jul 14 06 02:10 pm Link It is natural to get aroused when shooting sexy pictures. On serveral occasions I'm certain that my model was also aroused. How you behave in this situtaion says whether you're a professional or not. Agreed. It's really funny how some pretend as though that is never the case. It is definitely not uncommon for a model and/or photographer to become aroused while shooting. The key is to use it. If you are the photographer, use it to create your vision. If you are a model, use to connect with the camera. Jul 14 06 02:30 pm Link this is hardly the WORST but a bad one i call, at hotel prices, from San Fran to confirm plans for the days shoot Semi Nude TFP (which i rarely did, but his work was AWESOME) all ok as discussed before So, I went to airport by shuttle with all my luggage from London to get a car (and map) and drove to san jose to meet this 'star of the photography world' I was bang on time. He wasn't ready for me Although i was all ready AND made up (while driving and looking at maps, so as not to be late for planned shoot) He meets me, just hanging out, across the street When he showed me in, the place opposite, he barely looked at me, but directed me toward the bathroom TO GET MADE UP while he got set up. This took ages. I decide more make up might be a good idea. (It was a ''basic'' bathroom also!!) Eventually he's ready - but with these cheesy back drops and furniture set up 'Um, Fine Art Nude?' I remind him. 'Let's just try some like this first' Dressed. Ok by me. After telling me that he wanted to put the next (undressed) set on a paid site of his own, we take an itsy break ;-) he shows me his site, at my request it's nothing like the stuff he sent me to, or has on his ports. Now it comes out that that work was SOMEONE ELSES *the same guy whose studio we just snuck into! but what i saw and judged him on is still on his pages, even main stuff on OMP But that NOT his work. OK. I suggest that the kind of images we have discussed and agreed on for today (simple shadowy fine art and some colourful versions to be collaged cleverly for a calender) is it unlikely to be suitable content for a paid site like that He appraises me - naked - and offers, 'Perhaps you'e right' !!!!!!!!! Then states that hes not gonna be getting anything he ''can use'' unless its explicit and teasing magazine style for this site He tries to tempt me with a free page!! and MORE (such) work I have to add here that this type of GLAMOUR etc is NOT what I do - Niether would i look great doing it, even if i wanted to. However, before I leave we damn well shoot what I came for. ps I have ever felt so uncomfortable and inadequate and bad shooting Never the less most of the pictures were .... great!! Go figure. Guess Im a pro Maybe he was too lol Jul 14 06 02:35 pm Link Dark Star Photography wrote: Well, the photog is a friend of mine, and the MUA flaking has happened to me before. I'm a theatre girl, and can do my own makeup when necessary, though not nearly to the standards of a real MUA. I always come with my full kit, just in case... In fact, I've done my own makeup for everything except the body painting shot in my port. Jul 14 06 02:43 pm Link Ooops - doubled Jul 14 06 02:44 pm Link I've had three blown shoots, one the MUA didnt show and the backup SUCKED!!, another the owners of an Indy race car pulled it out from under me on the day of the shoot when I had a freight train of resources converging on its location, the last one the STUPID ASSED CANON 20D failed to focus 80% of the time (despite confirming focus with the BEEP BEEP) and the model cried because she liked her blobby fuzzy images so much. Blech. I sold that piece of shit for $280 and I hope Roberts Photo in Indy which sold it to me in the first place eats it for the rest of its existence. Jul 14 06 03:47 pm Link e-string wrote: Let's call a spade a spade here. Nerlande obviously thinks you are a whore. LOL Pretty funny. She could have made her point in a different manner, but chose this route instead. Jul 15 06 02:14 pm Link ok when doing news paper work it hard to choose your locations or lighting i had a boss the wonted perfect photos when eavin i had to shoot in meeting rooms with only flouriest over head lighting that metered @ f1 and i had to use the 70-300 f4.5-5.5 lens also the stutter speeds of 15th of a send then having to use ASA 1600 on a D70 so nose is quite the problem and all i had was the on camera flash that i was not allowed to use and when i get back to the paper he like why aren't these photos better i tried to explain the technical problems and that some times there is not a lot that a photographer can do he sed i did not know how to shoot i lost this model in the walmart parking lot for 45 minets when i stopped to get film one the day i shot this i always lose my car there just not a good thing but she hung in there and as always we had a good time she is one of my favorite people so photo  Jul 15 06 03:12 pm Link I've had some memorable incidents... -a superhigh maintenance &/or bitchy model combined w/ shitty weather, made for a lackluster shoot -a girl who looked absolutely nothing like she looked like (yes, I know it helps to meet them beforehand but when you are both an hour away & live in a rural area...stuff like that isn't really condusive to real life). Combined that w/ the overpouring cat stench plus her lackluster ability as a model to pose her self, also combined w/ that playing into my weak hand (me being a shitty director, telling them specifically what to do) made for an overall bad shoot. But I think the group shoot (I went for the networking oppurtunities, more so than actually getting useable material) where 4 models & 15 photographers showed up, combined w/ the poor management, combined w/ it being stopped by the local cops probably made for my worst shoot experience Jul 16 06 01:01 am Link Nerlande wrote: No kidding. Jul 16 06 07:57 pm Link I agreed to shoot some photos for a former co-workers book. She was writing a book on her former career as a stripper. She wants each chapter to open with a photo based on the title of the chapter- 'The Feminest', 'Drugs', 'The Masochist' etc. We decided to shoot the three I mentioned as a test, to see what her publisher thought. We planned everything out ahead of time- lighting, composition, who was in which shot, etc. My only reluctance was that she wanted to be in one shot. She's writing the book based on fact, but the photos are obviously staged. I suggested she should be in all or none, but to be in just one shot (because she's the author) didn't make much sense(I gently pushed for her to be in none). I lost the discussion, and to boot she insisted on using her stripper friends despite my offer to obtain models for the shoot. She also told me she would bring people to fill out the back ground. The day of the shoot she shows up with the two strippers, but no extras. The first set up involved making my studio look like part of a strip club. We couldn't shoot without some extras, so even though everyone was done hair and makeup we were at a stand still. While her and I made phone calls to try and get people to show, the model/stripper who was first up, proceeded to get stoned. By the time some people came over, she could hardly stand up straight, not to mention she had to hold up a fairly heavy pole straight up and down. On top of all this, all the windows are shut to keep out light, and we're using hot lights. Needless to say the tempature is quickly rising. We barrel through the first set up and move on to the secound-Drugs. The set up involved one girl laying on the floor, the other girl doing "coke" off her chest, and several guys sitting on a couch watching them. The girl laying on the floor was to have her head cropped out of the shoot as to keep the attention on the other girl doing drugs(the men being just out of focus). As we're setting up the shot the guys decide (unbeknownst to me) to run across the street and buy a case of beer. Then the author comes up to me just as everything is about set up and tells me she wants to be in the shot. I tell her that only place we can literally fit her in the shoot is back with the guys. she begrudgingly does this and we start to shoot. The guys are drinking and making it quite vocal they are enjoying the view. The auther get's jealous that her friends are getting the attention and demands she get to be up with them. We have to move some of the lighting and recompose the shot, but we reluctantly accomodate her. Part way into shooting I come with an idea that I thought would work well towards the drug theme. I explained that I was shooting on a low shutter speed, and that everyone should slightly so ther was a blur effect. The only person being still was the girl doing drugs, the effect the her world was blurring around her from the drugs. I shot it, and thought it looked pretty good. The only problem was that one of the guys kept falling asleep in the shot from the beer and the heat. We wrapped that set up and everone left but me, the author, and my assistant. The last setup was to go with the chapter about how she had been raped as ateenager. The shoot was her sitting in a shower, supposedly after said incident, looking distraught. This was the shot she had wanted to due herself, because it was the most personal. We set up the lights and did some tests with her clothed. When we were ready, she got undressed, and turned to us and aske ' is this turning you on'. My assistant looked at each other with the same look of 'huh' on our faces. After the stress of the shoot so far, the subject of the set up, and the fact that she wasn't that attractive, I couldn't have been less turned on. We started to shoot, and she kept 'posing'. I tried to explain this to her, but she kept insisting she wasn't. We tried everything to get her in charachter, couching, music, talking about emotions, but nothing seemed to work. finally we kinda of got the shot, wrapped, I burned her a disc of the pics and she left. 3 hours later I get a call from her. No 'thank you'' good job'. Nope. she goes right into how she can't use any of the photos. I asked her what she was talking about, and she mentions who she's out of focus in the 'Drugs' shots. It took al my restraint not to yell 'You mean the pics you weren't supposed to be in in the first place!". I haven't talked to her since then. The bitch of it is I can't really use the pics for anything either. Who thought shooting strippers would be almost as bad as pulling teeth. Jul 18 06 02:30 am Link My worst shoot... Went into it having agreed to do some headshots, and artistic nudes. He starts wanting me to spread, wanting to shoot JUST some very uh...unartistic? nudes, and asking me to use toys. Later on, while we were doing more nude work, he dropped his pants and showed me a wetspot at the end of a very -VERY- visible hardon. Then I decidied I was exhausted, collected my CDs from the shoot, and went home as soon as I could. The man was old enough to be my father - possibly my grandfather. Things that make you go bleughhhhhhhhhh *shudder* Jul 18 06 02:42 am Link All my shoots are bad- The models keep trying to have sex with me. (I feel completely abused) I cannot tollerate the abuse any longer! -Surfy Jul 18 06 11:57 pm Link Ez wrote: WOW Jul 19 06 12:58 am Link When I let a MUA setup the entire shoot. 5 models throught the day and only one showed. Lots of time and money wasted. Jul 19 06 03:03 am Link Image Vermont wrote: HAHAHAH DEWD .. that was HILARIOUS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! oh man .... Jul 22 06 12:33 pm Link The first thing he did wrong: he told me that "[my] front is really [my] best feature" and to move my leg because he could see "the cellulite on [my] thighs". Second thing: He told my friend (also a model) that I should really do more nude modeling becuase I was "so beautiful". My friend was standing nude in front of him at the time. He said nothing about her appearance besides the fact that she was "the heaviest model [he] had ever shot with". Third thing: When I posted a chain bulletin on MySpace about "If you woke up and I was lying naked in bed with you, what would you say?", he responded in a private message "Which one of us would be wearing the cape and the mask?". This man is in his 50's, married, and has a small child. Not cool. Jul 23 06 03:59 am Link NicotineDesire wrote: Having a small child in your 50's is not cool in itself. Too many compliments are received about the "beautiful grandkid". Jul 23 06 08:39 am Link |
