When hiring a photographer, I recommend looking for a few things in the work they show you. If you pay attention to these little things, your storytelling will improve.
Exposure
When you look from photo to photo, is there consistency in the exposure? Amateur photographers often have inconsistent exposure values.
Skin Tones
When you look at the subject, does the skin tone look correct, and is the exposure correct? How often do you see photos shot under fluorescent lights with a green tint to the skin tone? If the main subject has good skin tone but the background is green, it might be because they used their on-camera flash.
Another color shift in skin tones is an orange cast when shooting under tungsten lights. If they used their on-camera flash, the skin tone might look OK, and the background would be orange.
If the photos are outside and the subjects are under trees, is the skin tone natural or green-cast? The leaves on the trees filter the light and give it a green tinge.
Where does your eye go first?
When you look at the photo quickly, where do you look first? Is it the subject, or is there something distracting in the background, or off to the side? My photographers cannot understand how the photograph is about front-to-back, not just the subject. Good composition will have your eye go first to the subject, and, if they do a great job, it will then want to wander to the subtle complementary areas that give more context to the photograph.
Light value on faces
Can you easily see the people’s faces in the photos? It’s much easier to point a camera and shoot in existing light, so photographers even talk about how it makes things feel real. Great photographers can often shoot using only available light, but the light on the face must be right.
When selling, ensure your face is at its best and looks as natural as possible. Skilled photographers know how to light faces so they look natural, but most importantly, the person’s face is not in shadow and is easy to see.
Catchlights in the eyes
Often, the difference between a good and great portrait is just a catchlight. A torchlight is a photographic term used to describe light reflected in the subject’s eyes. The absence of a catchlight, even in an animal photo, can make the subject appear comatose.
Without a catch light, you can look a little more sinister.
For the most part, a catchlight will add more life to a person than it would without one. Not having a catchlight can also help communicate. The point isn’t that they need to appear in every photo, but you should be aware that you may never see them in the photographer’s work.
Series
When the photographer shows you a photo, do you see a series? For visual storytelling, you need overall, medium, and sometimes close-up shots. Your designers want to include background graphics or complementary graphics to complement the layout of the webpage, printed piece, or web-based multimedia package.
Variety
Do all the photos look like they were taken from the same perspective? It’s common for photographers to shoot at their standing height or at a similar distance from the subject. They may use their zoom lens to get closer, but they never get close to the subject.
You should feel that your photographer offers visual surprises and delivers both safe and edge-of-your-seat compositions.
Focus and sharpness
I hate to mention this, but many photographers don’t have razor-sharp photos. This does not mean everything is in focus; rather, whatever is supposed to be in focus is extremely sharp. Many photographers experience camera shake, and their photos aren’t tack-sharp.
Moments
You will find many technically proficient photographers who meet most of what I have mentioned so far, yet, after looking at the photo, you are not moved emotionally. Great storytellers will have moments that bring joy to your heart or maybe even sadness.
It will be apparent that you felt something when viewing the photos.
The photo makes you ask questions.
If your photographer does a great job, you will want to know more about the photos. The photographer should wait for you to ask questions rather than jumping in to tell you everything. The photos should, for the most part, communicate.
| I can see the cool angle and what they are doing, but I want to know why and for whom. The photo makes me want to read the caption, “By the way,” which states it is a middle school group helping widows with repairs to their homes during the summer. |
| I can see the cool angle and what they are doing, but I want to know why and for whom. The photo makes me want to read the caption, “By the way,” which says it is a middle school group helping widows with repairs on their houses during the summer. |