For whatever reason I’ve been thinking about race pics since whomever it was commented about a good race pic being a goal. Maybe because (at work) we’ve been analyzing what we hate about the photos the former consultant took, and what we’d have done differently.<br><br>
Anyway. Hopefully I can make some sense.<br><br>
Race photos seem to be a crap shoot. The most important variables are beyond our control. And race photographers are trying to take as many pics of as many people as they possibly can. They’re not trying to make us pretty.<br><br><b>Lighting</b> - HUGE factor. Good lighting can mean the difference between looking like a whale or one of the Olson twins. Or the difference between sausage legs and quadzillas. Bright, sunny days are terrible for photos. Besides making you squint, the bright light bouncing off everything makes you look flat. (On the other side of that, no light bouncing around is bad too.) Flat lighting = fatness. You need the contrast of highlights and shadows to look 3 dimensional. You don’t have any control over the weather, you’re stuck with what you got. But partly cloudy days are probably best.<br><br><b>Camera angle/body position</b> - another big factor. Straight on shots aren’t flattering on anyone. You ever notice how models rarely take head-on full body shots? And if they do they push their shoulders back and twist at the waist and have their hands on their hips? That’s to create a more flattering silhouette. They don’t actually have their hands on their hips, they’re sort of cocked forward, so there are only a few inches between their finger tips. The less space between the finger tips the smaller their waist looks. If they don’t have their hands on their hips they will make sure to have space between their arms and body. It helps separate shapes and prevents them from looking like a tree trunk.<br><br>
In an article I read a few years ago about celebrity photography, Demi Moore admitted that she has a weak chin/jaw line, and to counter that, she lowers her chin slightly in all photos. Lowering her chin creates a shadow under her jaw, which in turn makes her chin/jaw line look stronger. In pretty much every posed picture I’ve seen of her, she is holding her head the same way. And I’m sure you can think of other celebrity types who are always in the same position when they are photographed. They know what makes them look good, and do it automatically.<br><br>
Since we’re focused on the race, it’s not like we can strike a flattering pose and make pretty. Or we could, but we’d piss off a whole bunch of people behind us.<br><br>
I knew when I ran past the squatting photographers at Grand Rapids that I was going to hate those pics. Squatting photographers puts the camera right at hip level on me. Which is not exactly something I want/need to emphasize. Sure enough, I hate the squatting pics.<br><br><b>Clothing</b> - Ok, this one you do have control over, but you’ve got to figure out what works/is flatting for you. Normally I wear somewhat close fitting shirts that hit at my high hip. In GR I had on a shirt that was somewhat baggy on me, and the hem hit right at the widest part of my hips. That, combined with the squatting photographers = fatness.<br><br>
I'm sure there's more, buy that's all I got right now.<br><br>
So what am I saying here? I haven’t figured that out yet. <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.kickrunners.com/forum/images/smilies/wink.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="Wink"><br><br>
Don’t feel bad about the ugly pics. We all take them. It really is a crap shoot. You can’t control the 2 biggest factors. Take a look at your old race photos, figure out what you hate about them, and see if there is anything you can change.
Anyway. Hopefully I can make some sense.<br><br>
Race photos seem to be a crap shoot. The most important variables are beyond our control. And race photographers are trying to take as many pics of as many people as they possibly can. They’re not trying to make us pretty.<br><br><b>Lighting</b> - HUGE factor. Good lighting can mean the difference between looking like a whale or one of the Olson twins. Or the difference between sausage legs and quadzillas. Bright, sunny days are terrible for photos. Besides making you squint, the bright light bouncing off everything makes you look flat. (On the other side of that, no light bouncing around is bad too.) Flat lighting = fatness. You need the contrast of highlights and shadows to look 3 dimensional. You don’t have any control over the weather, you’re stuck with what you got. But partly cloudy days are probably best.<br><br><b>Camera angle/body position</b> - another big factor. Straight on shots aren’t flattering on anyone. You ever notice how models rarely take head-on full body shots? And if they do they push their shoulders back and twist at the waist and have their hands on their hips? That’s to create a more flattering silhouette. They don’t actually have their hands on their hips, they’re sort of cocked forward, so there are only a few inches between their finger tips. The less space between the finger tips the smaller their waist looks. If they don’t have their hands on their hips they will make sure to have space between their arms and body. It helps separate shapes and prevents them from looking like a tree trunk.<br><br>
In an article I read a few years ago about celebrity photography, Demi Moore admitted that she has a weak chin/jaw line, and to counter that, she lowers her chin slightly in all photos. Lowering her chin creates a shadow under her jaw, which in turn makes her chin/jaw line look stronger. In pretty much every posed picture I’ve seen of her, she is holding her head the same way. And I’m sure you can think of other celebrity types who are always in the same position when they are photographed. They know what makes them look good, and do it automatically.<br><br>
Since we’re focused on the race, it’s not like we can strike a flattering pose and make pretty. Or we could, but we’d piss off a whole bunch of people behind us.<br><br>
I knew when I ran past the squatting photographers at Grand Rapids that I was going to hate those pics. Squatting photographers puts the camera right at hip level on me. Which is not exactly something I want/need to emphasize. Sure enough, I hate the squatting pics.<br><br><b>Clothing</b> - Ok, this one you do have control over, but you’ve got to figure out what works/is flatting for you. Normally I wear somewhat close fitting shirts that hit at my high hip. In GR I had on a shirt that was somewhat baggy on me, and the hem hit right at the widest part of my hips. That, combined with the squatting photographers = fatness.<br><br>
I'm sure there's more, buy that's all I got right now.<br><br>
So what am I saying here? I haven’t figured that out yet. <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.kickrunners.com/forum/images/smilies/wink.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="Wink"><br><br>
Don’t feel bad about the ugly pics. We all take them. It really is a crap shoot. You can’t control the 2 biggest factors. Take a look at your old race photos, figure out what you hate about them, and see if there is anything you can change.
