CHANELLE - 1000 POSES for Photographers, Models, and Artists: 1000 Poses for All Occasions, Including Fashion and Study

Copyright 2021 Blue Diamond Books

Modeling is almost as old as art itself. Artists have worked with art models throughout history to assist in envisioning and creating their masterpieces. Many of the ancient sculptures that have survived to this day have proportions that could only come from accurate measurements of the human body. Models were especially important during the Renaissance at a time when almost all artists and sculptors wanted to create an idealized figure. In the 17th and 18th centuries, the importance of art education was beginning to be recognized in many countries and national art academies were being established. As the number of art schools expanded, the need for models increased. During the 19th century, work for models became quite competitive and art schools allowed students to vote for their favorite models. The result was that the most capable models got more work while those with fewer votes got less work. At around this time fashion models made their debut. It is generally acknowledged that the Parisian designer Charles Frederick Worth, recognized as the father of haute couture, started what we know today as fashion modeling. In the mid-1800s Worth dressed female workers in his shop to stage his line of clothing to customers. This was a revolutionary step for fashion marketing and also marked the beginnings of the fashion show. During this period, photographic technology was advancing, and as photography gained in popularity, fashion magazines started to make use of photographs in addition to drawings. Fashion designers that once hired artists to illustrate their clothing lines began hiring photographers. And photographers, like artists, started to work with models. Since then modeling work has only increased. By the 1920s, the first modeling agency opened in America; a modeling school taught modeling techniques such as good posture, how to walk, and how to pose; and department stores regularly staged fashion shows. In the 1970s and 1980s, with growing demand for models, modeling agencies began appearing around the world. With digital photography today, anyone who wishes to model, regardless of experience, can do so. Artists, photographers and people in industry are always looking for models to work with. And just like the 19th century, models who understand how to present themselves in art and photography continues to be in high demand. The need for models who understand modeling techniques is just as important today as in the past.

Many industries need models to promote their products and services. It is always advantages for models to understand the needs of the industry that they wish to work with, and what the industry expects of the model. Fashion designers and retailers, for example, need models to show their clothes. Fashion designers want to create awareness for the general public. The fashion model is there to help the designer or retailer sell clothes. The fashion model is there to highlight the clothes and not themselves. For the fashion catalog, the poses are usually the simplest. For fashion magazines, the approach may be different. Photographers and editors may want to appeal to their audiences with fantasies. Thats where fashion models may need to show more than a few simple poses. For the runway model, there are usually a narrow range of size and weight qualifications. Runway models have to change clothes frequently. Designers dont want to ship 10 different sizes of clothing to a show when it is simpler to hire models that wear all the same size.

Lifestyle, commercial, and editorial models usually have a much larger range of poses. They sell cloths, cars, furniture, life insurance or any number of products and services and they tell a story. They are there to make associations between a product and a lifestyle. There are a very large number of businesses that need models to promote their products and to promote a lifestyle that they want associated with their products.

For a photography session, the photographer usually has a venue in mind or a studio with a set or backdrop. Once the lighting is set up, the photographer usually concentrates on working with the model to getting the right pose to create a composition. As the popularity of digital cameras has grown, there has been a growing demand for models from both professional and amateur photographers. Modeling for photography gives the model the greatest freedom to do a variety of poses.

For the art session, there are basically two types of poses for the painter or sculptor in a workshop. One is the quick one minute pose or the short pose where the artist makes quick sketches. The other is the longer pose, which could last an hour, or several days, where the artist refines the details of the composition. The model may be the subject of the artists composition or a motif in the overall artwork. Although photographers are concerned with line and form, this is especially true for artists. Many dancers are trained in visualizing line and form. Experienced art models and models familiar with the art scene know this as well.

Posing, like dancing, is best demonstrated or shown pictorially rather than explained. If the photographer or artist doesnt actually pose and doesnt have a body like a model, trying to explain to a model how to pose is challenging. This becomes even more difficult if the model is new to modeling. That is why having a set of poses to show makes the work much easier. Once the model is in the desired position, minor adjustments can easily be made. New models can simply follow this guide and experienced models and photographers can use this guide as a quick reference and as a memory minder. With a large reference to work with, the model can present a greater number of acceptable poses and increase the productivity of the session.

This compendium of 1000 poses offers an efficient way to build teamwork between model and photographer, to make better use of their time in the studio, and to produce a higher number of successful photographs. The guide conveys the poses, not in words or drawings, but with live models in large, clear photographs. Each photograph is numbered for quick reference. The poses appear in simple settings, without any frills and embellishments, so that the model can focus on the poses. The guide features several models to help with the visualization. Keep this guide as a handy reference during a shoot and as a source of new ideas.