customer choice not mine, what to do
 

After the third photo shoot I feel I got some good pics to work with. After the clients view the three best they emailed back a favorite pic of theirs they liked. Of course it was front flash and the kids were laughing out loud. This gave me important information. They want an informal portrait and I can see that the flash created beautiful skin tones and brightened up the kids eye color and the girl's freckles.

I replied that this is what I saw in their photo but that it could not work as a portrait, not unusual at all. A good photoraph is a good photograph, but rarely transforms into a good painting. I said I could use this as reference for color of eyes and a strong sense of their personality.

I asked for some specifics of what they don't like about this choice. They do not like how low her sweater is (easy!).

They do not like his teeth
They do not like the arch of his back.

Any suggestions as to how to reply?

Thanks,
Patty

You could ask them to come to another photo shoot in your studio, and correct the things they don't like. Try to get the brother to talk to you a bit. Engage him in conversation and snap away as you talk to him. He won't smile or make goofy faces if he is listening to you. If you can get one or two good shots of them together in acceptable positions, then you can go for the expressions on their faces, concentrating on one at a time. The kids will probably be more relaxed this time, having done this before.

Patricia, I think that some times clients like a particular photo but it is difficult for them to imagine it in a portrait.
I think that you might show your clients some samples of portraits by other artists: show them ones with teeth and big smiles just to be sure they can see what it looks like in painting.
I have books about children in art and I had sometimes showed them to clients in order to explain how even an informal portrait should conform to certain rules.
Ilaria

Control What You Can Control
 

Pat, I am not sure whether or not you shared all your photos from your shoot or only the ones that YOU know would make effective paintings. Control what you can control. If you shared everything you shot, then, that is not a good idea. I often live by the saying that "If you don't want to hear the answer to a question, then don't ask the question." In other words, give your clients ONLY the photos that you know will make excellent paintings. They don't have the experience nor expertise that you have, so they see things in photos that they like but won't work in a painting.

Hope this helps. I speak from a 30 year experience as a teacher of children and frankly, there isn't a difference between how we present ourselves to adults and how things appear to those who don't have the knowledge we have. :thumbsup:

Portraiture is not something they are familiar with, so I am showing them examples and they are beginning to enjoy this. The parents are very open to trusting my vision. I did only show them about four poses that I knew I could paint (I look over 200 pictures!). In the end I think they will be fun to work with and I believe they will even allow me to have each child sit for me in my studio, after school lets out, so that I can do a color study in the same light as the pictures were taken in - I'm very excited about this.