photographing people

conveying non-verbal information to the viewer

the photographer not only needs technical expertise of use of his camera, lens selection, lighting, choice of color and composition, but when it comes to working with people as subjects to create a successful image, the subject and photographer become a team to generate an image that conveys an expression of ideas or emotions to the viewer.
often in the context of the family snapshots, the emotions one wishes to portray are positive ones of joy, fun, surprise, love and friendship.
photojournalists will often concentrate on extremes of emotions such as ecstasy or sheer relief of winning, the disappointment and agony of losing, the pain, sadness, fear, anxiety, concern and even terror of major disasters.
photographers working with models must try to fabricate a believable expression, pose and/or gesture, combined with an emotive contextual ambience to convey the desired emotion to the viewer.
- for commercial glamour photographers, this is usually a positive one to sell a product by creating desire or envy in the viewer such as either sensual, sexy, seductive, steamy, sultry, or sassy.
- artistic figure photography generally ignores non-verbal communication of the model's facial expression which is generally neutral and instead concentrates on the visual aesthetics of form, contrast, and texture.
- avante garde artists will often try to confront the viewer, often with emotions or contexts they would rather avoid.