Japanese painting paintings by artists. Hokusai - the world of Japan

Artistic or plastic anatomy study in art academies. It's very big and interesting topic. I will not make academic statements. I'll try to cover the basics so you can use your knowledge of body structure and muscle function in your portraits. We will mainly talk about female artistic anatomy. Everything is explained very simply. 100% knowledge of artistic anatomy is used when photographing a nude portrait. And here there are differences. In a female nude portrait you need to show beauty female body, tenderness, lines of the figure. The same must be shown when shooting ordinary portrait women. A woman remains a woman both undressed and dressed. In a male nude portrait, the main concern is masculinity. That is, it is necessary to show the relief of the muscles. It is clear that you cannot show the relief of muscles through clothes. Therefore, knowledge of male artistic anatomy for taking everyday portraits is in most cases ineffective. But there are several common points for male and female portraits.

Working side

Portrait photography should begin with studying the features of the model’s appearance. Neither the face nor the human body are symmetrical. Therefore, before shooting, we must determine the working side of our model. The working side is the side most suitable for shooting. The working side of the face and the working side of the body are determined. But the face is always a higher priority. That is, if you are doing a nude portrait and the right side of the model’s face is more attractive, but there is a scar on her body from appendicitis, then the working side will still be on the right. To make it more clear, let's look at the photo below.

Selecting the working side.

Having studied the model’s face, you can see that her right eye is wider, the eyelash of the right eye is fluffier, the nose on the right side is more beautifully outlined, the cheekbone line on the right is smoother, and there are acne on the left cheek. And finally, which is not clearly visible, the muscles around the lips are more mobile on the right, so the smile turns out to be slightly crooked. Based on the above, we conclude that the working side of the model is on the right. Now you need to select such shooting conditions (lighting, shooting location, model’s pose, etc.) so that all of the listed defects on the left side of the face are least noticeable. In the age of digital technology, many will ask: “Why fence a garden? Everything can be fixed in Photoshop.” To some extent this is true. You can easily retouch pimples. But making eyes the same size is more difficult. Eyelashes lead to common denominator People with 10 - 15 years of experience in Photoshop will be able to do this.

About poses

Pose-forming lines.

You can draw three imaginary lines parallel to the floor. Pubic line, waist line and shoulder line. In everyday life, in most cases, the lines of the pubis and shoulders remain parallel to the floor, which cannot be said about the waist line. The inclination of the waistline constantly changes, for example, when walking. Women are stronger, men are weaker, but it changes. Let's ask our model to throw a hip. And look how the angle of the waistline has changed. Also notice how the dynamics of the frame itself have changed.

Changing the angle of the waist line.

As an example, let's look at two different photographs of the same man. The portrait on the left is unremarkable. Let's try to change the angle of the shoulder line. We have a more attractive and interesting portrait. Hopefully by this point you are starting to understand how basic poses are formed by the shoulder line.

Changing the slope of the shoulder line.

Let's now add a waist line to the shoulder line. Attention! Further everything concerns only women. trying to use the waistline for men is just an antics (unless, of course, the man is homosexual).

Let's ask our model again, but not very strongly, to throw out her hip, hide her left hand behind the thrown hip, and put her right hand on her head. The lines of the shoulders and waist have a slight slope and somewhere to the left of the model they intersect. (I want to make a small digression: during shooting, you must think and accordingly control the behavior of the model in relation to her. That is, if I say left, then this means left for the model, not for the photographer.) So we got the first pose, which shows well lines of the figure. The movement of the hands here is not accidental. By asking the model to raise her hand up or hide it behind her thigh, I force certain muscles to tense or relax, which emphasize the necessary fragments of the figure.

Slight inclination of the waist and shoulder lines.

Let's complicate the task. Let's ask our model to turn her left shoulder forward, bring her left hand in front of her hip, and take her right hand back and put it on her belt. This will increase the slope of both the waist and shoulder lines. Let's direct the model's gaze forward, along the line of the shoulders. The waist and shoulder lines intersect somewhere to the left of the model. The frame became more dynamic. (Always think about the model. For her, this pose is very unusual and uncomfortable. Once you have taken three to four frames, give the model a rest.)

Increasing the angle of the waist and shoulder lines.

Until now, the point where the lines of the waist and shoulders intersect was in the direction of the model's gaze. Now let's try to experiment and move it to the side opposite to her gaze. Let's ask the model to fold her arms across her chest, while raising her left shoulder a little, and throw out her right hip. You got a great pose for an everyday portrait.

An excellent pose for an everyday portrait.

Until now, we have considered the interaction of the waist and shoulder lines, and completely forgot about the pubic line. The fact is that the pubic line begins to work in a lying position, rarely in a sitting position. Consider the following photo. The model lies with her back to us, leaning on her elbow, left hand bent at the elbow and raised above the head. The spine forms a doga. Please note that on the right side of the model the muscles are tense, while on the left the muscles are relaxed. This is a kind of law: the muscles relax where the lines of the pubis, waist and shoulders converge, and tense where these lines diverge.

Convergence of the lines of the pubis, waist and shoulders in the supine position.

Now let's ask our model to lie on her back, stretch her legs forward, and put her hands under her head. In this position, the chest muscles are relaxed, and the abdominal and back muscles are tense. The interaction of these muscles causes the spine to arch so much that you can easily stick your hand between the surface and the back at the waist.

Curvature of the spine.

In conclusion, I would like to show you a few poses that have come to us from Ancient Greece.

Very open, aggressive pose. The model's feet are begging for shoes with very high heels.

Chastity pose.

Different poses for the bather. For the Greeks it is a symbol of purity. That is, the bather sniffs her armpits. The smell is pleasant - it means it is clean.

Venus pose. Aphrodite was originally depicted with her hands hidden behind her back. Later the Romans decided that easier hands chop off Well, the Romans called the goddess Venus.

Priestess pose.

Beach pose. Filming is done from top to bottom.

Face

Most important role the face plays in the portrait. There are muscles under the skin of the face. These muscles are divided into two groups: less mobile, but very strong chewing muscles and weak, but very mobile - facial muscles. The masticatory muscles also take a small part in facial expressions, but emotional mood A person is formed only by facial muscles.

So, facial muscles are a quickly reacting mobile instrument internal state person. The number of folds during various facial reactions depends on the length of the facial muscles and the elasticity of the skin. Usually these folds are formed across the movement. This must be taken into account when choosing lighting.

Step, another step...

When walking, a person transfers the center of gravity from one leg to the other. The leg that takes the center of gravity is called the supporting leg. The position of the center of gravity relative to the model is key. Very expressive moments are when the model, due to the position of the center of gravity in front of the supporting leg, seems to tend to fall. The most expressive moment is concentrated in the end of the movement phase, which is associated with stability. At this phase, the viewer’s imagination connects a piece of the past with the present moment and paints a picture of the future.

The initial phase of the step with a half-turn of the body over the left shoulder. Support on the right leg. This half-turn makes it possible to clearly fix and advantageously present the model’s breasts.

The final phase of the step. This is probably how Aphrodite emerged from the foam of the sea.

Work of the muscles of the buttocks, back and neck when stepping right foot and turning your head over your left shoulder.

We looked at the work of the muscles and did not touch on the skeleton and the work of the joints. In photography, using muscles is quite simple. Naturally, everything comes with experience. I hope that knowledge about how muscles work will help you take expressive portraits.

Sincerely, Kuzya Prutkov.

how to look good in a photo: 6 steps to the perfect photo

Some people look good in photos without special effort. Unfortunately, photogenicity is a gift that not everyone gets. Don't despair! We'll tell you how to take the perfect photo without much effort - you just need to know a few secrets.

Find yours
"working side"

You've probably noticed that all the stars are often photographed from a certain angle and only from one side. Oddly enough, some people turn out better if they shoot from the left, and others, on the contrary, from the right. You can only find out which side is “working” by experience - take a few test shots and compare. As a rule, determining the most advantageous side of the face is very easy!

On the dark side

If you take a photo under artificial lighting, then use a mirror to determine which part of the face is in the shadow, and take the photo so that it is in the foreground. This simple trick allows you to look slimmer in photos. True, with bright sunlight this won't work - the shadows will be too harsh.

Make your makeup a little brighter

Makeup for photos is different from makeup for ordinary life. If contouring and two accents (on the eyes and on the lips) are clearly too much even for evening makeup, then everything looks different in the camera lens. Bright light, flash and simply the properties of the camera eat up our facial features, so you can safely highlight the cheekbones with a dark corrector, and highlight the protruding parts of the face with a highlighter, focusing Special attention bridge of the nose and outstanding area under the eyes and upper corners of the lips. In addition, makeup for shooting allows for bright makeup for both lips and eyes at the same time. More on this in the next paragraph.

Use lipstick with glitter

Even if you focused on your eyes, you need to highlight your lips for the photo. Lipsticks look great in the frame bright colors with a wet shine, such as the new product from Avon – “Color Shine”. The color should be rich, in harmony with your skin tone and in a general way. If you still decide on Avon lipstick, we are sure that you will have problems choosing suitable shade you won't have: The line features several bright, rich shades that glide on smoothly and shine beautifully.

In addition, the product simply feels comfortable on the lips - it is not sticky, moisturizes and will last even throughout the longest photo shoot.

Non-trivial poses

Instead of taking boring front-facing photos or with your arms crossed over your chest, try to come up with creative photo poses.

For example:
– A look from over the shoulder without a smile: you will feel like you were accidentally caught on camera. The most important thing here is posture and the bend of the neck.
– Supermodel Pose: put your shoulders forward slightly, transfer your body weight to one leg, slightly bend the other at the knee, and place one hand on your waist.
– Lean on your elbows: find high point supports (for example, a table). Turn your face to the camera, lean on it, lean on it with both hands, and cross your legs.
– Profile photo: lower your chin a little and don’t look at the camera, as if you’re thinking about something.

composition

For good photo composition and your position in the frame are very important. If you take a photo with a phone camera, it is better to place the subject in the center of the frame - the fact is that the lens tends to stretch the photo to the edges and can slightly distort your figure.
If you are photographed sitting down - without stretching your legs forward - they will appear unnaturally large in the frame. If standing, ask the photographer to do it slightly from below to look slimmer and visually lengthen your legs. If we're talking about about a portrait, then let the photographer, on the contrary, shoot from above - the eyes will appear larger.

I always knew that my face, as well as the faces of other people, is not characterized by absolute symmetry and did not see a big problem in that. However, over time, I began to notice that one side of the face looked not just slightly different, but frankly worse than the other: the skin and muscles on it were less elastic, and the wrinkles were deeper. Worried, I went to a specialist to find out the reason for the changes happening to me. “There really are no absolutely symmetrical faces in nature,” says Irina Ivanova, cosmetologist-dermatologist, doctor highest category Doctorplastic clinics. — The left side is always softer, feminine, slightly elongated vertically. The right one is wider and less feminine. It should be noted that such physiological asymmetry is practically not perceived visually. It is due to the fact that the hemispheres of the brain regulate the motor skills and sensory functions of the halves of the body differently, and therefore the facial activity of different sides of the face is somewhat different. Another thing is acquired asymmetry, which arises for completely different reasons. Here are the most common ones."

Dental problems

Dentists never tire of repeating that the loss of a tooth, and especially several, is also serious aesthetic problem. Connection between full of sets teeth and a beautiful oval face is the most spontaneous. After tooth extraction, the bone partitions from which the tooth socket was formed gradually dissolve, and a dent forms on the jaw. At the same time, the jaw is deformed, slightly decreasing in height and diameter. This leads to tension in small facial muscles and the formation of new wrinkles or the deepening of old ones. If several teeth are missing in the lower jaw, the angle of its location may change, and the soft tissues of the face may shift, forming wrinkles and creases. Timely prosthetics will help avoid jaw deformation and maintain beautiful facial contours. Artificial analogues of teeth will not allow the jaw to decrease in size and will support the functioning of the chewing muscles and jaw joints.

Habit of chewing on one side

Most often, this is again a consequence of the loss of a tooth (or teeth). We chew on one side of our mouth because there is simply nothing to chew on the other. As a result, the facial muscles on the one hand, not receiving the proper load, weaken, while on the other they become hypertonic. Overstrained muscles literally pull on facial tissues, creating creases and visible asymmetry. It should be noted that the risk of developing an aesthetic defect is especially high if you like chewing gum. In this case, the chewing muscles experience uneven load for a long time.

Habit of sleeping on one side

Sleep, as we know, necessary condition beauty. However, if you are used to sleeping on one side, you risk losing your beauty while sleeping. The fact is that the tissue on the side of your face, with which you press against the pillow, slowly but inevitably deforms. The oval gradually changes, a network of small wrinkles forms around the eye, deeper folds lie between the eyebrows, and vertical lines on the cheeks and chin. As cosmetologists say, if you prefer to sleep on one side, then it will quickly become clear which one. The best way to avoid the appearance of asymmetry and wrinkles during sleep - eliminate any contact of the face with the pillow. You can do this by training yourself to fall asleep lying on your back. This way you will not only avoid prolonged pressure on the muscles and skin, but also maintain normal fluid flow throughout the night.

Diseases

The cause of acquired asymmetry can be various diseases. “First of all, dysfunction of the facial nerve,” says Irina Ivanova. — With this disease, weakness of the facial muscles develops, the corner of the mouth droops, and droops. upper eyelid, the palpebral fissure becomes wider, the nasolabial folds are smoothed out, the face on the affected side acquires a pained expression. Injuries, fractures, especially displaced ones, consequences of unsuccessful plastic surgery It also often causes the two sides of the face to look different.”

According to experts, you can encounter the problem of facial asymmetry at any age. But over time, unfortunately, it becomes more and more noticeable. Simply due to the fact that they live with us longer and bad habits. “However, do not despair,” says Irina Ivanova. — Asymmetry, as a rule, can be corrected. First of all, it is necessary to eliminate the causes: contact a neurologist, dentist, or orthodontist. There is physiotherapy, gymnastics for facial muscles, massage. To correct violations of proportions and volumes, cosmetologists use contour plastic surgery. Botulinum therapy is also used successfully. In the most severe cases, surgical correction is possible.”

IN in social networks A video from two years ago is gaining momentum, where New York photographer Peter Hurley explains the main rules of successful portraits. It would seem, what nonsense: it is clear that not every one of us is waiting for fashionable street photographers around the corner, but a pleasant picture for Tinder, an shameless group portrait with colleagues in a pub and a ceremonial photo against the backdrop of Angkor Wat, taken using a selfie. sticks, it’s a good idea for everyone to learn how to do. New York photographer's recipe: slightly squinted eyes and smug smile, a relaxed face and a slightly contemptuous look. We studied Peter Hurley's video instructions - and then asked good Moscow photographers who shoot for Afisha, Vogue, Wonderzine, Fottpaper, Interview and who have gone through a large school of secular photography, to formulate their own rules for natural portraiture - and present the corresponding cards.

A hilariously tedious 15-minute video by photographer Peter Hurley, who has found a way to turn anyone in a photo into a smug impudent man with a sly squint. Hurley shows how to do it on himself, on his charming friend, and with before-and-after photos.

Snuggle up with your friends, show your teeth, buy a wide-angle

Photo: Yulia Mayorova

Photo: Yulia Mayorova

Photo: Yulia Mayorova

Photo: Yulia Mayorova

Yulia Mayorova

photographer

“Always smile widely, as they say, “with teeth.” This is almost always appropriate and will not work except for passport photographs and funerals. It doesn’t matter at all whether you have a Hollywood smile, braces or false gold teeth, the main thing is to smile as sincerely as possible, this decorates any picture.

If there are more than three of you and you want to do something cool joint photo, the most practical advice: stand as close to each other as possible, as if you were three hundred Spartans - and everyone is trying to fit into the frame. Imagine that you best friends, cuddle, hug - and get beautiful picture at the exit.

The best selfies are taken with a wide-angle camera. Firstly, a panoramic picture has a better chance of conveying some meaning, and secondly, a wide angle simply makes you look slimmer. Plus, it never hurts to figure out your lucky side, smile wider, shoot facing the light and lift your chin higher to avoid shadows on your face. You can always play with the composition: for example, place your face not in the center of the frame, but shoot yourself from above or below. In general, if you follow these simple rules, you can look much better in a selfie than in any other photo, and sometimes even better than in life.”

Play the fool, make a face, lie down on the floor

Photo: Alena Chandler

Photo: Alena Chandler

Photo: Alena Chandler

Photo: Alena Chandler

Photo: Alena Chandler

Photo: Alena Chandler

Alena Chandler

photographer

“I really like to shoot at parties, where people react more calmly to the camera and are not afraid to open up and express themselves. Parties can be a great time to have fun, do funny stupid things, and do something unique for photography. Take pictures with glasses, hug and kiss with friends, laugh even if you are usually shy about it, hug a cypress tree or lie down on the floor. It is important not to be shy about doing a little stupid and funny things - as a rule, in the format of general fun it looks very bright and cool.

When shooting with models, I take the process of relaxing the characters seriously. Unlike parties, here I like it when people go inside themselves, move away from clichés and become themselves. I ask them to think about something of their own and not to think about it. this moment about them being photographed. I suggest putting on the favorite music of the person I'm photographing, or putting on my favorite playlist. While filming, it’s just great to forget about what’s happening outside the window.”

Find your ideal angle, practice with different light

Photo: Alina Nikitina

Photo: Alina Nikitina

Photo: Alina Nikitina

Photo: Alina Nikitina

Photo: Alina Nikitina

Photo: Alina Nikitina

Alina Nikitina

photographer

“First you need to accept your appearance and love yourself - this will solve half the problem “I don’t look good in photographs.” We'll figure out the rest now. Firstly, photography is a flat cast of reality, which greatly distorts the original objects. For example, a photograph makes absolutely everyone fat, which is at least why we love how models look in photographs, although in life their lack of weight may look painful.

If you decide to take the issue of hit selfies and becoming a star of party reports especially seriously, then first you need to collect all your old pictures, open the printed photo album that your mother still keeps, and understand which angles seem good to you, how you turn out better and like yourself. Stand in front of a mirror and spend 30 minutes there, making faces in the most different poses: posing - like a cutesy model, a brutal man, smiling, wincing and so on. This way you will determine the most successful poses and, what is important, remember those that are prohibited from being used for photos.

The next exercise involves using a camera. We set it on the self-timer and take pictures of ourselves, using the experience of the two previous lessons, adding one more to this new parameter- light. It should be different all the time, including a flash in the forehead. You can try taking selfies with your phone near a window, constantly turning towards the light in different ways. This way you will again determine and remember which angles suit you best in which light.

Now the most important thing is to determine the so-called working side of your face. This is the side you will try to turn towards the camera. Important point- don’t overdo it. If you always turn to one side with the same best facial expression and freeze in the same pose, you will become a character in memes from VKontakte. So you should always try to look like a living person, and not a witness from Fryazino.

When you're being photographed at parties, don't be afraid of photographers shooting with head-on flash - this option suits almost everyone. Five to seven seconds of blindness is not a sacrifice at all for the hero of secular reports. But it’s better to avoid guys with giant softboxes - with them, firstly, it’s much more difficult for you to control the result, and secondly, the diffuse light of the attached softbox (which these photographers shove a little to the side of you) reveals much more larger number facial imperfections and makes you look older. But if the appearance of such a master of club shots happens as unexpectedly as the annexation of Crimea, then do not forget to have time to turn your working side, and if you want to look a little slimmer, also turn your body three-quarters towards the camera. An important point is not to hold your breath so as not to look frozen in the frame.”

Listen to your favorite music

Photo: Alexey Kalabin

Photo: Alexey Kalabin

Photo: Alexey Kalabin

Photo: Alexey Kalabin

Photo: Alexey Kalabin

Photo: Alexey Kalabin

Alexey Kalabin

photographer

“I always advise everyone I photograph not to pose, but to stand or sit in a way that makes the person comfortable. You need to understand that only models and public people who are doing this not for the first time, so just be yourself and stand as you usually do in front of the mirror. You can look away for a while, relax, exhale, and then look at the camera again. The coolest moments at parties are when... mild madness. You don't have to get drunk to do this, you can just use available objects, move and smile a lot. If you still feel unsure in front of the camera, just put on glasses.”

Sergey Kostromin

photographer

“Successful photography is an accident, a combination of many factors, but there are some tricks that can help. For example, shooting with your favorite music is always pleasant and easy. And if the model likes her, then great. Therefore, if you are shooting with a photographer, ask to include your favorite track. If you don’t know which one, then this one. Secondly, taking pictures with glasses is much easier. You always look cool in them (and so does the photographer in the reflection). And third, don’t be shy about being ironic and fooling around, unless you’re taking a passport photo.”

Don't lower your chin, don't roll your eyes, tilt your head slightly

Photo: Sergey Ivanyutin

Photo: Sergey Ivanyutin

Photo: Sergey Ivanyutin

Photo: Sergey Ivanyutin

Sergey Ivanyutin

photographer, senior photo editor at Look At Me

“The philosopher Roland Barthes wrote that a photographic portrait is a closed force field in which four types of imaginary intersect, oppose and deform each other: being in front of the lens, I am at the same time who I consider myself to be, who I would like to be considered , who the photographer thinks I am, and who he uses to express his art. Therefore, when a person feels that he has found himself in the field of view of the lens, he turns himself into an image and involuntarily begins to pose, that is, he constantly imitates himself, which gives a persistent feeling of being fake.

In general, photography is a game, and it is important that both the person being photographed and the photographer feel relaxed, and that the model behaves as naturally as possible and does not pose. You can follow the advice of Czech director Petr Zelenka, who worked with non-professional actors and achieved maximum naturalness through constant rehearsals. And when in the evening the actors got tired of posing and making faces, they began to work well.

In general, you need to choose the right shooting angle, otherwise the structure of the face and body may be disrupted and choose the “working side” of the model’s face. You can try shooting alternately on both sides of the face when it is at a three-quarter angle - it’s trivial more parts face falls into the frame than when shooting in profile or full face.”

01. Tilt your head
The model can tilt their head slightly to the side. But this position can usually be compensated for by slightly raising the shoulder towards which the tilt is made.

02. Don't lower your chin
A classic case when a model, embarrassed or trying to hide some flaw, tucks her chin and tilts her head forward. This is dangerous because the eyebrows increase, the neck becomes comically small, and the jaw, on the contrary, increases. On the other hand, there is no need to tilt your head back if you are not planning a comical photo: the neck and nose will turn out to be too caricatured. A well-known trick is to lift your chin up to reduce the number of folds and wrinkles. But in this case, the photographer should make sure that the protruding chin and nostrils are not too large. This problem can be partially solved by choosing a slightly higher shooting point, as well as leaning your torso slightly forward and lifting your chin.

03. Don't smile if it doesn't suit you
Contrary to the advice of Yulia Mayorova, we must admit a cruel fact - not everyone suits people smile. Very often, smiles in photographs turn out forced and joyless, or, even worse, feigned and fake. To achieve a spontaneous and genuine smile, something must make the model smile.

Have you been dreaming of studio and professional photos for a long time, but are you afraid of wasting money? Don't know how to pose or consider yourself unphotogenic? I have some tips that will help you overcome your fears and get great photos for Instagram!

Find your work side

Take time and spend half an hour with your phone in front of the window. Take a thousand selfies from all possible angles, this will help you understand which side is best to turn your face, how much to lower your chin, how wide to open your eyes. Choose the pose that you like best. By the way, this knowledge really helps in life, no matter where you are photographed and with whom, if you know your working side, all the pictures (except for random ones and those taken in the middle of a party) will turn out excellent!

Think over the image in advance

If you rent a studio for a few hours, it means you can afford different images. To save time during the photo shoot itself, select outfits in advance and twirl in front of the mirror, find the most successful ones and those that will look appropriate in the scenery you have chosen. Don’t forget that makeup should be universal, because you’ll still have time to change clothes, but it’s unlikely to change your makeup.

Listen to the photographer

Find good photographer– it is very important, before you pay someone money, look at this person’s portfolio, make sure that you like his work. When the photographer is found, you have already met, already in the studio and have already started working, listen to his opinion. Even if you have found your working side, struck a pose and are sure that you outshine even Angelina Jolie with your beauty, but the photographer asks you to move your shoulder to the right and generally thinks that you should sit down slightly - listen to him. After all, he is still standing in front of the lens and he can see better!

Smile with your eyes!

Tyra Banks also said that the most important thing in photography is “Smieyes”. If your face is empty and inanimate, then it doesn’t matter how beautiful your clothes are or how well you interact with objects. Even the expression on your face does not attract as much attention as the expression in your eyes. The eyes are the mirror of the soul!

I hope these tips help you get the photos of your dreams!

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