A session...

If you wish to be photographed by Kees Terberg, the only thing that you need to do is ask and we'll look at the possibilities. Through communication we can ensure that a session can be organised to fulfil all expectations.

We will discuss the type of photographs that you are looking for, the style, the location, the type of clothes that you should bring and the anticipated duration of the shoot. Once we are set, we will arrange to meet for the shoot. We do not generally supply make-up artists but you are more than welcome to bring one along if you wish. The same goes for a chaperone; you are welcome to bring along whomever you wish. As a matter of fact, we recommend that you bring along a friend on any initial session as this will ease the nerves.

We can always arrange more than one shoot and multiple styles, from fashion to unconventional portraiture, fine art nudes to abstract. In photography nothing is impossible providing that arrangements have been made. We can work on your portfolio or book but also arrange for a special portrait for the person you love.

Preparation ...

Just some tips to precede a shoot: Drink plenty of water a few days before the shoot, ensure that you are well rested to avoid red eyes, dark bags and the pale uneasy look. Try to look through magazines, the internet and books for images that you like and wish to imitate, and poses that you wish to adopt. On the session day itself wear easy clothes. If you need to change frequently on location, think about wearing a bathing suit rather than underwear. If you are modelling in the nude, bring along a dressing gown and avoid wearing tight underwear. Bra's and strings are horrible to leave marks.

If you are not sure about which clothes to bring, just bring everything. I would recommend that you bring whatever you feel comfortable in, along with a pair of old worn out blue jeans, white shirt, plain clothes without too many frills. It is better to bring too much than to little.

Generally I bring along a portable radio with CD player. If you like, you can bring along your preferred music.

During the shoot ...

Before starting, we generally enjoy a cup of coffee or a soft drink. During this time we can browse through the ideas that you have collected from the internet or magazines. We will get you used to the camera, tell you where to stand, how to pose, where to look and why I am asking you to do these things. In most cases it is a matter of playing with the available light and ensuring that this light brings out the best of you.

For beginning models, we always take a little extra time. The most important thing to remember is that you have to be yourself and that you are comfortable and at ease during the session.

The dictionary defines “portraiture” as “a record of a certain aspect of a particular human being as seen by an artist”. The most important attribute of a good portrait is that it captures some individualism of the subject. The picture should not merely be a shot of a pretty girl or an old man but a portrait of that particular pretty girl or old man and no other person. Portraitists are first and foremost observers, noting human traits, elements of character, idiosyncrasies, habits and gestures and singling out and capturing the individual features of each sitter.

In short, everyone is unique and everyone is beautiful and that is why I love taking snapshots of people.
 

After the shoot…

The way I work is often through the luck of  numbers and by taking many shots, I create my own luck by trying to ensure the capture of the right moment. This means that of a single pose there may be 5 to 10 shots. A one hour session might result in 500 pictures taken, of which it will be the challenge to find the 10 or 15 best shots to use for the portfolio, an exhibition, or to give to your friends or family. Hence, after the shoot, all the photos taken will reviewed and sorted before being burned to a disk at preview resolution. These shots will be in low resolution and unedited!  Together we can decide which images are to be edited and if needed, I will guide you through the selection to pick the final shots. These shots will be edited using Adobe Photoshop. Blemishes will be removed, skin tones adjusted, colours will be balanced, special filter effects may be applied, etc. You will receive a series of images on disk as soon as these have been digitally processed. I do not provide unprocessed images!  If you do use my work on the internet, please credit the photographer and provide me with a link to the website.