Having consistency both in your methods and in your final product is very important in all aspects of your operations, whether you are a professional like me or if you are an amateur simply interested in getting great shots.
I used to do youth sports photography and later children’s portraits in schools. While doing these jobs I got a really good lesson in the importance of consistency. It not only allowed me to have a good looking product but also allowed me to work quickly. Photographing 300-500 people in a day, especially children, really helps a person appreciate being able to work efficiently! The most important thing is that, on the customer’s end, the final product looks best when all the pictures look the same, especially when displayed near each other in a yearbook or directory.
Look at these pictures, for example:
These are officers of a Cherrydale #42 Masonic Lodge in Arlington, VA. I shot them all the same way, one after another, with the same pose, same lighting, etc. Seeing them all neat like that makes the pictures look much better than otherwise. Imagine if some shots were cut at the waist, some at the chest, some with lots of headroom, others uncenetered. That would be a very messy display.
One way I got them to all look the same was by setting up the shot the same way every time. In addition, I adjusted the lighting very slightly for height differences to have a consistent exposure and minimize shadows.
This does something more than make the portraits look great. With so many digital tools available to us nowadays, we can easily make pictures look just fine and consistent with each other. However, as a photographer, I want to be out and about taking more pictures, not spending my time in front of the computer. Consistency enables me to spend less time messing around with the product, or at least allows me to do the same thing to every picture, often by way of a macro in Photoshop.
Remember – do the same thing the same way every time and you will get consistent results.
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