Amateur vs. "Pro" pics... What do you prefer?
 

When it comes to the look & feel of content, what do you guys think performs better? The amateur type of pic, taken with an off-the-shelf camera? Or the "pro" type of pic that's obviously choreographed with lighting, backdrops, wardrobe, etc? I'm kind of a fan of the amateur look myself because carrying around pocket digital camera is MUCH easier than lugging around a 10lb+ (w/lens + flash) Canon 1-series. Here's a couple examples... Same girl (Trinity from TrinityLain.com), two totally different types of pics though.

http://www.omgzilla.com/trinity/trinity02_05.jpg

http://www.omgzilla.com/trinity/trinity16_09.jpg

well, personally i'm only interested in the business aspect.

in my experience the "amateur-reality" look shot with pro equipment and lighting sells the best to the surfer.

the high glamour look is pretty but introduces artificiality which does not convert so well.

if the model is at least average looking with a good physique and good complexion she will convert almost 90% of the supermodel look at about 25% of the model fee.

better ROI.

am by far

amateur all the way

Amateur pics with 'girl next door' type models.

I think you bring up a good point about a third category: amateur look & feel shot with pro equipment. Although with the current crop of pro-summer gear available on the market now, I think the low end bar has been raised a bit. Use some decent gear, but leave out the fancy lighting, and you end up with some pretty nice "amateur" shots:

http://www.omgzilla.com/trinity/trinity15_01.jpg

Pro works fine for solo girl sites, since many surfers have a pretty good knowledge about the sites around and feel fooled when you try to sell them "real amateur content" via a professional program.

Amateurs really running their own sites are a different story, certainly works well for them, but if surfers know that it wasn't the boyfriend who shot the pics, don't try to make them believe it...no credibility.

If you go for the "real amateur style", you target a different audience, those guys want camshows, diaries, forums, shoots by request, they write loads of fanmails, they want the "virtual girlfriend" and communication with the girl to a bigger extend than the average solo girl site member.

I do not personally like when the pics are over processed on a site.. Not to take anything from the likes of dean and others since they are GREAT art photos, but I perfer to think I am am seeing the girl how she REALLY is. That may include some flaws but its real world.

Guerrilla style all the way -

Umm...me likes :thumbsup

Thought-provoking topic

(I'll think about it some more and see if I can't provoke something later).

I have been part of enhancing images in the past, and a certain amount of love is poured into each image. I know I rather the pro stuff for show, but amateur stuff is also sought after by many. amateur stuff can be as alluring as the pro stuff sometimes as well.

I like the amateur style much better

pro pics suck imho

to be successful in these days you need to build your site and offer a huge veriety, you need all types of photo styles and all types of girls skinny, a little thick, red heads and blondes and different skin colors etc, the more people you cater to the more styles of images you have the more you will hit someones spot and make then give you money

When I started my solo girl site I decided to shoot her in a more relaxed atmosphere keeping it simple and making her seem more down to earth and approachable. I didn't want to portray her as some super glamorous model that would be untouchable to the average man which is my target member.

Keeping the photography and sets simple does this very well and makes my job much easier. Of course it helps to have a model that looks as good first thing in the morning as she does all dressed up. I'd say the majority of surfers like amateur so that's the way I went with no regrets :thumbsup

http://www.julie-clarke.com/public_h...images/047.jpg

amateur all the way. :)

all depends on the model, location, and target of audience

personally
 

im all for the off the cuff amateur sorat shit,, but if your runnign a site, then i say you gotta mix it up and throw both of em into the pot, if its for a magazine then i feel professional is the only way to go off the cuff amateur shots just look cheap in magazines

I prefer amateur girls shot by a professional photographer. Not the other way around.

I'm with Cheesefrog. I'm an amateur, but I want photos that are classy and higher quality than if shot with a point-and-shot and flash. Sometimes I do shoots with photographer friends but most are done by myself or my husband. I do next to no retouching or editing/cropping, unless I'm going for a few killer "frame-able" shots. It varies, depending on my mood and the type of the shoot.

I find that lighting is key. As long as you have reasonably good lighting (natural, or my budget option: twin halogen work lamps from Amazon :thumbsup), and the viewer isn't distracted by poor quality, everything else can be pretty flexible. I'd rather people got that "I'm doing this myself" feel from a silly face, or a cat in the background, or a less-than-ideal cropping than from bad lighting.

A few varying examples...

http://www.sexygeekgirl.com/media/comfychair3.jpg

http://www.sexygeekgirl.com/media/preview27.jpg

http://www.sexygeekgirl.com/media/preview16.jpg

I love this shot. Is that ambient sunlight?

the whole question is honestly rather nebulous because so many people have so manyy different ideas as to what constitutes amateur I have people who love my site because i shoot real amateurs and people who bitch that I don't shoot enough real amateurs, some like amateurs shot in a more amateur style some like them professionally shot

My advice is find your niche and fill it.

I think it all depends on the product you are selling, I just started a Pornstar site, that audience is looking for Hi-end "perfect pornstar" looking content, a reality or solo site would be the other way around... so both have a place, what you use depends on what you sell... IMHO

that hallway pic is jawdroppin - I totally agree with cheesefrog :thumbsup

I like the glamor of hot chicks professionally photographed.

I like to do the mix,all of one style gets boring to me.

I like Dean Capture style

I love this shot! :thumbsup

My answer to your question is that it depends on the mood I am in, who I am shooting, etc.

Lately I have been hiring other people to shoot stills for me, while I focus completely on the video side.

When I surf, I most prefer well-done amateur style photos, since it fires up my imagination more. Over-produced pro photos usually appeal more to my intellect than my libido.

Good thread...

ADG Webmaster

Nothing beats the "amateur" feel !

amateurish look for amateur sites...pro looking for porn stars....it all depends on what you are looking to promote....

Amateur for sure.

not sure which would perform better but i like professional shots

I personally prefer amateur when surfing. And that's all I can shoot cause I sure ain't no pro LOL.

I think that the amateur with a hint of pro is good.

With my new Asian girls in panties site, I'm going to be aiming for the right mix of girl next door models, amateur style setting, and just enough photoshop to clean up without losing all the details.

amateur all the way.

REAL Amateur...I just startet www.fisserogpatter.dk for fun.

i prefer amateur (real amateur - not "as if" amateur)

Very good points. Most amateur shots, the samples CheeseFrog has are not amateur models they are posing like professionals and do not carry the enthusiasm I would imagine an amateur model would have. Surfers looking for amateur models want to see something else. IMO. As for glamour not converting, it converts very well, if the site has the content. Twistys, Herge, DDF, Hicks all do well and all can shoot glamour. Problem is again when the photographer can't produce the content.

To bust a nut? - Amateur content
To make money? - HQ Glamour content