Back in my newspaper days I volunteered at one time to do the food and fashion shoots. That wasn't really my kind of photography, but it was time to try something new. I ended up enjoying it, and learned the value of working with an experienced model.

When I started, the paper was too cheap to hire models, so the fashion writer would find friends to model the clothes. I'd find a location, deal with the lighting and then try to pose the person so they looked natural. The hardest part of the whole process was working with the volunteer model. I learned to keep a close eye on things like what they were doing with their hands, where their feet were pointed, and which leg they put their weight on. And I often had to work hard to cajole a smile out of someone who wasn't used to being in front of a camera.

Eventually the newspaper decided to hire students from a modeling school. What a difference! Not only did they know how to hold their body and smile comfortably, but better yet, they understood that a good model works with a photographer. That means they work through different poses, pausing at each one to let you shoot. It's a bit of a dance between the model and photographer, and can be a lot of fun. Suddenly I was able to concentrate on the photography - light, background, technical details like depth of field and focus - without trying to manage the model as well. And right then I understood that a good model was far more than a pretty face.

This past weekend I was in Long Island, leading a photo workshop for American/Pop Photo (part of their Mentor Series). There's almost always an opportunity at these workshops to photograph people in a controlled location, but normally they're not trained models. This time we did have someone with experience in front of the camera, and not surprisingly, it was a joy to photograph her.

I like to tell people that when I'm doing a portrait, I concentrate on finding a good setting (and background) and figure out what to do with the light, then add the person to the shot. After all, there's not much you can do about the subject other than suggest how they dress. But if you ever get a chance to work with a trained model, you'll get a treat. After all, it's far more fun to dance with someone who knows the steps.