There was no directing the subject, just conversation. I think if directed it would have taken a lot longer in order to get them to look this way or that, and I have found that this is when people (that I know) generally feel more uncomfortable in having their photo taken. Having a conversation with someone may result in more wasted shots due to the naturally changing expressions but it's not so onerous for either the photographer or the subject. I also wasn't interested in having a series of smiling shots - to me that wouldn't represent this particular subject and would also have taken away some of the casual feel to the taking of the project.
I stopped taking shots when I felt that if the subject didn't change position we would just be repeating what had already been done.
With hindsight I would have selected a plainer backdrop in order to keep the shots simpler - both in terms of not having the setting make the eye wander on the more distant shots and also to look better when throwing the background out of focus on the head shots.
What I consider to be the preferred shot:
These I consider to be good:
These I consider acceptable:
These I don't consider accpetable - mainly due to the facial expressions badly caught, or the setting being distracting:
