Negotiated study 2nd Shoot

Here's an image from my second shoot for my final negotiated study images.

I feel like I'm getting a much better handle on this series now and am working with a provisional title of "Tethered", as the running motif of the series is that each subject will be attached to something with reference to the subject or everyday life, hopefully in a more ambiguous nature.

My good friend Andy was really up for this shoot which I was quite happy about as he has quite a distinctive look and a lot of hair. I decided to use hair as the motif for the image and shot him in a hairy gorilla suit and as you can see is tethered to a hair dryer. I also had him sit on some tires, and there was a couple of reasons for this. Firstly Andy is quite tall and so logistically it would have been quite difficult to position him in the shot without seeing the top of my backdrop. I also felt that it would be a nice way of changing composition within the series so that it doesn't become too similar, and also as Apes and Monkeys sit on tires in the zoo, and we are all only shaved apes after all.

The shoot itself was really good and felt very collaborative with Andy suggesting different poses to try for the image. I also shot with my camera tethered to my laptop through Lightroom, so the images would show on the screen as I shot them which would mean that I could see them in more detail than on the back of my camera. This also meant that Andy could see the shots and helped me explain more about what I liked and didn't like about his poses.

The shoots are getting easier to set up as I am generally using the same lighting configuration for the shots and the backdrop and composition is an homage to the portrait work of Irving Penn (see below).

Recent work

Here's a few images from recent shoots I've been doing.

The first three are from a shoot I did for stylists at George's hair salon for competitions they were entering. I'm quite happy to say that the third shot has been selected to go through to the final.

I've really begun to enjoy doing this kind of work and is certainly an area where I am slowly but surely building up a network of contacts. Also the majority of the work is coming from word of mouth as people are recommending me, which is always good.

I shot these using a 50mm prime lens and a pair of Bowens heads. One was fitted with a large softbox for a nice spread of light and the other was fitted with a honeycomb grid that I used as a key light for the hair.

On reflection I think that when I do this kind of work again I will use a smaller aperture and also shoot with a longer focus of around 100mil or above to get more detail in to the shots.

This next shot is from a collaboration with Lara Giffard who is a make up student I have begun to work with quite a lot. It's based on the idea of Candy and is heavily influenced by the recent Victorias Secrets Autumn/ Winter catwalk show.

The venue for the shoot was the Americandi store in the High Cross, and had to be arranged out of trading hours. The shoot was an interesting one to say the least as we only had 40 minutes on site and so had to be pretty quick about turning shots around.

I decided to try and light the shoot with just one Bowens head and a reflective brolly as it would save me more time to turn shots around. Although it was quite a high intensity shoot I'm quite happy with the results I got and feel that this one is by far the stand out shot.

New portraits

Aaron asked me to do a portrait for his website profile.

I decided to light for a greyed out background on the infinity curve.

The idea was to only use two lights. A softbox for main light positioned to the side and a beauty dish behind for a little bit of back lighting.

In the end I used four lights on Az to try and get a more rounded light effect without quite so much shadow.

As Adam was around while I was setting up I asked him to pop in for a quick test shot.

This in turn turned into the other shot from the day.

As  it was earlier the lighting is darker than in Az's final shot but I really like the end result. Adam face even though quite blank expresses a lot of character.

I want to find some more subjects to shoot in this style as I really like the effect.

Further inspiration

I've been looking at more images that have given me ideas for theme and lighting on my Self neg.

Again each image has a certain feel to it that I would like to emulate within my own work not necessarily be a direct influence.

Dazed and confused shoot

To me this image has the feel of a still life, an effect I am trying to achieve. Very static poses and the "props" add to the feel of the piece rather than become a distraction.

Rachel De Joode

Again another "still life portrait", this one in a much more classic sense as the subject is adopting an almost sculptured pose. The photographer has created a piece of pop art while being inspired by classic art.

Self Neg update

I've finally managed to get started on the practical aspect of the final self neg project of this course. 

As it's for exhibition I've decided to go all out with my idea so as to try and produce a really strong series that will gain some attention.

It's not however, without it's problems.

First and foremost: cost. Obtaining materials etc has been quite a drain on my resources but fortunately after a bit of indecision on how to go about making the sets I'm using some relatively cheap mdf board. 

For my first shoot I decided to paint it quite a striking blue and then light to emphasise it.

Leicester's Next Top Model Rose on test shoot. 

After doing a quick test shoot with Rose on Friday, I decided to go for my first shoot on Monday. The test shoot helped with getting the composition and an early idea for how I was planning to light the set.

Leonora kindly agreed to be my first subject as she had the look that would suit the imagery I'm trying to achieve.

Lara the make up artist I have recently begun to work with also offered to work on the project to help achieve a more professional feel.

The shoot went well and I'm really happy with the results and have two images that will definitely fit in the series. The decision now is obviously which one to choose.

Self negotiated study.

Recently spent some time considering where I want to go with the final self negotiated work. I've been looking at the work of David Stewart and really like the way he makes strange portraits that incorporate elements of still life into them.

I feel that the way the models are used in the images enhances the feel of still life as they have a very static yet composed feel. Also the message in the image is not entirely evident, if there is one at all, which to my mind enhances the image by asking the viewer to work out what the photographer is trying to portray.

I also like how the images are very precise and the use of lighting clinical, which I feel adds to the overall detached feel within the series. The use of make up and costume also adds to this as it has a very modern yet almost Victorian feel to it.

This is something I have been thinking about for a while, whether art can be purely that, with no real message behind it. I would like to make my images appear like abstract paintings, which makes me ask the question of whether I really need a thematic concern behind what I do, or does the lack of a theme become the focal point of the series?

Also it encompasses elements of fashion and editorial photography, an area I am keen to explore, and could possibly use to expand my portfolio.

Another area that I feel this could be a challenge is logistically as I would like to make this a studio project. However, rather than use the studio as the background, I would like to create my own sets, something I have wanted to do for a while. It's quite a daunting prospect, but for me this year is about challenging myself and becoming a more conceptual thinker as opposed to a photographer that reacts to what is in front of me.

To this end I would like the feel of my series to be minimal, with key pieces of furniture or props, placed in the image to embellish the main figure. However, where Stewart uses only female figures I would like to use both male and females, of varying ages, within my images.

Should I go ahead with this idea the next step will be to begin to think conceptually and begin to work out how to get the props and materials required to make the sets, as well as begin to sketch out how the images will look when shot.

Finally, I would like to shoot the series on medium format camera, as it is a medium I haven't really shot a lot of, but have always liked the results when I have used it, and also this would mean working in film another medium I don't shoot enough in.

Is there any great meaning behind this image? Does there need to be?

I like the idea of building my own sets in a studio setting and then using lighting  in a similar fashion to the one used here.

Really like the way the set is built in this image, and how the lighting is used to add depth and clarity to the piece.

In contrast to the image above I feel that the use of the stairwell location detracts from the feel of this image as it  grounds it in a more realistic setting and puts it at odds with the rest of the series.

KMS Style competition

I was recently commissioned to photograph the entry for Defuzion Hair salons entry for this years KMS Art Team competition.

The concept was of a Goth and rockabilly inspired look, and we wanted to go for quite a minimal approach so that the make up, hair and clothes really came to the for.

I shot on a white background at the Salon using 2 Bowens Lights one with a softbox and the other with a honeycomb dish. A third continuous light was added for a little bit of extra ambient light.

Finally, we used a gold reflector to highlight a little bit of warmth into the face.

I'm happy to say that the client's were really happy with the finished image and look forward to seeing the image used in their entry, and also for their promotional campaigns.

I'd also like to thank Lewis for being a very helpful assistant.