Bibliography

References

BBC,. 'Seven Photographs That Changed Fashion - BBC Four'. N.p., 2015. Web. 4 Dec. 2015.

Peterson, David, and Author Profile. 'How Lighting Affects The Mood Of Your Photos - Digital Photo Secrets'. Digital-photo-secrets.com. N.p., 2015. Web. 11 Nov. 2015.

Peterson, David, and Author Profile. 'Using Lighting Style To Create Mood: High-Key And Low-Key Lighting - Digital Photo Secrets'. Digital-photo-secrets.com. N.p., 2015. Web. 21 Nov. 2015.

Telegraph.co.uk,. 'Rankin: Seven Photographs That Changed Fashion'. N.p., 2015. Web. 1 Dec. 2015.

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Evaluation

I have really enjoyed the digital image production unit, and my knowledge on cameras, lighting, post production, and photography in general has grown immensely.

  I have found the practical lessons hugely beneficial in increasing my technical skills, as I had previously had no experience in this. Frequent practice in the studios has developed my confidence to be able to do my final shoot independently. I also believe that the theory seminars were also key in fuelling my inspiration, and influencing and encouraging my research. In particular watching ‘7 Photographs That Changed Fashion’ encouraged me to research the photographers and become more interested in photography and fashion. Additionally, learning about retouching and researching Nathalie Croquets 'SPOOF' Series, also enthused my interest in post production, and the issue of the perception of women in the media in general. The post production lessons were also vital, to editing and presenting my final pieces.

  Shooting my final images was quite daunting, as I had only previously been in the studio in lessons and had help from either teachers or other pupils, however for this I was on my own. Luckily all the practice in our technical sessions came together, and I was able to set up two different set ups, using different lighting techniques on the advised camera settings we were told. Overall I am really proud of the images I took and the makeup and hair I did for them. One thing I would perhaps change is the amount of makeup applied, as I found that the lights can often wash out complexions, which I found happened slightly in my colour images. Although initially I was not that comfortable, I soon got into the role and directed my models and ensured I had enough images for post production. When it came to post production I ensured that I did not over retouch the images, and kept them almost authentic to the original. I am in general very happy with the outcome, especially the black and white shoot, as I feel the hair and makeup really went with the lighting and the look I was trying to portray.

Mood Board

WHAT EXACTLY IS A MOOD BOARD?

Words fail miserably when trying to translate design concepts, which is why mood board are useful create when conveying your ideas, or just getting down you inspirations. Visuals communicate things that words cannot, which is why mood boards are a great tool. They are used in a variety of disciplines. They're used frequently in fashion to highlight trends and styles. In essence mood boards are a compilation of inspirational elements used by designers to flesh out ideas at the beginning of a design project.
Above is my final mood board that I created for my colour shoot. In it are the colours, poses and lighting that I considered and inspired my shoot.

Final Black & White

Here are my final Black & White images, post production.
Overall I am really proud and happy with the outcome of these. I felt before post production and changing them into black and white, that the images were good, however with increased contrast and small adjustments I feel that the look I was going for really came across. I am happy with the simple, yet beautiful hair and makeup and the glossy look that this gives. the shine to the highpoint of the face and chest, are really brought forward with the lighting. The use of oils and vaseline to enhance this, really define the models features. The use of the beauty dish really, gives a subtly harsher light. Overall I am really happy with my images and the outcome post production.

Final images- colour

Above are my final three colour images. In general I am happy with the outcome. I only made slight adjustments to the contrast and brightness in post production, as i felt the lighting achieved prior was very accurate to what i wanted and therefore needed little changing. I also only made small retouches to blemishes, but other than that i kept the image almost entirely true to the original. If i were to make any improvement i would of perhaps experimented with more poses and positions.

My Photoshoot

Today I had my photoshoot for my black and white, and colour images. Below and some of the images from my colour shoot, before any post production.  For the hair I wanted to keep it really natural and effortless looking, therefore I opted for loose curls, that weren't perfect and looked slightly messy. For the makeup I wanted to keep the face really bright and fresh looking, therefore a natural base, with a slight flush and highlight on the high points of the face is what i did on the day. I wanted the main feature of the look to be the bod red lip. Therefore a crisp, even application was crucial, as this could not be fixed in post production. 

For this shoot I used a soft box as I wanted the lighting to be soft and not harsh. I also had lights on the background as well as the model, to increase this softer effect, and also give a really bright look to the image. I really wanted to enhance the bold red lip that i applied to the model. Overall I am really happy with my colour shoot, I feel the lighting and hair and makeup when as planed, and i look forward to making some small adjustments in post production and seeing the final outcome. 

I then moved on to my black and white image, below are just a few of the ones that I took. Before the shoot i had a definite vision for the outcome of this look. I was inspired by various black and white beauty images that featured a glossy, wet look skin and hair. Therefore for the hair i went for a simple brushed back style, using baby oil and hairspray to get a wet look. I then kept the makeup very minimal, as I wanted the look to be mostly about the skin. I applied a light base, a small amount of contouring to hightlight the hallows of the models face, and a small amount of highlight to emphasise the highpoints, and also add to the overall dewy look. I think went in with vaseline and added this to the lips and also a small amount to the cheek bones, to inroad the shine. Once i had taken one imaged i realised the chest and neck also needed some kind of moisturiser to bring the whole look together. So I put vaseline and baby oil on the collar bones and a small amount on the neck and chest. Overall I think the makeup and hair was really effective, and worked really well with the lights.

I wanted the lighting of the black and white shoot to be slightly harsher than the coloured, as I thought this would work well with the wet look I was going for, especially once the images had be turned into black and white, and the contrast and exposure had been increased. Therefore I used a beauty dish for this shoot. I also used a reflector underneath the model, to increase the highlights on the collar bones and cheek bones. Overall I am extremely happy with the outcome for the black and white shoot and I look forward to turning these images into black and white and experimenting with the brightness,contrast and exposure. 

colour beauty shoot ideas

These are just some of the images I have gathered together when looking for inspiration of my colour beauty shoot. These images feature bright skin, with soft lighting and a key stand out feature, in most cases a bold lip colour. Currently i think i want to go for a bold, crisp red lip to contrast the softness of the rest of the image. I want the hair to be loose and slightly messy, but overall the main feature to be the lips, as they are in most of the images above.