Photo-shoot #1 08/02/18

Thursday was my first photo-shoot for my project. I arrived at 9:30am to set up the studio for my model to arrive at 10am. I tested the lighting and backgrounds and decided that working with a black backdrop would be most effective for creating a dark background in my images, as opposed to using the infinity cove walls. This also means I can work more efficiently for my next shoot: my videographer can capture the film footage of one model while I photograph another, for example. On this occasion, I completed the photography myself, as my photographer could not make it. I felt okay doing this, as I have learnt a lot about photography over the last two years at university, and I have also recently attended workshops to brush up my skills. As the photography I need is quite simply, I felt confident in my abilities to achieve what I wanted. 

My model arrived at 10am and I explained to her what the morning would consist of. I provided a private area for her to get changed and then we began the photography. I refrained from body make-up application as my whole project is about natural appearances - I want to capture every blemish, fine line, hair follicle, pigment and so on. I made sure she felt comfortable in what she was wearing, the poses I asked her to hold and the intimacy of the images I was capturing. I used a computer screen to display the images as they were taken, so that she could see them for herself. I only used one light in order to cast shadow and create contrast across the model's body. I used a macro lens to capture the texture of the skin and all of the fine lines in detail. I asked my model to bend, stretch and tense her body to contort and morph it, so that I could capture photos that are representative of the stranger and less acknowledged every-day body movements and positions. 

After the photography was finished, my model moved over to the infinity cove to begin working with my videographer. He had set up various continuous lights as well as his camera, and the model sat on a stool, as this allowed her to pose much better than when standing. The first filming session took a while as Joe, my videographer, got to grips with the lighting changes and the camera and lenses. He is a highly skilled artist and understands how each project requires different studio and equipment set-ups; he also knew exactly what I want to capture for my project and was good at directing the model to pose exactly how he needed her to. I oversaw and gave general direction throughout the filming, to make sure we got the particular shots I want. The more Joe worked, the quicker he got at tweaking the set-up and capturing the shots, and I was really happy with the footage at the end.

Soon my second model arrived and we set about repeating the same procedure all over again. This model was equally confident and happy to cooperate with everything I required for my project. 

My second shoot will take place on Wednesday, and will involve three models. Now that Joe has practised and knows exactly what to do, he will be much faster at working. Also, my photographer will be helping out, so the filming and photography can take place at the same time on different models at different ends of the studio, with myself overseeing and directing them both. I am confident that both of my collaboratives have the skills and understanding of the project required to capture what I need. As I begin to edit and print the images, it is likely that I will use some of them more than once, with different crops, so that some photos will be very close-up and appear ambiguous as to what part of the body they belong to, really displaying the textures and details of the image.