That's a Wrap!

I learned so much doing this project! Fashion photography is so much more difficult than it looks. Looking back, I definitely would've googled poses to give my models, because a lot of our time was spent figuring out how to make the pictures look less awkward. Also, I regret not going thrift shopping for cool pieces, because a lot of fashion photography focuses on really bold clothing items, like the following picture:

Emma Watson for Teen Vogue, August 2013 issue

I also thought a lot about the connections between this project and Christianity. In school we learn about through lines, which are ways to connect the Bible to our lives. Two of the through lines that really have to do with this project are Beauty-Creating, because God wants us to create art and connect to Him through our artwork, and Idolatry-Discerning, because there's a blurry line between loving the art and putting people on a pedestal. Like I said in a previous post, it's possible to create art out of ourselves without idolizing the model, but it can be difficult to discern between the two.

I'd really like to keep doing this, one way or another. I don't know how I can fit this into my life and the plans I have, but if I get the opportunity, I'd love to expand on what I've learned!

On the Edge

So this is my last photo shoot, and it was the one I was the most excited for! I wanted this to be a street style kind of shoot; edgy but kind of relaxed. The pictures didn't turn out exactly the way I hoped they would but I'm still really happy with the results!
My cousin Keziah modelled for me, and it felt weird putting tons of makeup on her since she's only 13!! She was a good sport about it, though.
Since, in my other photo shoots, I had trouble with the makeup not being dark enough, I decided to use the heaviest products I have. I used my regular foundation and bronzer, but then I used gel eyeliner and cream eyeshadow, since they go on so much thicker than eye pencil and powder eyeshadow. I also used my regular mascara since its already pretty heavy-duty.

Here are the product names and colour numbers:
Almay Smart Shade primer (despite rumours, this stuff does wonders for preventing eye makeup from smearing)
M.A.C liquid foundation in pale beige 444
Covergirl bronzer in Golden Tan 104
Rimmel Scandaleyes flex in 003 extreme black
Maybelline cream eyeshadow in Inked in Pink 55
M.A.C gel eyeliner in Blacktrack B43
Covergirl Lipstick in 825 In the Nude

We did this photo shoot in the gravel pits by my house, because I wanted two different locations: in the sand, for very bright, natural photos; and by the graffitied wall, for an edgier look. I finally got to use the tips Carmela gave me about adjusting aperture, shutter speed, and ISO to let in as much sunlight as possible, and that improved the photos sooo much!

I was so mad at myself when I saw this picture because I had been fiddling with the aperture and shutter speed and the picture was darker than I'd wanted. I managed to lighten it a bit using an editing program but its not the same :( 

To get this picture I took like a million pictures while she slowly put the sunglasses on her face, so I could get the optimum placement of the sunglasses (turns out they looked best just fully on like normal haha)

This was in between pictures, so the laugh is au naturale

Post-thunderstorm

So I guess it was about time to do a second photo shoot! Today my friend Katie came over to model for me, and our initial plan was to do it around 7 pm so that it would still be bright out but the sun wouldn't be too strong. However, at 7 pm we were in the middle of a thunderstorm.. but by about 8 it cleared up a bit and I think the pictures turned out better with the almost-sunset just-rained lighting!
Our inspiration for the shoot was from a page in Taylor Swift's Red album.

I was really happy with the way the lighting worked out on this one. My friend Carmela helped me a lot with learning how to adjust the features on my camera for when its really sunny, but since we had to wait til after 8 pm, I wasn't able to use the new settings I'd learned (I ended up putting the settings on auto). I'll definately be using it for my next photo shoot though!

I wanted the pictures to be soft and bright, so I used neutral colours for her eye makeup. I barely had to use any foundation because her skin was basically flawless. I used a bit of powder foundation to avoid glare on her face, and finished off the look with some blush and mascara. I curled her hair but brushed it out a bit to loosen up the curls and give a more natural look. (She also let me trim her bangs!) The lace shirt helped keep her looking soft but the bulky necklace gave her a bit of an edge so she wouldn't look too washed out.

Here are the makeup brands/colours we used:
-M.A.C. liquid foundation
-Physicians Formula Mineral Wear airbrushing loose powder (translucent light) - this stuff is fantastic and I would really recommend it.. I've been on the same container for 3 years and its only half finished, even though I use it every day!
-Revlon Powder Blush in 040 Softspoken Pink
-Rimmel London eyeshadow in 002 Smokey Brun
-Rimmel London Scandal Eyes flex mascara in 003 Extreme Black (my all-time favourite mascara)
-Clinique lip crayon in 06 Woppin' Watermelon (very subtle colour, for your reference.. I'm not sure I'd buy this again but it does apply smoothly)

For this picture, as well as the previous one, I blended the background in an attempt to draw the eye to Katie. The pictures both had a lot of colour and busyness, so I wanted to slow the image down.

The lighting was fantastic for this picture, but I had some trouble with her pallor. Her eyeshadow had gotten smudged a fair bit by this point, causing her face to have a greyish tinge. I had difficulty editing it back to normal, but I did my best.

The flower braid was a spontaneous idea, but I think it turned out. She reminds me of Aphrodite, or else someone from a Jane Austin novel.