Studio with Desthy

Public figure/Blogger Desthy Dee approached me and asked if I could be her photographer for her new project #StudioWithDesthy which involves her working with young females who want to be part of the blogging industry. 

Below are some of the images from some of the shoots we worked on together. 

This shoot was different to my personal projects as it was a live brief with a client and I received direction and guidance from Desthy, whereas I usually have much more creative freedom. 

For the next shoot we collaborated with two high street fashion brands including Simi Shoes and Goldgetter (clothing brand). This was a great opportunity and a really good experience to work with a number of different models and bloggers within the industry. Working to the standards of a client was also a challenge but it was a good opportunity to see what working in the industry would be like. 

Modelling portfolio pictures for singer/songwriter Joey James (from boy band "Rough Copy") (recommended by Desthy Dee)

All these opportunities were great for networking with people in the industry and also building up my portfolio

Shoot 2 - Latisha Augustine

I chose to photograph this collection because of its symmetrical and geometric design.

The concept for my graduate collection was:

"Babylon is an important Rastafarian term referring to the human government and institutions controlled by money and greed which are seen as a rebellion against the rule of Jah [GOD]".

To summarise the above quote it was inspired by government control and greed. I've attached some concept pages to help give a visual representation. I would say my target Audience would Young millennials [20 - 30], High-end Sportswear/Womenswear brand." - Latisha Augustine 

Designer: Latisha Augustine 

Title: Babylon

Model: Elizabeth Pedro

Make up Artist: Tia Chauhan

As the design of the garments are quite symmetrical, I wanted to keep the make up symmetrical too to show consistency within my work. 

When shooting there was a slight technical issue regarding the lighting. A harsh shadow occurred across the bottom left of the colourama. I experimented with moving the lights around but the shadow did not disappear. To solve the problem I lay another colourama along the floor to break up the background. This worked to my advantage as the colours completely complemented the outfits and also created a layered effect, enhancing my concept of shape.

Taking into account all that I had learnt from my last shoot, I made sure I was shooting from a lower down viewpoint to ensure my model appeared more proportionate.

I also used a fan when capturing this collection to enhance movement within some of the looks (especially the cape).

British designer Lucy Orta developed a series of work that investigates the boundaries between the body and architecture. 
She states that her work breaks down barriers between clothing and architecture to remove many of the limitations they represent, 

One of the designs allowed four or more individuals to merge their garments into a multi-person tent. Her collection eliminates many of the boundaries between fashion and architecture as they become metaphors for shelter, dress, mobility and social space.

Refuge wear is a clear example of how fashion engages with other disciplines like architecture and art. This becomes a powerful message to the people of the world, that no matter what career path you choose, one can always help those less fortunate.

I like the way the background of this image is layered and has two different tones/textures. This is something I will have been influenced by and used in my own work as can be seen below.

Orta's designs are relevant to my work as they are structured garments inspired by architecture which can be worn. 

Portfolio review with Jill Furmanovsky

Speaking with Jill Furmanovsky  was helpful in terms of getting a professional opinion on my work. She liked both my fashion images and architectural ones and got me to think about how I could combine the two together. She told me I needed to think about the bigger picture and think carefully also about my layout.

She suggested having a fashion image next to a photograph of architecture (image below).

After some consideration I decided not to along with this idea as these conjoined images are not suitable for my target audience who are mainly fashion orientated. Another reason why I didn't not use this specific layout is because I wanted the viewer to question my images when looking at them, having to take some more time to understand the composition. I wanted my images to speak for themselves and I feel that  by using this layout I would be giving too much away to the viewer and there would be nothing for them to work out for themselves.

Illustration on photography

Another way to show elements of shape through my work would be to collaborate with an illustrator to highlight elements of shape within the clothing.  I found some styles which showed the style I was looking to create. The patterns and bold colours used are what stood out to me as they represented elements of shape and pattern. 

Photographer Lea Nielsen created mixed media images which are inspired from architecture, art and film. Her images are known for having collage effects. This photographer shows another way in which I could combine illustration and photography to produce a layered image and show elements of shape.

I got in touch with an illustrator who agreed to mock up some designs. 

Below is an image sent to me by the illustrator. After some consideration I decided to go against the idea of illustration on top of my work as it seemed to distract too much from the original concept. I knew that I could show elements of shape in different ways photographically as apposed to adding another form of media to my work.

Jennie retouching workshop

Attending the retouching workshop by Jennie was very useful as I was able to learn some new editing skills. She told us about the importance of using layers and masks on Photoshop. Layering is so important because you can go back to the original image and see the changes you have made. I will ensure I take into account everything she taught us during my post production process. 

Some notes I made during the work shop:

Other technical research:

Video tutorials on YouTube were extremely helpful when struggling with photo manipulation. They were extremely helpful when attempting to remove shadows from the background of images. 

Lynda was also another really useful resource to have 

Netflix also released a series about the art of design which showed a number of artists in their work place and explains how design has an effect on our everyday life. I attempted to use what I had learnt from this in my work.

Photography show

Attending The Photography Show was really useful in terms of gaining inspiration from other photographers as well as being able to see the latest equipment available. 

Having looked at a number of different types of papers and frames it began to give me an idea of what papers to use and how I wanted to exhibit my photos for our grad show. 

I was also able to attend a talk on the business of photography given by Kate Hopewell Smith. She spoke about the importance of having consistency within our work. 

Shoot 1 - Amy Jackson Lovatt

"The inspiration for this collection came from the different ideas of escapism and how one uses this means of escape to fully explore their identity. My main inspiration came from Anne Franks diary and how she used her diary as a mean of escape and that as a young girl she knew as a woman she had a very big future to become anything she wanted other than a housewife and mother. So this led to me onto my love of 1950s Dior and Balenciaga and I moved onto the 1950s housewife and how they are trained to become this perfect kitchen goddess but they quickly realise it's not all to be and how some women go out and have affairs or just leave the family home. The garments show how a woman can be dressed in furs as a luxury but to place them in a controlling way so around the arms to make the lady uncomfortable to move in and the coats to cocoon them and cover them up. My target market is for a kitsch alternative look women." - Amy Jackson Lovatt 

Designer: Amy Jackson Lovatt

Title: Escapism 

Model: Monica Ionescu

Make up Artist: Kate Reynolds

Stylist: Zoe Psaras 

Once I had sorted a date with the designer I began my hunt for a model and make up artist. I also decided to have a stylist on set as the designer was unavailable to attend the shoot. Having a stylist would ensure that all the garments were pressed and positioned correctly on the model. As well as this the stylist agreed to purchasing some shoes and accessories to match with the garments. 

Mood board given to the make up artist to show the look I was aiming for

Bold/vibrant colours

Working in a big team was a really positive factor in making the shoot be so successful. It was good to have other eyes and ears on set to help if I needed assistance. Getting the stylist to make alterations to the clothing while I was shooting was much easier than having to do it myself. 

Having a mood board of poses on set made the models job a lot easier as she was able to see the look I was attempting to create. 

For this shoot the stylist bought some accessories to use but I think they detracted from the overall look, therefore for my future shoots I will not have any accessories as I want the main focus to be on the clothes.