Studio shoot 3 - Posy
Planning
Above and to the left is my plan for this 2nd studio shoot. Again, the planning went well, giving me enough time in the studio to make the correct images. I wrote a list of possible shots to create when in there so that I had something to follow. I also took out a Hasselblad camera to test these images on film, using the studio sync cable to connect it to the studio lights.
The plan for this shoot was similar to the last, keep looking at hair and texture, using the background as a rolling curve so that the lighting and colour was all the same throughout the image, and also shoot more models. I was able to photograph a girl who recently shaved her hair off and so now its growing back and is short. This is an example of someone constructing their identity through both the lack of hair and now through short hair, not conforming to societies ideals of what women's hair should be like. She also wears her hair in more than one style, changing it up every day, and so I was going to take photographs of each style to show the every changing nature of hair.
The plan for this shoot was similar to the last, keep looking at hair and texture, using the background as a rolling curve so that the lighting and colour was all the same throughout the image, and also shoot more models. I was able to photograph a girl who recently shaved her hair off and so now its growing back and is short. This is an example of someone constructing their identity through both the lack of hair and now through short hair, not conforming to societies ideals of what women's hair should be like. She also wears her hair in more than one style, changing it up every day, and so I was going to take photographs of each style to show the every changing nature of hair.
Film
First of all, I took some self-portraits using the camera timer and auto-focus, so I could test the light before the model arrived and also see whether I should include myself in this work. I think I will continue trying to take portraits of how I wear my hair, as well as others, because they project is as much to do with my relationship/past situations with hair as it is with how hair and identity are interlinked. I lit this shoot the same as the first studio shoot, keeping the images similar so to put them together as a series. I had to position the models face slightly to the left so the nose did not throw a shadow on the face and so the gaze is slightly different but not too much so they wouldn't look suitable together. I took photographs of this model (Posy) from the front, back and sides for each hair style she wears, showing it natural, tied up and styled to show what you can do with your hair to change how you look. I also asked her to wear the same red wig that Poppy wore in the first studio shoot, which I will try to put side by side to show how constructing someones identity can be changed with a uniform look. These portraits were again very successful and I will continue getting models into the studio and photographing them in this style, so in the end I can create a large document of all these images, perhaps side by side, to show all the different ways people use their hair to construct their identity. In the next few studio sessions I have booked, I will set up the lights and try and photograph as many people as possible, from people walking around the corridor, to people I ask to come in. I may even make a poster, saying when I'm in the studio and if anyone wants to pose for a photograph to come and say hi.
I also took more photographs of the abstract hair, using a curved background so the light did not seep and change the colour of the image. This was successful and I will continue to look into how else to photograph this collected hair. I also tried using the Hassleblad to take photographs of both Posy and the hair. These were successful in terms of capturing the colour and were exciting to make as it was my first time properly syncing up a film camera to studio lights, creating very crisp images and strong colours.
I have written a shooting list which I need to now follow to create the amount of images I need for this project, from more portraits of how people wear their hair, to hairdresser exteriors, to close-up images of peoples heads so the frame is full of just hair, nothing else. In the next few studio sessions and also using natural light, I will create these images, and collab them all together to see how they all work as a body of work.
I also took more photographs of the abstract hair, using a curved background so the light did not seep and change the colour of the image. This was successful and I will continue to look into how else to photograph this collected hair. I also tried using the Hassleblad to take photographs of both Posy and the hair. These were successful in terms of capturing the colour and were exciting to make as it was my first time properly syncing up a film camera to studio lights, creating very crisp images and strong colours.
I have written a shooting list which I need to now follow to create the amount of images I need for this project, from more portraits of how people wear their hair, to hairdresser exteriors, to close-up images of peoples heads so the frame is full of just hair, nothing else. In the next few studio sessions and also using natural light, I will create these images, and collab them all together to see how they all work as a body of work.