Month: February 2024

The Idea: Do 3 personal shoots per month; One self-portrait, one of a friend, and one of a model from a modeling agency

I feel this would be a good experience to add to my portfolio for many reasons, the main reason being to diversify my content. I got into photography through self-portraits, so that’s always what I’ve been most comfortable shooting; although it does come with its challenges, I only have to worry about myself and my abilities throughout the whole process. Working with friends and models opens up different dynamics. Working with my friends would be good practice to how I shoot people I already know and how to get them comfortable in front of the camera; especially if they’ve never modeled before or don’t like having their picture taken. Professional models would mean a more professional setting, and working with someone used to being in front of the camera and doesn’t need as much guidance; I feel the main issue or hiccup I would have with this dynamic is emailing an agency with my shoot idea, and finding a model that has a coinciding schedule with mine. I might have more anxiety related to having a model actually be down to shoot with me considering I’m a student who can’t pay them; The most I could do is get them good photos in a timely manner which also boils down to time management and putting the professional skills that I’ve learned from classes into action.

As for skills, working with different clientele is the main overarching one. Shooting myself is far different from shooting other people, and shooting models vs average people also has two different interactive challenges. I’m also just not the most outgoing person, so forcing myself to challenge that at least 3 times a month on varying levels of outgoingness (hitting up a friend- emailing an agency) will hopefully give me the confidence I need to start being more assertive in this field. But overall practice makes perfect, so dedicating a good chunk of time to my own personal shoots while also shooting for school will only help my photography in the long run

*Had a frustrating time uploading the screenshot annoyingly (had to copy and paste)

Brainstorm List

• Reach out to modeling agency each month to shoot every color of the rainbow

(Feb- Red, Mar- orange, etc)

• Do three personal shoots per month, one self portrait, one of a friend, one of model
• Each month, dedicate to immersing myself in a different style of photography; street, portrait, product, etc
• Create a portfolio cultivated around different styles, or different themes
• Dedicate a shoot each month to doing something I wouldn’t think to do, or don’t find to be my style
• Ask the model what photoshoot they would want, (have them send me reference pictures) and try to replicate it- at least 2 per month
• Base and stylize one shoot per- month off of a personal drawing/ one I’m inspired by
• Shoot one thing 30/ 31 different ways each month and document the process
• Create content like Kianna Naomi- niche vlog style like content that romanticizes my day to day so I can continue to stay motivated while practicing my carft.
• Create one short film each month based on my favorite song at that time
• Base shoots/ short films off of obscure words and document the process

BACKGROUND:

I got into photography during COVID 19; Making it very hard for me to branch out and get help from models or other photographers, or even want to. Because of that I relied very heavily on myself for being my own model, stylist, and photographer. At first I thought it was so difficult because I didn’t know what I was doing – learning what I know now however, in general, it’s extremely difficult for anyone to execute high end self portraits. So it was very intimidating for me when I had the idea of trying a self portrait shoot for the first time in the school studio. Previously I had always done my own shoots privately and had the luxury of not having to deal with anyone being around, however in a public space – especially that of which with other creatives – was more anxiety inducing than I expected it to be. I had no set in stone shots I wanted to replicate and didn’t have any other references besides hairstyle and outfit that I had to go by, so configuring a lighting set up, camera angles, and poses in all took about 5 hours.

ACTIONS:

From start to finish, the only reason I went about doing a self portrait in the first place was because it was the lighting midterm, and all through out that class I felt like I had delivered below subpar work. We had just learned about the different fundamental lighting set ups that are universal in the industry; Split, Rembrandt, Butterfly, loop, etc, and I really wanted to try and execute them. Going back to what I was the most familiar and confident in seemed like the best option considering how much creative freedom we had. From there I looked up concepts I would like to execute; for some reason I was really inspired by the old school woman with bonnet/ curlers in a night gown with cigarette in hand aesthetic and bought props, clothes, and wigs that would fit. In the studio, I set up a vibrant seameless to match my outfit (converted it to black and white in post), struggled with my camera set up since I couldn’t tether, and wasn’t comfortable using the saloon stands just yet, so ended up going with propping it up on a stool and connecting it to my phone through Bluetooth so I could use it as a mini tether essentially. I had a lot of frustrating moments, within the shoot, I felt very discouraged and confused on what to do; the reality of shooting aimlessly was pretty prevalent considering how confused I was on how to use the different lighting set ups I had used. I also felt extremely embarrassed in all honesty; being in a night gown, high heels, and a wig in the studio where other creatives are working seemed really intimidating at the time, especially since this was still at the point where we were all learning and getting to know each other.

RESULTS:

In the end though, when it came time to showcase to the class and get feedback, and critiques from Matt. I was pleasantly surprised when everyone in class expressed their admiration of the shots. The composition, catch light, and overall story of the shot came up frequently in the positive feedback I received. It was the first time I genuinely felt like I belonged in the program and deserved to be here based off of the work that I turned in. What I submitted as my project did fall short on a few requirements though; They weren’t shot in portrait, and I failed at submitting the RAW files. But the overall consensus was that they were good photos – and getting those comments and feedback from other photographers, as well as the mentor you’re learning from was a huge moment for me within this program.

1: Camera

2: Laptop/ iPad

3: Hard Drive

4: Studio Space

5: Connections

6: Story Telling understanding

7: Body composition/ modeling understanding

8: Lighting

9: Editing Software

10: Drive

Luckily I’m in a fairly privileged position where my program offers me an abundance of resources I can utilize basically whenever I want. Things like a computer and editing software, are things I walk into the classroom with almost daily. Within our studio space, I’m granted access to multiple lighting, backdrop, and set design options. So in short, all the fundamental technical elements of what I need are here. Not to mention the connections I’m making with my fellow classmates and peers who are learning and practicing the same things I am.

But I am in this program for a reason, because although I have all this equipment, I am still being taught how to use it in accordance with the things I want to pursue. How to pose models for certain shoot (Both people and objects) isn’t a straightforward task, especially when you add in extra elements like the set, the lighting, the camera: along with the camera settings. Story telling in relation to both video and photography; Within video, knowing how to drive a plot with camera angles, lighting, sets, props, etc, all while trying to keep the viewer engaged and sympathetic is a big thing that still intimidates me. As far as storytelling with photos, being able to utilize a single image and have it speak to the viewer, or make them forget its a singular captured moment in time and not apart of it’s own universe that takes years to learn how to do.

When it comes to tools I don’t have and need to learn, a lot of it boils down to personal hiccups. Being more social and extraverted when it comes to marketing myself and reaching out. Not procrastinating or prioritizing the things I need to prioritize. Balancing multiple projects at once and being able to not have to sacrifice the quality of one or the other. “Learn,” isn’t the word I would use to describe my short comings in these because after all, these are traits we all know how to do to some degree. It’s just not letting them come and go and being consistent with these characteristics that I need to learn, because without them, regardless of what I have around me, it will go to waste.