Lessons

Lesson Info

Shoot: Ethereal Part 1

Yeah so maybe just careful with uh sorry we just gotta lift the dress so it doesn't drag the blanket so I'm gonna get you to just come in here a little bit more into the middle just play around so I'm pulling the blanket out so that it showing from the dress so that if I need to go back in photo shop I don't want any of this wooden floor in there so this is being pulled out so I can fill it back in when I'm editing and I just want to mention this dress I got this from a dream shoot rentals lindsay was kind enough to send it over for me to use for this ethereal shoot so there'll be links in the course outline later where to find this stuff all right so right now I'm just playing around but the way I want it to look yeah you look really good like a dolly okay all right so I'm going to start I'm using my eighty five right now and I can't get full body with this so I'm just going to start some portrait shots and I'll switch to the fifty I want if I want to get more of the full body shots a...

nd I don't know my exact settings so oh the v flat we need the white thinking up here I think just to reflect the light from behind but I'll start shooting a little very now these are just some test shot you don't need to worry too much actually looks really nice already just uh yeah well done here how's that looking oh, is it? Is it okay? Couple more here so we're going to pretend that that ethereal mood board that was in the presentation is what we're basing this chute off of pretty much it is what we're basing it off of. So, um you saw some of the pictures back when you were getting ready so the model already knows a little bit of what I need from her but I will direct her a little bit more during the shoot of certain poses or something that I want her to do. So I'll get you just to turn your body a little bit towards me more and maybe just have your hands kind of like softly and fronts yeah that's pretty it's unfortunate shots can you bring the chin worst downward and sort of looked that way so I could see the flowers yeah that's pretty really pretty I'm just changing the settings a little bit it's a little bit dark turn you have more that way again eyes down it's too bright now this is how I am so good do you even want it kind of close your eyes and just kind of like yeah that's pretty close them all the way chin up a little bit can't move back try to get some more hurrying here that's really nice pretty that's that's face straight on at me and lets your hat yelled let's let your hands kind of relax so he looks just sound really straight and just hand sort of relaxed yet on your neck is that's nice when you're kind of tilting your head to the side it's very soft it's keeping the look really consistent that's pretty whore that's really when I shoot I don't know some people should differently but I will center focus always on her face and and then re focus if I need to even for a full body I do that especially when I'm shooting it like one point two in one point four and we have to make sure the faces and focus before anything else okay that's pretty yeah I love it let's do some sideways now yeah let's go the other way story you know why? Because the flowers I need maybe somebody toe tough all her dress out of it that's okay just to puff it out again at the bottom it's pretty so it was like pulled out more towards the back than it is in the front yeah and can you step forward just like a step? Yep that's pretty that's pretty young and yeah, we're going to throw it down nice that's good that's pretty hard to put your head back again nice that's really pretty turn up the shutter speed up a tiny bit so if you guys see like the mood I'm going forward the flower wall the softness everything is staying soft there is no harsh changes in poses I don't want any crazy faces from her everything is just smooth and delicate and she's a sister princess oh, this is her character, right? Yeah, it's nice stay like that and just, um leaving the culture that could just talked you up a little more yeah it's pretty few more a body and then I'm going to go closer up let your mouth relax a tiny bit yeah that's nice that's really pretty I want to get some closeups. Savio is this bright enough? Of course I'm serious. So now I'm just doing some portrait server turn your, um body a little bit towards me a little bit away more of like, yeah, and just kind of like even have your yeah that's perfect nice that's really pretty even closer. So this is how you shoot? I move around a lot. I do not keep shooting her in the same spot over and over and over again because it's boring and you want to make sure you're creating different angles in different looks will yer that's really pretty too while you're shooting? Does anyone want to ask anything while I'm doing this just maybe a starter question are you looking to get one image out of this? You're looking to get a siri's what what you're and goal for this shoot yeah for this this is a this is not an editorial this is just more of a concept of just a one shot thing this is not a story if it was I'd have to have a siri's of clothing changes like had mentioned but for this I just want to get a few nice pieces to create like an artistic kind of ah image you know yeah anything else okay it's pretty can I will turn back straight towards me again we'll do that again even the dress twisted is pretty know you could just leave it kind of twists it looks really nice yeah and let's do some of that like some of your body just relaxed till thing from side to side and that's good can you come out one step maybe one more yeah that's pretty that's pretty tilt your head back like you did again you're like that close your eyes and maybe we'll play a round with our hands a little bit you could even you know your nails are good hey that's not a thing models nails you got to make sure they're good if you want to let them use their hands good keep around like that and just kind of tilt your head that way more it's pretty even both hands kind of like around her neck and just oh I'm so sad that's really pretty like it nice marcos ups all right and let's do some straight on sideways like total painterly type of style so now I'm gonna have her not even in iraq with me at all I want us to be more of like a painting style when somebody would create a portrait of someone and so you can just kind of be very straight regal and maybe pull you and I've got a tiny little bit and just very like a princess chin up a tiny bit a couple of these it's pretty chin up a little more yeah it's nice yeah turn and look at me now enough like that good. I like that yeah like that pretty chin down again yeah, I'm catching like little moves you're making and I'm like oh, you got to get that one yeah you can kind of maybe bring your shoulders up all right soul how are you? Are you comfortable to sit down with this? Um wait not yet there's a chair I thought we'd throw that in there is that okay? We'll just try it we'll just put it there and then we'll get some sitting shots of you um you know, like not straight on at me a little bit maybe sort of towards the theo wall side weighs a little more away from a flower will like up towards me more kind of yeah, right there. Maybe it's good. Yeah. So and then sorry, we'll just turn it just a tiny bit more sway there because I want to get her to lean on it. Yep. That's good. Alright, ok, just sit down, play with your dress a little bit so for this now I'm not going to arrange the blanket and all that so it's hiding up the floor so I'll just probably be shooting so that we're cutting it off just up here so I don't have toe worry about editing that out and the same thing again. You could even relax sleep, lean back a little bit more blocks and just put your arm up yeah, yeah, it looks really good how's it looking on their goods, enough filth. All right, you just kind of it's really pretty for your chin, right in kind of like this, so you're like, sideways? Yeah, I'm just kind of like, yeah, like that. Could you put that hand? Maybe over onto your knee a little more who let it let the arm bend a tiny bit, but just yet, so when you're doing stuff like this, it takes a while, but the previous shot before that her arm was looking with little weird so you guys gotta watch out for when you're doing stuff like this, pay attention like my I will scan the whole image in the camera when I'm looking at it, not always I don't catch everything all the time, but it saves you a lot of pain later when you're realizing, oh my god, right? So pay attention to all body parts, their eyes, their neck, everything try to kind of look through the whole image see it all is the whole before, you know, just keep shooting and shooting and then ending up with something you don't even want, can we actually can we go back to the previous image and s so that we can see exactly what I'm talking about with the arm? Yeah, I'd love to be able to see what it was that you didn't like was that the one? Yeah, do you see her arm it's like I just it looks so short and like little I just I seen it like I liked her posing and stuff, but that's, why I needed her kind of pull the arm out of it just so you could, you know, it looked a little bit more, it just looked awkward, I don't know, so that when she changed it around, it looked much better, so all right, so we'll stay up up front you can even now let's try and just sit straight up oh that's pretty do that yeah I'm just kind of lean forward we'll do that to see sometimes the models do stuff and it's better than I thought so I let them do it all right that's good so again I'm just moving around I don't stay in one spot for too long just one thing to discuss really quickly is the backdrop now I know that that was that was created by our set designer joyce who does amazing work but those are basically it's just polly board right with fake moss and fake flowers were trying to get exactly the details for you but you won't talk to a little bit about the guidance that you gave her or that you gave when you were looking for this shot yeah I had sent I like I created the board this is what I was talking about when you're not there with thes with the people you're going to work with creating the board is very helpful. I sent her aboard a flower wall on the board it was I found an image somewhere and the way I found the flower wall was not even by typing in flower all but by typing and ethereal you know? I don't know what I typed I found anyways and I came across the floor laurel wall and it was a whole mix of colors and the pattern wasn't like this it was a slightly different but I loved it and I was like, I doubt they're gonna like do this and she pulled it off I couldn't believe it so I'm yeah there was an actual image of a floor a wall and there was a girl in front of the wall dressed a little differently, but so that your inspiration for this because she didn't know the colors of the garments and stuff that were being worn and I really didn't have exactly an idea either at the time I just told her certain color families and she did that and when I'm doing going to do some editing, I may change some of these flowers later and that's not hard to do till all kind of goes nicely all soft and the color is up and just I saw her making them and so I can tell everybody she literally just took the the pieces of mosque put them down and it's stapled them using a staple gun so it's not anything special it really just staple and jab the flowers in with like a little what he called was ice pick yeah, so just to sum are these kind of like when you were leaning forward again? Yeah that's pretty that's really nice that's really pretty change hotel that's pretty okay do that again that you just did that shot up a tiny button umm your jaw a little bit towards me so you're like till tio it's nice it's really pretty get a little closer that again yeah okay so we'll sit up on dh yeah maybe do some like regal very royal again just very proper and straights and yeah it's good that's really pretty yeah I love this it's looking really nice to have anything from anyone up in the the peanut gallery up there our audience kind of looking from a little balcony up there we've got questions here from one from eighty far who says well you're shooting do you ask your team to occupy themselves so that they're not distraction or getting in the way or would you actually have them jump into change things like stray hair, fix makeup or anything like that? Do you have your team actively watching you or do you have them move away? Yeah both actually they're actively watching and they have to stay on the side and, you know, be quiet on then if I need them, they'll jump in I'll be like, you know, like her live six smeared and the thing just so that they're close by yeah, but I don't have them you know, I don't like I said I don't have them telling the model anything so that's great! And then total arts is wondering how now this isn't necessarily about lighting, but how do you decide whether you want to shoot something natural light do you whether you want to use studio lights, whether going soft or or contrast e how do you actually determine what sort of lighting you need? Yeah, um, you know what? It really depends on the whole look, because of this look and the whole softness and ferial theme happening, I wanted to stay with natural light because studio lighting would not I don't think would have suited this. Maybe I could have set it up to look natural, but why bother when I have natural late as it is? So yeah just depends on what I'm doing in the whole look of it. Great. And do you let's see cindy melissa bowie? There have no idea how I pronounce your name and I apologise hunters, do you always, like, leave the model to direct themselves to move as they want? Do you? How do you work like you? You said that sometimes they do amazing things. Do you tend to find that you need to direct more or less, sir? Just yet? It all depends like she's doing amazing, I'm not telling she's taking what I'm saying and doing it, I don't need to, um I don't need she doesn't need a lot of direction sometimes like earlier when I had mentioned when when they do need it I'll step in but she's flowing really well so I don't need toe to be on top of it too much and then maybe yes more upward yeah that looks better nice maybe chin down a tiny bit and that's good both hands on your lap and lean up sir set up a tiny light shine down that's pretty funny that's pretty yeah you know what let's do that do you want to turn more towards me and kind of looking up to or the window a little more yeah just kind of like head over there that's good that's pretty so your arm so like right now when the next shot comes up you guys will see her arm was kind of pulled back too much so I'm going to get youto more I don't know maybe maybe we won't lean on the chair just bring your arm towards your body instead yeah because they're armed just totally disappeared in there so when things like that happen that's why you just pay attention to all the body everything that's happening at once because I missed it nice pretty that's pretty yes ok, nice and I want to shoot some um landscape mode now is to get more of the floral wall behind her hey that's really pretty like that one. See? So the look I'm trying to go for is this whole painterly type of look again that's really pretty so pack up and just kind of do more of those back e good stay just like that. So sometimes when the model does their own thing and I like what they're doing, I usually tell them to freeze don't move because there's something to do and I really like it. I mean, they think of their own little things too, right? Um, what else can we do with you? Maybe we'll stand up beside the channel change that a little. So money I'm gonna get you to come on this side. It was the chair over and you could just stand like, right beside so the chair is now used is like part of the image rather than just to sit on it. I suppose so, yeah, way back for this that's. Pretty okay, I need you to, uh you want to push the chair over just to touch and you step in a little more is just kind of compositions a little weird. I can get more of the wall and you in there? What were you not liking about composition? I don't like that she's way off on one side, I tend to do a lot of center the subject in the middle which is another you no no no but I like it so I want her more towards the center of the image yeah that's really pretty they just like that with your body and turns completely that way with your head so I get your profile again yeah yeah this is another kind of way of creating like a painting perfect that's really pretty like telling this car looks like that one yeah I like that one that's good just some more of these I wanted to sit on the floor I think okay yeah yeah okay we'll do it one more that's a really pretty one who's a local war portrait again so um maybe just let's put put your hands near your face again because I'm just going to shoot from here up you know somewhere these turn your body a little bit back oh actually no go that way first it's fine looks nice nice that's pretty stay just like that and I'm maybe close your eyes and kind of have sweet that's nice so was I still ok you have back there you had your hand on a lawyer like this you weren't posing but let's try it good really nice good on then we'll do again same thing both hands up you can keep them near your face turn your body towards him more again it's nice yeah even relaxed and just sort of inward good nice there are any questions way always so while shooting amanda yeah it's so quiet I need some we need to talk what is it that you are that you are specifically looking for that you haven't gotten yet? There was a question about how long you shoot before like once you feel like you've got it, how long do you go just to get safety shots or do you get safety shots or anything like that or just experimentation? I shoot very fast this is super slow right now because of what? Because of the set up right? I am happy with photos I've gotten and I would have moved on now we would have changed already, but I want to keep going and just showing like the different interaction in the way I'm trying different things out, otherwise I would have probably gone through all of this and been moved on, but I don't I get some safety shots I will, but I usually know when I have the shot I just know like I'm like eh that's the picture and I will take a couple more of that just in case something's blurry or her, you know the focus wasn't good, but yeah, all right, so yeah, same thing and just kind of maybe put your shoulder up him it's pretty look oh, look away over towards them let your hands relax a little more to just very soft like fingers kind of dangling over the chair and more towards me a little bit pretty yeah, really nice and after this I'll take a few more frames and I will take the chair out and try to get her right on the floor. I'll put my fifty on for that one just go ahead stay like that e a couple for one more and then we will put the fifty on stop it keeps refocusing okay, so well I won't turn it off turn it off again okay, we'll take that actually lets leave a cherry and you know it will use it and you can kind of lean on and stuff um if you're sitting on any flowers and they're like comfortable just pull him out that's really pretty okay, so when you're doing shoots like like shots like this I mean um and their legs are hiding under the dress it can look really bad it can look weird like they have no legs. So you either if the distress is big enough that you you know it's it's going out out of the frame but and it's showing that there's like legs under there but when it's like a short dress it looks wrong to me, so I usually get the models if she were in a short skirt and heard foreign her legs were folded up I would have her pull the legs out and stretched him out and kind of keep him slightly bent so that we can still see her links because then I don't know in a photo of just something one of my little pet peeves alright it's getting us some of that fluff it out that's good are you comfortable? Is a chair to hae can you bring your arm more that's pretty maybe bring it bring your elbow up more yeah and you can even just let your arm relax to the other one just sort of okay, thank you. Alright, so changed the apertura but it's would like to point out to start again see how this turns out oh, I have a problem I didn't realize that. Sorry, can you sit up just a second? That's okay, um it's, the chair is coming out the frame so I'm going to cut some of the chair out so I just keep everything in the frame of the flowers there. Come over here. Okay? Soaps will make this go. I s o up a little bit kind of dark so I'm just going to shoot down at her everything in particular that you're looking for when you shoot down on someone like when you change that angle I know it khun absolutely have a hard it can have effect on perspectives make people look is there any way are there any things in particular that you're looking for and ask him to do yeah, I just don't want her looking too started like a big head and little body and so when you're that's why I stick I rotate between, um the fifteen, eighty five so when I want to do really ah lot of portrait's and things like this all switched to the fifty because it's pretty close to our human eye right think thirty five to fifty so I'm yeah I just make sure not distort her and looking all like, you know, especially even when they're when you're standing above them. Sometimes the legs look super short because of the way the angle is he just got to be careful of that that's pretty yeah just look like you have like a headache and you're thinking, do you want to do some where you're actually leading like head right on the chair like you're kind of like about to take a nap or something? Yeah that's pretty close your eyes that's pretty like that he's a turning out really good I'm happy we've got a question from a jam photo in houston who wonders can you give any tips on incorporating model hands like hands are something that are really easy to do badly and kind of sometimes hard to get it right can you give any tips for folks on shooting hands yeah she's got really graceful hands some some girls don't they just don't have got more like bigger hands for whatever it is so you gotta be mindful of that also stiffness I really do not like hands all weird and I don't like that I always just tell them relax their fingers relaxed their hands and if it looks weird to me I just I'm like a that looks weird let's let's change that but uh I know hands or a hard thing and it took me a long time to really get used to like working and having them in the shoot but um I think once you get used to it it works out and just make sure you just make sure their nails are done stuff I have had girls coming and nails are all chewed off and I hadn't noticed it so its author charlyne error but yeah hopefully that should you have any thoughts on back of hands versus side of hands versus like anything sort of posing no, not at all I don't usually I wil I want their hands to be touching your body it's like kind of like, you know, somewhere on their body I don't want their hands all like weird and e I shouldn't say that but it's just I like it like poopsie yeah, I like the hands. See, this is what happens at my shoots anyway. Yeah, just as long as your hands are, you know, somewhere on their body and looking natural and not too forced. And we're not always it depends, right? But for things like this, yeah, they have to be going with the team. Okay. That's pretty that's. So pretty that's pretty for the other one. You had your eyes closed think. And if you have, like, more questions rest, honey, throw at me. Go ahead on doing this, but sure, thanks. Makes you do have a question from up in our audience who got cliff wants to ask something you mainly shoot with prime lens are you using a zoom for scene over and over and over and over eighty five is usually glued on if I'm in a smaller space, so I want to get more of the scene all switched to my fifty have a twenty four to seventy, but that thing is, like in the box since I don't know, probably over a year, but yeah, I like the primes. Thank you. Awesome. And we got one in the back as well as you're shooting this d already are you gaining an idea of what you would do with this image in post? Oh, yeah that's a that's a lot of like what happens with me I will have my idea set but sometimes they don't always work out and things changed along the way right it's just that creative brain right and for this I'm thinking I'd probably make it really contrast it and more more dramatic and I probably had some texture to it or something like that because I'm trying to recreate that painterly type image for this but and just a reminder for everybody that on day three amend is actually going to be doing a lot of the retouching in post so we're gonna be able to see her process with these images that we're shooting today and tomorrow so that'll be happening are you able to turn around and kind of lean back on the chair I just scared it's gonna fault its going to slide off while you're seo it I don't know we were or not but yeah that could work yep okay yeah yeah and kind of you know even like with your head on it yeah trust me I asked models do weird stuff sometimes they're like I'm not gonna be yeah yeah that's pretty I like that maybe even can you just sort of leaning on it now let me try a couple like that I was trying to use the chair all different ways because you don't know your eyes were half shot there we'll try you can't see what's coming through yeah let's try that again, hon it's okay close your eyes close your eyes like yuria and then with your arm this one it's hiding so bring it out a little moria and pull it back so it sits on your your hip kind of gal like that I like that should don't you shut up the tiny bit towards me eyes closed that's when I saw a little bit and look up at me do you want to bring your arm up even up here and just sort of like maybe on the chair or I don't know just pull it up somewhere like that yellows try that yeah see how that looks I don't know maybe not maybe on your head just kind of like yeah how works pretty pretty two more and then we'll stand back up into a few more of those status like that and look like towards the window take your hand off your head actually no no sorry never mind I don't like this we'll set up yeah I won't even take it yeah yeah and then looked towards the window we'll do it that way that's good shot keep it on thank you that's really nice. Okay, so your arm that looks strange maybe try the other arm just because of the angle I'm not no it's not maybe just kind of hold on hearing that kind of look off that way yeah that's pretty one more and let me like you were like your chin and a little tiny. But, yeah, that's really pretty. Okay, get so we'll stand up will help her get up.