Now, with a Makeup artist... {30 PSC #3}


Model: Edith, Makeup Artist Anabel. Single source bare lighting, Added reflection from umbrella just out of the top left frame

This has been my most ambitious photoshoot yet. This is my second time shooting with Edith. We did some outdoor portraits in the past and now that I know how she works, I felt like attempting something more artistic. We met up with a makeup artist, Anabel, to add some more content and texture to our set.

This is the 3rd photoshoot for my 30 Photoshoot Speedlight Challenge.

Click here to view more pictures from this set.

This is everyone's favorite photo.

Anabel and I went to SDSU to meet Edith. We set up in an empty classroom. Everyone brought a friend and it turned into quite an entourage. The fluorescent overhead lighting became a problem because the makeup looked great when we applied the makeup, but not so great when we used external lighting.

Panorama of the "Set", makeshift Studio in an Empty SDSU classroom.

You can tell by this image that the makeup looked great with overhead lighting. Too bad overhead lighting is not flattering and gives a hollow dead eyes look

The flourescent overhead lighting makes the makeup look good, just not her face.

second shot with just overhead lighting... blurry

The shots with just overhead lighting also turned out to be a little blurry. There wasn't enough light to get the exposure I wanted AND to have a fast enough shutter speed to go handheld. I KNOW. I could have used a tripod, but I wanted to be a bit more dynamic for this photoshoot. THIS is why I like my external flash.

You can really tell how extreme the makeup is when she is standing next to someone without under the bright lights.

You can also see how good my retouching skills are getting.

In Summary

This photoshoot was so ambitious. Would you believe that our session was 4 hours long? There were three portfolios to fill with this photoshoot, and I felt the squeeze. This was a good experience for logistics. Just getting everyone together turned out to be a challenge.

I also have quite a few ideas of things i might want and need. For instance, I could definitely have benefitted from a huge softbox and some wireless flash triggers.

The 30 Photoshoot speedlight challenge is a Self Challenge where I attempt to learn as much as I can about single source lighting before I graduate to adding a second source to my kit! The reward of course is a second speedlight. I do my best to be reflective about my experiences to make them as instructive as possible. Read more about the 30 photoshoot challenge and follow my journey by clicking on the links below.