Bibliography

• FilmSite, n.d., Film Noir - Films, (viewed 01/03/2016), available from: http://www.filmsite.org/filmnoir.html
• MAC Cosmetics, n.d., Our History, (viewed 14/02/12), available from: http://www.maccosmetics.jobs/mac/our-history.html
• MAC Cosmetics Instagram, 2016, MAC Cosmetics, (viewed 14/02/12), available from: https://www.instagram.com/maccosmetics/ 
• MAC Cosmetics Facebook, 2016, MAC Cosmetics, (viewed 14/02/12), available from: https://www.facebook.com/MACcosmetics/photos_stream 
• Tim Martin, 2015, World of Light and Shadow - German Expressionism and its Influence on Modern Cinema, (viewed 01/03/2016), available from: http://centerforcreativemedia.com/index.php/german-expressionism/ 
• Lisa Niven, 2014, My Burberry: When Kate Met Cara, (viewed 03/02/16), available from: http://www.vogue.co.uk/beauty/2014/09/02/kate-moss-cara-delevingne-my-burberry-perfume-advert
• VogueVideos, 2014, Pitching the Concept for "Petal Pushers", (viewed 05/02/16), available from: http://video.vogue.com/watch/vogue-in-motion-pitching-the-concept-for-petal-pushers
• Various, 2016, Film noir, (viewed 01/03/2016), available from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Film_noir

Project evaluation

Being given the keyword ‘penumbra,’ I knew from the start that I wanted to work heavily with shadow. Thinking about how shadows can obscure or exaggerate an object or person, I looked into veils and masks, and also considered emotional ties such as wonder, mystery, and cruelty. I found the feedback about my moodboard from my peers really helpful, and decided to push the idea of light-meets-dark, good-meets-bad. When we were shown spotlights and gobos in our photography lessons, I was excited to use the gobos to cast shadow ‘veils’ over my model for my editorial images. I felt inspired to research Film Noir, as I noticed similarities in the style of lighting. This led me to look into German Expressionism, which I found fascinating: so much emotion and meaning could be communicated through just a style of art. 

I started working on my brand image, and found that MAC fitted perfectly with my keyword; by researching the brand’s image and message, I found that a lot of their campaigns and looks incorporated a lot of shadow, black backgrounds, and simple styling. I chose to promote a lip product in my work, and I analysed various adverts to decide on the most effective pose and set-up for my brand image; settling on using a spotlight to shine a concentrated light, while using an assistant to block some parts of the light to create shadows over my model’s face. I searched for an appropriate model, wanting someone with a strong profile and plump lips. 

In terms of hair and make-up, for my editorial images I illustrated my light-meets-dark theme by portraying a youthful, innocent-looking girl, with an added twist of darkness. I tied her hair in high bunchies - stereotypical of a young girl - and then backcombed them to add a messy, darker tone. For the make-up, I created ombré effects on the eyes and lips - visually showing the light-to-dark idea. While my model looked bold, youthful and beautiful, I then used a gobo to cast tree-like shadows, adding senses of mystery and coldness. I directed my model to pose in playful, youthful ways, furthering the ‘innocence’ of her character. For my MAC brand image, I felt inspired by MAC’s previous ‘Mineralize’ campaign, in which the hair was hardly visible beneath the shadows, and the make-up and posing was decided according to which product was being promoted. So, I scraped my model’s hair back into a slick, neat ponytail, keeping it out of the focus of the shot. I then applied minimal make-up to the eyes - simply a peachy eyeshadow and subtle mascara, so that the attention would be kept on the bold, bright red lips. I directed my model to tilt her head up at an angle and part her lips, not looking into the camera as I felt that direct eye-contact draws the viewer’s attention to the eyes instead of the lips. 

I was really happy with how my shoots went. Next, I selected my favourite images and edited them. Aside from cropping, making sure that face shapes and hairstyles were even and symmetrical, enlarging the eyes, plumping up the lips and perfecting the skin, I also altered the white balances and temperatures to fit with my shadowy, cooler theme. I thoroughly enjoyed the post-production process, understanding the importance of editing the images and seeing how much more effective they looked once finished. 

Overall, I have really enjoyed this project. I loved researching styles of photography, experimenting with lighting and styling, and most of all communicating my message and theme through imagery. 

InDesign: Putting the finished images together

• Opened MAC folder in InDesign
• Relinked template image to insert own brand image
• Selected layers I wanted visible
• Edited colour, shape and positioning of 'polygon' layer 
• Opened image of lipstick in Photoshop, cropped white parts from edges, made the shade brighter (hue > select Reds > raised saturation)
• Relinked layer to insert new brighter lipstick

• Inserted more pages (some landscape) by creating new 'B master'
• File > place > selected editorial images to insert
• File > place > selected mood board and storyboard to insert
• Resized pages to fit images
• On last page: inserted text box for evaluation and text box for blog
• On first page: inserted text box for title and name
• To save: File > package

Editing my editorial images

Front:

Camera Raw:

• Lowered temperature - the original images looked a little too warm to fit with 'penumbra'
• Cropped image
• Sharpened image

Photoshop:

• Clone stamp;
• removed hairs from forehead or background/blemishes/uneven skin/fallen glitter
• removed strays from eyebrows and added hairs to fill sparse/uneven parts
• added shadow of twigs to fill blank patch on cheek
• evened and rounded shaped of chin
• neatened lipstick
• added hair to bunches to make the size match
• removed glimpse of bottom teeth
• added glow on nose
• lessened dark line under lips
• lightened facial lines/creases around mouth and under eyes
• Sharpen tool; 
• sharpened hair to avoid it all blending together
• sharpen > darker > darkened shadow lines on hair to avoid them blending in
• Quick select tool;
• selected yellowy teeth > raised brightness and lowered saturation to whiten teeth
• Liquify;
• reshaped brows
• enlarged lips
• raised right side of model's head to make it even

Before:

After: 

Profile:

Camera Raw:

• Cropped image
• Set the white balance, temperature and tint to the same as the front-facing image
• Sharpened image

Photoshop:

• Clone stamp;
• added shadows of twigs to fill blank space of wall on right
• removed hairs on face/blemishes
• added hairs to eyebrows and eyelashes
• added glitter to eyelids
• added extra hair to reshape bunches and to cover any visible scalp
• removed stray hairs from background
• evened shape of hair on top of head
• Quick-select tool;
• selected cheekbone shadow > refine edge > raised feathering > lowered exposure to shade cheekbones
• selected shadow under lips > raised brightness and lowered contrast to lessen shadow
• Liquify;
• reshaped brows
• enlarged and evened shape of lips

Before:

After:

Back:

Camera Raw:

• Cropped image
• Set the white balance, temperature and tint to the same as the front and side-facing images
• Sharpened image

Photoshop:

• Clone stamp;
• neatened parting
• hid hair elastic
• added hair to top of bunches
• removed ring on finger

Before:

After:

These images were harder to edit than my brand one due to the intricate shadows and messy hairs. As I edited, I struggled to make them look realistic at times, and had to go over the same parts more than once to perfect them. However, I enjoyed working on them and am happy with the results. After speaking with my course leader, I understand the importance of things like reducing/enhancing shadows, filling blank spaces, making the hair even and symmetrical, and so on. After putting these tips into use, I think I have created a series of images that are much cleaner and more visually pleasing.

Editing my brand image

Camera Raw:

• Cropped image
• Colour picker tool > correct white balance > warmed temperature
• Sharpen slightly

Photoshop:

• Clone stamp;
• removed hair on ear and on background
• removed strays on eyebrows and filled in sparse parts
• added extra lashes
• removed blemishes, dry skin, fine lines on eye and mouth, scar on chin, lipstick on teeth, faint hairs on cheek, veins on eyeball
• added shadow to cheekbone
• filled in the bum in the shadow of her chin
• smoothed skin on neck
• evened out shadow on chest and chin
• neatened lipstick outline
• removed redness on collarbone
• Liquify;
• pushed in square jaw slightly
• plumped/enlarged lips
• Quick select tool;
• selected iris > image > adjustments > changed brightness, hue/saturation, vibrance to change and brighten eye colour
• selected lower half of iris > raised exposure to make eye 'sparkle'
• selected teeth > raised brightness to 10 to whiten slightly

Before: 

After: 

I really enjoyed editing this photo, and am really pleased with the finished edit. I have removed all imperfections and made sure to emphasise the lips, as that is the part I want the viewer to focus on. I have also made the eyes much brighter; I think the green hue compliments the bright red lips. Next, I will insert the brand name and any images or designs I wish to include to promote the lipstick. 

MAC shoot - favourite images

I really enjoyed this photoshoot. Working with a pose I had already decided on - the tilted head and parted lips - meant there were limited compositions as I could not play around with my model's poses. However, I used a spotlight and had an assistant to help create shadows, in theme with my key word 'penumbra', and also emphasising the bright lipstick, thus promoting my chosen product. Originally I wanted to capture my model's shoulders, however, on reflection, shooting at a closer distance would have been better, as I have decided I want the face to fill more of the frame, so I will have to crop my images - to avoid seeing the reflector disc as well! In post-production, I will be careful to remove any lipstick on the teeth and any wispy hairs, and also soften some of the shadows under my model's chin slightly. My preferred images are the ones where my model is not looking at the camera - I find that avoiding eye contact with the viewer draws more attention to other features rather than the eyes, i.e. the lips and lipstick. I also prefer the shadowy images over the bright ones; however I liked the contrast of the white background in amongst all the shadows. I had considered using a black background, but I really like the monochrome effect. 

I like the images where the shadows fall upon my model's eyes rather than her lips, as the focus of the pictures needs to be on the lower half of her face, so illuminating this part draws attention to it. My favourite images are the last five - particularly the last one. I think the shadows sit exactly where I want them, outlining the face and especially the lower half, and the pose is how I wanted it to be. However, in post-production, I will need to soften the edges of the shadows slightly as they are a little harsh. I think I prefer the images without the reflector disc being used - I like how the dark shadow surrounds the face, separating it from the body more and making the face the focus of attention. It also reminds me of MAC's Mineralize campaign:

MAC photo shoot call sheet