Painted! (Warning - Partial nudity)

[GB1]

From a photoshoot this afternoon. The model said it took them 5 hours to paint her

C&Cs?

G

[Anbesol]

honestly, I really don't like the fact that I can see her underwear. It sort of makes the painting look cheap. It looks like a lot of hard work and it looks like they spent a lot of time, but I think the modesty of wearing panties isn't doing this piece of artwork any favors.

I am not saying we should be seeing her whole naked body or whatever, but, I just think actually seeing the big white underwear in the middle of a naked painted body ruins the art here. Good photo though.

[jetrim]

I sort of agree w/ Anbesol. Technically the photos are just about perfect, and obviously a lot of time was spent on the artwork, but they don't really do anything for me. They aren't making any statement and they don't seem strong enough to stand on their own merit anywhere but in the MUA's portfolio book, as a model I think they'd do more harm than good in a port (nothing at all against the photography) as they seem to lack creative vision and emphisize her insecurity. Maybe an Ad for a Christmas wrapping company? Again, you did your job well, as did the MUA but I think the model let you both down on this shoot.

[GB1]

Thks for taking a look guys.

Interesting that you point out these issues. I can tell you that I agree with you wholeheartedly that her poses and choice to wear her underwear diminish the value of the shoot. To me, if you don't want to do full-body painting, then why bother, but, seeing that she was only about 18 or 19, I guess you have to learn to walk before you run (people may get a little less shy as they get older, too?).

I think I would also classify her as not quite a model, also. She's dabbling with it, but I think maybe more from a young, rebel perspective at this pt ..

As far as the MUA, I think she's a friend of the young gal and they had been talking about it for awhile. She probably knew what you guys were saying, but could see that getting her to go 'full' body wasn't going to happen that day :cryin:

Btw Jet, the black backdrop was my idea. But studio / plain backdrops really put emphasis on the model's poses - and the photographer's technical skills. If either are not very advanced, I find it immediately obvious. But again, gotta do it to get better. The trick is learning fast so that you conquer the learning curve at a very fast pace w/o blowing too many shoots!

Thanks again,

G

[jetrim]

Btw Jet, the black backdrop was my idea. But studio / plain backdrops really put emphasis on the model's poses - and the photographer's technical skills. If either are not very advanced, I find it immediately obvious. But again, gotta do it to get better. The trick is learning fast so that you conquer the learning curve at a very fast pace w/o blowing too many shoots!

Thanks again,

G

I think the black back is fine here, and the lighting ratios are impeccable. I got really lucky when I discovered a very high end studio literally right down the street, so I try to take advantage of it as finances allow. You're right though, the cost alone is incentive enough to learn your lessons quick!

[gahspidy]

This is very good against the black background. I also feel this should be a completely nude shoot even removing the necklaces and earrings.
I'm not crazy about either of her poses, but i understand she is not a pro and these shoots are not nearly as easy as one might think.
As for the lighting, it appears to be evenly lit and straight forward, but I think a little hair light would help bring out the top of her head and illuminate the hair better.
Definetly an interesting shoot, GB

[GB1]

Thks Gary (and Jet),

I feel the same, but perhaps the real issue is that her pants are so noticeable. Someone told me that he checked 'Sports Illustrated – In the Paint', which was given to him as a gift, and noted the following ...

"..most of the models seem to have panties on some of which are different colors, some of which have been painted to match, some of which have been Photoshopped or airbrushed to hide the lines from the garment, and some models that have been fully painted, are shown only sideways."

So apparently, this isn't just an inexperienced or shy model issue. Maybe I can do a little PPing to clean it up.

I agree that hair lights are great. I just saw one in action at a class I took, the teacher was a big fan of them to make the hair more interesting. We just used on-camera strobes this time: the black background hides the slight shadow you would normally see on one side.

G