Studio session with Mel and Becky

In my most recent studio session for Digital image, me and my peer Becky, brought in our friend Mel, so that she could be our model whilst we practiced shoots for our brands.I had done some planning before hand the shoot and decided that I wanted to re create some images similar to No7's beauty ads, No7 are very much about featuring natural 'real' women and the ads can look quite exaggerated and little cheesy. To re create my own No7 inspired images during the shoot I encouraged my model to smile, laugh and feel comfortable as I feel that No7 ads present their cosmetics by featuring models wearing their cosmetics, yet it is more about capturing images that make women feel beautiful and comfortable in the skin their in. 

The image below is an example of a No7 beauty ad, this ad is just one of the images I looked at when finding a better idea of the mood I will need to create for my final image for my word. I feel that I can I be quite experimental when considering the lighting, my word and also the No7 theme in their beauty ads, altogether they can create either a really sexy, demure mood to my images or a really rebellious, moody theme. 

No 7 Ad
Google Sourced Image.
http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2013/08/07/article-2386405-1B2BF5DA000005DC-767_296x317.jpg

The above image features a real woman as No7's model for this beauty ad, I like that they used a real woman and I think she looks stunning in this image. There is a caption saying 'Im sparkling' over the model, which perfectly suits the mood and vibe she gives off in the image, her eyes and skin look bright and sparkly, correctly reflecting the caption.

Chris suggested that the next time I practice some images, to try and change the lighting I am using and instead of placing the the light directly at my model I should place it just above her head so that the light falls subtly and the picture becomes much more grunge and moody. This lighting is something I want practice for my editorial shoot. 

The images above are my favourite photographs I captured during this session, I was really happy with the outcome of these images and think it has a similar theme to No7 beauty ads. I chose to use purple as my background colour as in No7 ads they tend to use a variety of different shades of the colour worn on the lips. I did the same, using purple lipstick and a purple backdrop, I think this made the images look more grunge and moody as her hair and jumper are also dark. I chose to use the three light set up when taking my images, with the lighting set at 5 and a half I think, I used the 85L which helped me capture my beauty shots up close. I think the lighting I chose suited my brand also as It was soft enough to make her skin appear glowy and not airbrushed, but still natural and 'real' as they like to promote through their products etc pores, moles, skin tags.