Photographing Vickie ~ One of our Teenager/Young Adult Portrait Sessions
This week I had the great opportunity of photographing Vickie who is training to be a makeup artist. Which also provided Vickie the opportunity to understand what it will feel like for her future clients when they are in front of the camera. I’m looking forward to the possibility having Vickie work with me as a make up artist in future.
From time to time I organise sessions where I can put my skills to the test and try something new. Its important to me to continually work on my skills and keep up to date with current trends so that I can always offer my clients the best and hopefully something unique and tailored to their requirements. I took this opportunity to try out old kit I never get around to using. I’m so used to using the same old setup that from time to time I like to stretch myself so that I can become more comfortable with a wider variety of tools. Being able to use this variety of equipment means I can bring greater variation to my work. This type of practice session is a regular and invaluable part of my work.
I’m lucky enough to also have a great relationship with a well known manufacturer of much of my equipment, Lastolite, which means they regularly lend me things to try before I buy. On this occasion I was able to borrow a couple of backdrops, one I really loved.
This set of 3 images were all taken against one of Lastolites collapsible background. These backgrounds are fantastic as they allow me to completely change the look of a portrait with little investment in terms of storage. They fold away neatly so they take up very little space and each one is reversible so I have 2 options with one background. And for a further change I used some coloured gels on a background light so I could add a blue hue to the tone of the background in this image. Lastolite have created a few new backgrounds this year and I can’t wait to try those. One of which I definitely have my eye on.
It was great to have a change of subject for this session, being able to photograph an adult who easily followed instructions. It gives me a chance to get all elements of the portraits just how I want them without worrying about the temperament of my subject. I do love working with small children but sometimes its great to have a change of pace and be able to photograph someone different for a change. I think just as a mum needs a break from her own child, so too does a photographer need a break from children and animals. And as I’ve said so many times before, variety is the spice of life and it’s certainly what keeps me going.
