Girliecon

I hosted a girl's day at my place one weekend and promised everyone a glamour photoshoot. The morning was spent fussing with hair and makeup and the afternoon was spent slaving under hot lights as i turned 15 of my regular looking friends into super models! Although i ended up with a killer backache, the fun had by all was well worth it. The final results were processed and digitally tweaked a few days later.... a few of my favourite are shown here.... Debra, Katherine, Karen, Samantha, KRin, Sue, Wendy and Gail.

I prefer my basic SLR for this kind of shoot because what you see through the viewfinder is what you get.... it’s easier to get in really close and know you won’t be chopping off heads. I shoot in black and white... not only does it immediately look more professional, but it is also kinder to skin tones. Kodak have TMAX 400 (400ASA) - a black and white film that can be processed by any ordinary colour processor. Forget about the flash... a flash creates flat, featureless photos and throws hard, horrible shadows onto the wall behind the subject. I use a couple of 500watt garden flood lights and a bedside lamp for my 'studio' lighting. For the backdrop I use an old blue velvet curtain hooked over some nails i banged into the top of the pelmet. I use the second of the pair spread out on the floor when i take shots from above.

I end up scanning and retouching most of my amateur portrait photos... I use Photoshop, but a program with more basic tools will probaby do the job. I often do a bit of overall lightening, and maybe softening back some hard shadows on the face. At the very least i usually zoom right in on the face and gently lighten the whites of the eyes and teeth... makes everyone look like a movie star! I often take this opportunity to do a little ‘cosmetic surgery’... soften bags under eyes, enhance shadow on jawline, tidy eyebrows and hair, etc