Lessons

Lesson Info

First Beauty Look Q&A

Well, I have a question from re burger do you always shoot beauty at subject eye level? Uh that's a very good question do I shoot at their eye level? Yes, almost all the time where I'm doing this almost all the time and I'm never below them let me slightly higher every now and then but for the most part I'm right here if you go to my website there's a shot of vanessa williams is shot just like this shot floreal it's just her right at me same kind of beauty same kind intensity directly at me and it's beautiful uh jeff the king would like you to talk a little bit about feathering the light ah that's a good thing so when I fell in light on the situation no but there are a lot of situations where I do feather the light and that's when can you fill it just for that for the shot we've fished a shot now he has feathers light off a little bit so this take it off where's going off this direction once you know light you khun do all kind of changes to make a certain feel so the light doesn't have...

to always be tully directional where it's hitting the model straight on you khun feather the light off the light's falling off and that's another feeling another effect let's take a meter reading for this and show you what that looks like she's sixteen oh at the nose comes down to eleven eight on this side and eleven eight over here in the middle and the other side again in seven and eleven eight on very center sixteen zero sixteen zero okay, perfect. So she ate the same same exposure on camera and we shoot this feathered look, I have a good friend who shoots this way a lot and I don't and we always argue about it um but it is a look aloft offers like this feathered look and when my good friends likes this that's nice that's nice beautiful said that clicker for second so looking at this one on one it's hard to see the small difference but we look at this shot and one of our other shots side by side you can tell the difference my version feathered version my version feathered version is a very small difference when you see him side by side in light room you make the distinction of what you like light wise. Once you figure out the light that you like you keep that as your version of beauty even consistent throughout your portfolio throughout your work so when classier work they're like oh wow he has a great sense of lighting that's feathered or he has a grace of light that's like matthew's life it's all yours there's no right or wrong in fashion beauty could do anything you want to do I love that about this industry find what you like and make it your own great question thank you for that question more questions absolutely okay question from roger boosts my question is about turning the neck does he mind that? Do you mind the skin creases and how much and how strong can they be before it's too much I have a very famous shot of tyra banks and b if even turn your body away till it profile even more and bring your face back quite a bit right there there's a shot I shot a tyre that's just this in her eyes are right on me just like that and I'll bring you showed up a little bit that's the shot do I mind the wrinkles in the neck? No, I can soften them and retouching but it doesn't kill me it's natural if I take always wriggles out and retouching it looks a little fake, I can soften them and make them a little softer and that's cool. I don't want to go all the way away but doesn't bother me at all if you do you ever use modifiers on the beauty dish like gels or barn doors? I don't I know people do that a lot using bond doors and different modifiers on this I don't test with them I didn't like it, but those are other options can use with your bee dish or your other modifiers can you clarify for people who might not know what is a barn door? Ah, barn door uh let me see if I could get one here we'll do a few here so a barn door would be just I'm going turns to the audience I can see them from here we'll have the lights there with barn doors do now so a barn door is simply a device that goes around you're like and gives you control his control of the light it's called a barn door their top and bottom I used them for hot lights from using a hot light like my first light in my career, which is my my tuna dollars uh dp hot light back in the day that I used hot light I use the barn doors by use h demise I'll use barn doors braun strom's hardly ever that's a call again another personal thing that I like question from jura when you're working with clients do you stop shooting when you feel like you have the shot or do you wait until your clients tell you when they see that shot? I like shooting until I feel I had the shot there some clients who have filed that some clients just want to keep shooting but as a photographer, I can feel when I'm losing her she's getting tired and then I took a break and give her brakes coming her back and bring the energy bag. There are some clients they just want to keep shooting, keep shooting, keep shooting, but all you do is where the model out and you lose them versus getting the shot during those times, I'd talk to my client for a second, like waiting for a break for a second time, losing her for a second and then bring her back, but not just to keep shooting and shooting and shooting, so as a photographer, you're seeing all that happening. I've gotta tell my client what's happening also because they're thinking about their their their product and getting it done shot, right? They want mohr and mohr and mohr. I'm the go between so I can see the model and the client and direct my client and my model to get the right shot. That's a good question, thank you for that. I have a question from danel probst are you shooting her face in the middle of the frame because you are shooting for a cover? What if her head wrap was not as tall? Would you leave us much space above her head for tex ah, a lot of covers these days we'll go over what sometimes behind the garment it's like like vote we all know that brand so they'll have to actual all of oh they show the v a little bit of the o and then nothing as it goes behind the garment in the rest of it coming around so some clients want you have space is clean space which gives you a lot of dead space I like it where is coming over the top so I'm showing it as if the cover line would go over her top of her veil of no avail but over the head head wrap a matthew anderson asked do you prefer to position a model for the cover shot like this one with her eyes facing left word in the frame as opposed to write words I feel like with dead on like this shot is fine by prefer it when it's dead on so as you're looking at the cover if you walked anyway, the cover follows you the eyes following you I prefer that a lot of clients for for that as well question questions a lot of great questions coming in and I like all of them because they're all relevant and right on point every single one thank you guys a question from brent eight forty seven how long do you generally shoot with a model before she needs a break or before break is needed or do you just go by the energy by the energy you can't put a time on it and say, oh, it's five minutes or fifteen minutes it's about the energy and the marks of all different, she might be tired in five minutes tired baby tired in fifteen minutes, it's different for each person and the shoot and the amount of make up the comfort in the room, the music, all that affects how she feels and you got to read that side three effect would like to know. Have you ever tried shooting with speed light it's and if so, can you recreate this set up using those? Oh, I know a spell is a very, very popular today, and everybody uses the speed lights. Uh, I'm not a fan. No, I can control my light's exactly the way I want consistent output all the time with the pro photos, and I love those I've tried tried anything under the sun, but I love pro photo, I want consistency and sometimes the speed lights, you get one great shop, I can't shoot the way I've just shot and have consistency on every pop. Each flash is giving the same output each time this does another question. Oh, question in the audience, yes, have you ever had way? You brought the day together? Everything was going fine, but you didn't feel the models energy and uh just things just didn't work out the way you want it and if so have how did you correct it so I had shoots where things didn't go right the engine is wrong the model or wrong with me absolutely because this is life and life is full of ups and downs there been shoots when I've been shooting a job for client and it's a celebrity or model and they were sick you know say they have the flu or bad cold but they're hired to do that job and they come sick most people cannot work under those circumstances I didn't shoot with tyr it was a cover shoot she had the flu she walked initially matthew I'm so sick but I came because you're shooting this we did the job she was sick she's having her coffee had heard tha t she's wrapped up she's shivering she comes on set you would never know she was sick we get the shot I'm tired I'm going to this really fast and get the shot get you out of here we shot the images they were amazing I forgot she was sick she walked off the set but not everybody could do that those times again though that I have a shoot when everything's going wrong and I just can't get the shot it happens I have a question a question from twitter from hazel ray field who says she's watching from the uk and, uh, thinking about skin, would you still use the same set up for a mature model? Oh, now, that's good. If I'm showing an older woman more mature where I used this same set up, I would actually I would. This is very flattering light even on an older woman who are or even a woman in her in her eighties and nineties I would shoot this way. This is very flattering light I make sure that light is very flat, not too flat, but give me this beautiful light at this angle absolutely absolutely let's take one mohr and they were one more question. Um, I guess this goes talking about the inverse square law photo bird seventy nine would like to know is it possible to keep the background white with one light it's hard to do it white before light it's very hard. Uh if you want to be pure white, you need to light the background. You can get it pure white this way I can make it close toe white if I'm in my studio, I'll have a cleaner white feeling background than here, so I have a lower ceilings, they're white ceilings is white walls all around so they are get more of a white feeling off white in the same situation in that space here we have thirty foot ceilings, dark walls and spread apart so it's hard to do that if you want a clean white you must like it sure why not? Why not actual brain aaron for quick second okay and talk about makeup and her working with her because aaron had the job of having this toe work from and translate it so then she sees laura come in and she got turned her face into this interpretation I'll put you on the spot dear come on over here, aaron very, very talented and I love what she did today and if you have any questions about hair and makeup and for her ask away just like you wanted to you know, give me five. All right. Well, while we wait for those to come in, uh, question about the catch lights from klamm is one preferred or is to catch lights okay in the eyes well, we have to right now we have the main light, we have one underneath. I like it that way. I don't like more than that that's also personal. I feel like I see more than two it feels fake to me. I know it's being lit in this situation you're not really sure because this could be on the beach at sunset the sand pouncing on him in the eyes that looks natural to me more than that one another planet uh rogie bro's would like to know what kind of instruction doesn't make up artists need from the photographer uh well there's such a range I feel like with photographer some photographers don't want anything on the skin as faras foundation goes and then you know, shooting beauty really need probably a bit more on the skin um but I like to have pretty specific art direction tio out of the time or at least you know, this was a great having a storyboard to go off of you know, just a sort of design a look around on idea that always helps just starting to hate sometimes you don't get any input like that and you're on your own and you got to be prepared for that too, but um yeah, I guess they kind of are style direction like the aesthetic that they're going for it and beauty I feel like it's I don't know it's get nearly specific you know with the amount of construction you need and uh you're doing great you did a wonderful job the cousin bits and the questions are flying in maybe yokel barnard over border but a question from marcel krystal cia what is the more most important thing to do for makeup so that the skin does not have glowing spots? Um well, I think starting out with a primer on the scan is good making sure you're using like moisturizer very sparingly and not necessarily all over the face because that can cause shine to come up where you don't want it also, anti shine gels sometimes work better than powder I tend to use a lot of um anti shine gel and along with the powder but if you are looking at the monitor and you're seeing hot spots a lot of times all going with a gel as opposed to powder correct that perfect berkeley aaron thank you so much incredible so won't take aaron back to hair and makeup to make our next look with laura we have some incredible ideas because now we had this in the can so now we can play and do our other ideas that we've been talking about in secret so you can go ahead and take her away and guys thank you so much that was fantastic thank you thank you, thank you amazing bring him on bring him on yes, normally when I try to do beauty I'm always moving the light and trying to do a different light each set up and thinking that I have to create all these different points positions you know I don't have it clear and when I see you now you know you have one position that you're working on one light set up do you work normally let's say today you work all the time kind of in this frame and then there do they like having everything consistent one sit I like having four from doing a story I'm doing a full beauty story I like it when I have my palate sit all the creation comes and hair and makeup in the model but all the variables stay the same the light the background I do small tweaks here and there but for the most part everything is staying the same in terms of my gear in my life my set up yes every now and then I'll change things around for the most part I'm doing a full story I'm having everything the same and only the hair and makeup is changing so the focus stays one my model and not on the gear and the light and all the tricks with lights the magic is there the hero is there the model and that face I'm painting and creating right here that's the focus so stay focused don't get carried away and la times as photographers we want to show all so we could do that's one of the time we're creating and that sketch right there our storyboard keeps us focused for doing a story story boy keeps you focus for the fashion tomorrow wei have a full storyboard that will keep us focus because when you have a room full of creatives everybody wants but the impotent oh what about this? What about that well but they are all great ideas but your story but what keeps you in line and keeps a body else from going off on other tangents shoot your ideas and then once you have that, then you can vary around and get all the shots. But had that that to keep you and the whole team focused way were saying earlier tio, you have a friend that loves the feather of the light but that's not what you like. So in the industry are you known for using, uh not feathering and that's? Why your client's really like your style and for your friend is that's why his clients like his style? And is it? And I guess I was thinking that it would be awesome to understand how to do both and be good at both. But so it is good to be learnt how to do both. I know howto feather the light how to shoot it the way I shoot it, right? But you make your decision what you like. People hire me based on all of their bodies, not just lighting only, but congress think about just letting were just cameras and lenses clients, don't they? But then they hire you based on the body of work, not about a certain life, how you use it, they want to you can master light in a situation that you can shoot a model or uh or actor or big celebrity or on elly person and made him a beautiful we'll get the shot that they want for their assignment it's based on the body of work is not about one light in that it's just I guess I was trying it I don't know maybe I don't I can't take time come back well okay well but it's very good to do both how do you know how to use the light in different ways that's when you master like I shouldn't know it all and then you make your decision on what you like okay but know how to do it all I know the rules and then break the rules if you want I like or not but I know the route used you are you are kind of thumbprint perhaps absolute deciding is doing all that testing to find out all these variables available to you and then saying to yourself and knowing what you love and shooting just that because I could do all types of photography if I want a still life and shooting no landscapes but I love this find out what you love and do just more questions from here in our audience I was just keeping the same question today you have the opportunity of use anything that you want but this is they like that you know it's always less is more I asked you a question yesterday about selecting the model that may be beneficial for people watching online but when you're selecting a model for beauty is height necessarily a factor in that or is it are you just for skin or what what's your elements a lot of time to hear on america's next top model you know heights kind of a deal breaker kind of thing so what's your industry is a deal breaker for a lot of people there are a lot of girls out there who are shorter but beautiful have great skin and great hair and I can work in just that beauty field agencies want to make sure that could work across the board the height factor is a big deal for for doing the full scope of work available not just beauty beauty but doing fashion and runways and tv so they want a girl fits into all those categories but there are girls out there who are the exception like kate moss kate moss is only like five seven so she's a shorter model but she isn't very well she's in private better than allegra's who are five nine five ten so there are always exceptions to the rule that you ever for a client do you have a different variations like so you shoot this way and then maybe you'll bring in the second like two white make the background high key or if I'd do a variation it's, never about life variation, would come from me, shooting her in different way. The variation on lighting is what photography want to see, not the climate variation was coming there. If I'd do a variation on the set, it would come from testing the first few shots in the climate. In that comment, they're like, oh, I want that couldn't be more white or darker or a different color. This is that right away, very beginning as they're in here and make up those first two hours, the client you were going through, shooting testing, like, oh, I don't like this, I don't like that we change this, they make a change. The variations come once that changes made, and you're doing changing the model that's, the variations.