Test Shoot

Due to the unconventional nature of the garments in my shoot, I thought it would be a good idea to get a test shoot out of the way with to highlight areas in which I needed to improve. I started this process by thinking about what sort of models I'd like to cast for my shoot. I decided that the pieces would probably create a better aesthetic on "real" and "interesting" looking models, contrasting with the experimental samples. I recored the process, and above shows some of the people I would like to cast in my shoot. They vary in age, gender, height and race. Since the project is based on the theme of diversity, I think it is easy to "tokenise" models, merely using someone to indicate allegiance to a particular group of individuals. I think I have avoided this issue by using models I think can bring the garment to life, rather that just a pretty face.

Following the casting process, I decided I would benefit form arranging a test shoot, so I chose the most readily available model and conducted one in a pop-up-studio. The idea of the test shoot was to experiment with styling the samples on the body in a variety of ways, but as the samples are not finished garments it proved difficult to “adorn” the body substantially. This task was extremely helpful to me as it encouraged me to style the samples in various different ways, and helped me to  guide my usual style towards something more interesting and unconventional - which i think is needed to celebrate these pieces. The samples have an abundance of diversity in the ways in which you can style them on the body, but I noticed that they were too small and too incomplete to fashion a whole 8 page editorial. 

I didn't want to scrap my idea because the samples I have decided to use are stunning in so many ways: shape, colour, texture and most importantly, versatility. To overcome this problem I created ways in which I could make the samples go further in terms of “outfits”. I experimented with colour correction to begin with and produced some mediocre outcomes. But something that really interested me from my previous visit to the Guy Bourdin exhibition at somerset house, was his use of scale. Extreme post production of images is something I am not fond of, as I think it can lead to amateur results, but after experimenting with scale in photoshop in a similar style to Guy Bourdin, I realised this might be a way forward in my project. Above shows a small percentage of the images I have taken for the test shoot. As you can see the light changes half way through the shoot, this is due to one of the bulbs in the flash kit overheating and breaking. Even though I encountered  a problem during this shoot I carried on, and ended up producing some images that could work well as a final. Although the test produced some good results, the contact sheet clearly demonstrates the lack of material / outfits.