Inspiration for Latin/Salsa photoshoot

My next shoot will be based on Latin/ Salsa dancing. I want this shoot to be vibrant and precise. 

Here are a few images that have taken my eye within my research:

By Jamie Adres Pretell

By Judith Burnett 'Salsa Dancing' 

By Paul Shipper 

By Kristy Petty 

I am fond of all the images displayed above as they all give that mood, movement and energy of salsa as a dance style. I notice that orange is a reoccurring colour that is presented in the pictures. This has inspired me to incorporate orange as the lead colour within my salsa shoot. I will continue researching into this look to enable me to finalise a planned look to shoot.   

Feedback session 2

04/02/13 

This feedback session was very beneficial as I received feedback to the pictures I have displayed on this blog so far. 

For the 'Trial Uran/Street dance shoot' the tutors agreed that something was missing from the photos. The use of lighting perhaps drained the coloured yellow and pink shading I had created on the cheek bone and temple and the blue and pink dip dye colours in the hair looked also a bit too faint. I would like to resolve these problems in a re-shoot at a later date where I can adjust the lighting and edit the colours so that they pop out more in the final images. 

I intend to keep the flicks on the eyes as they are a strong aspect to the make-up look and almost give a Jesse J or Amy Winehouse style to the overall shot. 

In order to make my pictures out of the ordinary, I am not only going to increase the contrast in the colour but to collaborate with a nail technician to add that extra edge within the photos. With the right colours, designs and shape of nail art I really think this could finish off a great look. I would like to push this look to the limit and really portray a fresh looking urban to the extreme picture playing and experimenting with colours. 

Another thought would be to try adding some colourful graffiti or graphics to the background after trying to create that movement effect either by using graphics or other methods of post production. 

The tutors advised me to have a running theme throughout my book that can be shown in all of my images which I think now is defiantly to attempt to express movement and colour in the final prints for the book. 

This session concluded with me planning a re-shoot and thinking perhaps more about the following shoots to get prepared for the different themes in mind. 

FMP consists of alot of work ahead but with good organisation skills and determination, I will complete it to the best of my ability!  

Collaborating work...

I have also been fairly busy with collaborating with other students from fashion styling and photography. 

A particular shoot that I have worked on has taken place recently was at a roller disco hall in Southampton. The theme was disco, using the bright coloured lights in the editorial, sequins, embellishments and beading. The styling was quite vintage looking and had high use of jewel coloured clothing, the clothes looked sleek and the rich colours really set the mood for the shoot. 

Make-up was made up to display a flawless complexion, nude lip and heavy, dramatic and metallic eye shadow. The dark colour on the eye enhanced the eye shape with eye liner added afterwards.

Hair was made to be very sleek and slicked back to the head and fixed with spray and gel to create a rich shine which complemented the styling and make-up. 

Here are a few pictures styled, photographed and created by : Zoe Rollins. 

I worked on the dark haired model you can see in the photographs following the theme given I created the hair and make-up. I really liked the outcome of these pictures and love the way Zoe created the pictures and gave a sense of movement in her photography. 

Working on this shoot really made me think about how I would like to capture the rest of my shots and display a sense of movement and flexibility considering my FMP is based on dance styles and movements that are current and styles that are classical. 

My photo-shoots will all be based on a dance style and will all have a colour scheme relating to the mood that different dances can portray for example. 'Krumping' can be seen as an aggressive style of dance which could be enhanced with an editorial shoot based on the colour black, grimy but strong looking make-up and hair can portray this mood within a picture. This is the route I am aiming to take within created my FMP. 

Trial urban shoot

The dance style I wanted to focus on to begin with is street dance. Street dance has been around for decades but as everybody is aware, styling is recycled and my aim was create an urban theme to the shoot.

Street dance formally known as Vernacular dance refers to dance styles regardless of country of origin that evolved outside of dance studios in any available open space such as streets, dance parties, parks, school yards, raves and nightclubs. Street dance is usually improvisational and social in nature, it encourages interaction and contact through spectators and other dancers.  

Street dance has also increased in popularity due to TV shows such as 'Got to dance' 'So you think you can dance'. As this themed shoot is very fresh I thought I would begin with this style. 

Creating my first shoot I wanted to portray an urban feel to the shots in a refreshing way considering the use of colours, lighting and styling. I chose vibrant colours such as deep blues and reds to set a rich mood for the image. My mood board displays 

Here are a few examples from the shoot:  

I am fond of the final pictures although these are unedited at this point in time. I am pleased with the use of colour on the lips for each look as it is visible to the viewer in a bold and clear statement.

The styling and accessories I think are strong and do set the theme and give the idea of street dance, however I think something is missing! 

I will take these images into the next seminar to discuss with my tutors and peers to receive a good level of feedback in order for me to move forward with my study.  

                                      

Salsa Shoot Ideas

Salsa is a dance form with origins from the Cuba Son (circa 1920's) and Afro-Cuban dance (specifically Afro-Cuban Rumba). Salsa is always associated with tropical music and styles of salsa music. It is usually a partner dance although there are forms such as line dance from 'salsa suelta' where dancers move individually. 

Salsa is a vibrant and energetic style and I would like to research further into this dance and create a shoot to publish within my FMP book. 

Here are a couple of facecharts I have created to begin my vision for this shoot: 

I plan to find a model with afro/frizzy curly hair to enhance the look I envisage. Hair style is very important so I need to think carefully about how I do the make up to complement the hair and styling also. 

I also plan to style my model in a brightly coloured dress with perhaps a chunky gold necklace for decoration  and contrast with the hair style. 

Lets see how my research pans out and my look develops... 

Mood boards

My chosen dance styles to focus on in my final printed book are the following:

1- Disco /70's & 80's
2- Contemporary/modern
3- Jazz
4- Krumping
5- Latin
6- Ballet
7- Tap/Charleston
8- Waltz
9- Tango
10- Street dance

I have created appropriate mood boards for each of my themed shoots to give an idea on what I am inspired by and will choose to creat with makeup and fashion styling shots.

Feedback session 1

21/01/13

This session consisted of reading over my FMP proposal and targeting any issues that arise with a brief read through. 

I quickly learnt I will need to adjust my target market for my final book as I had proposed that the target market was mainly for professionals in the industry of make-up and hair design, dance and perhaps photography. I need to broaden my market as the book will consist of lots of classic glamour make-up which is of course used within TV and film containing dance styles or movements. Although I will be photographing classic looks, I will be touching on modernised versions also which can interest a far wider range of people. 

I have been advised to research into classic films which contain memorable dance scenes. With the likes of Gene Kelly, Fred Astair, Cyd Charisse, Karmen Miranda, Valentino and the list goes on. Here is a particular clip I loved from 'Singing in the rain'. This demonstrates tap dance and Charleston.  

I would love to create classical glamour looks with a hint of contemporary make-up styles throughout my printed book and take inspiration from not just dances but equally from films. There are so many films which are based on dance or feature a great amount of dance. The deeper I research, the better my shots will be for the finished product. 

I have started a sketchbook which enables me to gather information and pictures from magazines, books and sketches. Here is a mood board for Hollywood glamour: 

I have been putting together sketchbook pages gathering images which inspire me for different shoots for the finalised book thinking carefully about colours and styling for each style of dance for the shoots. Here are some examples: 

 (Top photo) - Jazz inspired shoot 

(2nd photo) - Samba dance inspired 

Starting this research has encouraged me to follow up with more information and to begin collaging mood boards together for the ideas for the finalised shoots. I need to specify what styles of dance I would like to cover within my printed book. So my next post will be all about the themes and styles of my final shoots.