Portfolio R e s e a r c h B o o k
Theme:
Fake Perception on Instagram
It seems that on social media we all personally control how we would like to be seen from other users. Instagram is a particular app where user profile’s can be easily controlled, unlike Facebook where we can be tagged in images and posts by other people. On Instagram there are a wide variety of users that can all be split into different categories. From the selfie takers, to the users who expose their unfiltered life’s, or the well presented users, to the famous Instagrammers, i.e. bloggers, or celebrities. It seems each user has an Instagram account to portray how they believe their life should be seen. For example, with my own Instagram profile I consider what images I upload, making sure they’re all quite cultured and show my photography and editing skills. Although I may control what I post to a certain extent, I am not as controlled as perhaps more famous Instagrammers are. For example, food blogger Deliciously Ella holds a strong following of over 952k followers, but she has an ongoing pressure to meet with what her followers want to see. It’s pretty clear that her followers do not want to see posts about the clothes she’s recently bought, or the art gallery she recently visited, her posts are about promoting a healthy lifestyle and sharing her recipe’s. As she recently said in an interview with the Telegraph, “there is a lot of pressure to be shiny and sparkly all the time,” a pressure that I can imagine all famous Instagrammers have. It seems in some cases that these users have been caught in a viscous circle. They perhaps became famous for posting these kinds of photos, but now that they’ve started gaining followers they can’t change their style. Within my own research I would like to look specifically at Fake Perception on social media. It seems very clear that these applications present false realities that can lead to a great amount of pressure on all users to meet these high life and beauty standards. I will be exploring certain situations where fake perception on Instagram has effected females aged between 18 and 25 years old.
An Instagram account created by Paris agency BETC was used as a social experiment to see how easy it is to overlook the signs of an addiction on social media. The test was made through the creation of a picture-perfect Instagram account for a girl named Louise Delage, documenting her life through pictures. Yet, each image posted on Instagram by Delage had signs of an addiction, with every photo posted including alcohol. The agency from Paris were able to prove through the way Delage gained thousands of followers and likes on her posts that an addiction can be easily overlooked, and revealed to the accounts’ followers how they must look out for the warning signs. All was revealed to the followers through a YouTube video titled “Like My Addiction,” where the BETC showed the addiction overlooked by thousands. I believe the account was a strong and effective way to reveal how easy it is to believe an Instagram user is a happy and healthy person. It shows how we must look out for the warning signs better, and that we must not assume that a picture-perfect Instagram user is a happy and healthy person in reality.
6 inspirational portfolio images (week 4)
20 Photoshoot Ideas (week 4)
1.
A photoshoot within Deep Sea World in North Queensferry. There could be a contrast between inside of the aquariam, to outside next to the Forth river. Contrasts between the familiar and unfamiliar world.
2.
A photoshoot within the Edinburgh Botanical Gardens with a model pretending to be in a tropical location. Contrast an image showing models posing, getting their photo taken, against a photo showing the image that has been taken of the models where it looks as though they’re in a tropical location to reveal the fake perception.
3.
This photoshoot will mock how many social media users take photos of their food before eating it. Here I want to make fun of, and perhaps exaggerate, the effort that goes into some of the images taken of food on Instagram and how certain users make an effort to appear healthier than they are. I could show models sitting in front of healthy meals with a full camera kit, with the next image showing a model eating the food with a disgusted face, or perhaps show a model trying to disguise themselves when they’re eating unhealthy food with sunglasses.
4.
This photoshoot will reveal a ‘photoshop queen’. Inspired by the many stories of how some social media users have been pretending to travel the world, this shoot will reveal a model in front of a green screen pretending to pose in certain situations. The photoshoot will include many props, such as pool floats, surf boards, sun beds, etc.
5.
This photoshoot will reveal how easily we can fake our fitness on social media. Recently there has been an increase in users posting images of themselves in sports gear or at the gym. Here I want to do a more realistic photoshoot of how athletic some social media users really are.
6.
Posing models as if they are mannequins and dolls, this photoshoot will show how some social media users present such a fake lifestyle that they don’t appear to be real. Models will appear too perfect to be real, in posed and false situations, inspired highly by Tim Walker’s photography.
7.
Aside from Instagram, Snapchat is also an app which is used to document our experiences and lifestyles. New filters can make us appear to look nicer, or perhaps hide our flaws. This photoshoot will include only Snapchat filters on models faces.
8.
This photoshoot will focus on the ‘thinspo’ trend, inspired by how many people are obsessed with being thin and having a thigh gap - as if this is how a perfect body should look. Images may include models with corsets, or in front of mirrors trying to make it look like they could a thigh gap.
9.
Similar to ‘thinspo’, this photoshoot will focus on make-up inspired by surgery and the obsession many people have to appear perfect through things like botox and lip fillers.
10.
Inspired by the trend to contour, fashion styling could use clothes inspired by the colours of contouring.
11.
This shoot will include still life images of products bought by consumers who want to be someone they’re not. For example, a shot of a camera with caption, “price £500, used once when trying to be a photographer.”
12.
My second still life shoot will show healthy food disguising unhealthy food. For example, an ice cream cone with an apple on top, or the packaging for fries filled with carrots.
13.
For this still life photoshoot I will showcase products which can all be used to create fake perceptions, whether that is a contouring kit, waist trainers, or a lit up phone case that allows you to take good selfies.
14.
Through presenting unrealistically perfect food, against imperfect food, I will show how we try to over-perfect things.
15.
Another fake perception which I frequently see is the use of professional and personal Instagram accounts. Where on a professional account for a fashion student we may appear to be creative and constantly capturing our inspiration, whereas on our personal accounts we may appear to be more fun, outgoing and appear to have less of a fake filter on our posts. I would like to carry this theme across a photoshoot through using 3 different models, with each places in 2 different situations. One situation being ‘work’ mode, and the other ‘play’ mode.
16.
Using odd products in replacement to what is real, I will cover up what is real and present the fake through odd props and cover ups.
17.
It is clear that it is easy to appear happy through social media, but this is also apparent through texting and messaging. Emoji’s can give tone to texts, providing emotions where we can pretend to find things funny, be happy, or sad when we aren’t. I would like to use emoji’s over the face’s of models to show their ‘moods’ in the photographs.
18.
Inspired by fake perception and how social media can act as a disguise, I will use images where models appear to be in a disguise, whether that is through colour, pattern or styling of clothes.
19.
Following a Wes Anderson style, I will show how so called ‘smart’ phones are really allowing us to forget the classic, and perhaps more smarter ways of carrying out tasks in everyday life. This could include working out how to get somewhere using a map, rather than typing a location into your phone.
20.
This photoshoot is inspired by the obsession some girls have for taking selfie’s, and how it can get to the point where their faces can be done up in make-up, whilst they may be wearing more casual and carefree clothing which they won’t show in the image. Models will be presented with done up faces, but more lazy styled outfits. Images could be contrasted with selfie’s of the body, hiding the face.
Stylists
Jamie Ortega
Jamie Ortega is a fashion stylist from New York who has had her work published in the likes of Teeth, Hunger, Vice and Schon magazine. She has also started up her own ‘slow-fashion’ magazine Sumzine.
I enjoy the simplicity of Ortega’s styling, where the statement pieces of an outfit tend to be due to the colour, texture or pattern of a garment or accessory. As seen on the bottom left, Ortega experiments greatly with styling, where here she has used a rubber glove instead of a bra. Yet her experimental pieces tend to work well due to her well considered colour scheme and textures. Colour seems to be an important factor of Jamie Ortega’s styling, where colours of garments tend to compliment and highlight backdrops of images. As colour is an important factor of my magazine, I would like to follow the same styling rules within my own portfolio work.
Tara greville
Greville is the First Assistant to Dazed & Confused’s Fashion Director Karen Langley, but also works as a freelance stylist based in London. Her styling is quite edgy, and can at some times make us feel uncomfortable, for example with the snail emoji image. She tends to style in contrast with an image’s surroundings, as seen with the red cowboy boots on the right.
Margaret Williamson Bechtold
Bechtold is a freelance stylist based in New York. I first came across her work when she styles a photoshoot for Teeth magazine. I admire her bold use of colour in styling, and the way she uses colours and textures in garments to fit in with backdrops within images.
holly rebecca
I came across Holly Rebecca through looking up who Solange Knowles’ stylist is. I have always admired and been highly influenced by Solange’s bright, unique and colourful style, and so it seemed perfect to find out who her stylist was. Although mainly a celebrity stylist, Holly Rebecca has styled for some of Solange’s music videos, and also for her iconic wedding (as seen on the right).
Solange A seat at the table
digital book and music videos
stylist - shiona turini
photographer - carlota guerrero
stylist - shiona turini
As I greatly admired the styling within Solange’s ‘A Seat at the Table’ visuals, I researched into the stylist to see their other work. As seen in the images surrounding, I enjoy the way Turini uses a wide range of bright colours within her shoots. Clothing is always well styled along with the background, where here she has used garments that contrast in colour to the location, whereas in A Seat at the Table colours are more muted and pastel to fit in naturally with the backdrop.
photographer - carlota guerrero
I discovered Carlota Guerrero as the photographer of Solange’s ‘A Seat at the Table’ digital book visuals and music video. His stunning visuals for Knowles’ latest album and his own freelance work is stunning to look at. He has a great understanding of incorporating landscape photography with fashion, and experiments greatly with odd angles and strange poses for models. I admire the way he has styled some of his images. For example, with the image on the bottom right he has used masking tape to create a bra, and then used the tape to create a form of footwear. His images are creative, where he seems to be thinking out of the box most of the time.
photoshoot narratives
This photoshoot could be shot within Deep Sea World in North Queensferry. There will be a contrast between inside of the aquariam, to outside next to the Forth river. Contrasts between the familiar and unfamiliar world.
inspiration
weird fishes
teeth magazine
PHOTOGRAPHER: ALEESHA WOODSON STYLING: AUBREY KIA
Mash-up
This mash-up uses images of Deep Sea World, mixed with the more grim, dark looking car park outside the attraction. It aims to reveal the look I could try and get across in this shoot of the fake reality of social media (Deep Sea World) and the reality of social media (the car park).
inside deep sea world
I want the location of this shoot to be the main aspect of my storyline. Using the aquarium to represent a fake perception, I want to show a contrast between the reality of the surroundings of Deep Sea World, to the unrealistic aquarium filled with sealife which isn’t supposed to exist in places like Scotland. Styling within the images will be similar to tie the images together, as I want to make my series of images link together well.
outside deep sea world
As can be seen by looking at the images of the outside and inside of Deep Sea World, we can see there is a great contrast between the reality, and the organised reality of the aquarium. I want to pair images within the aquarium, against images perhaps in the car park, or at the beach of North Queensferry to show a more unfiltered seaside in Scotland.
still life photographer Vanessa McKeown
I find Mckeown’s work extremely inspiring, as I love the way she has manipulated food to create comical still life’s. She is playing with illusions using familiar objects, as she contrasts fruits and savoury food with sweets to create bright and playful imagery.
juno calypso Juno Calypso is a photographer based in London who has created a series of self-portraits where she plays a character named Joyce. Calypso expressed that she used the character to address certain issues within society, “I used Joyce to reenact the private underlife of a woman consumed by the laboured construct of femininity, carried out to the point of virtual absurdity.�
the thigh gap obsession One of the main ‘thinspo’ obsessions was the thigh gap. As stated by society and trends based from social media, a visible gap between your thighs meant that you had the perfect body. It symbolised being skinny and fit, but made those who were fit without a thigh gap perhaps seen as unfit.
Iskra Lawrence is one of many models to speak out about the obsession with the thigh gap and expresses her frustration with body shamers. As she said in a post on social media, we should not give in to body image pressures, and we shouldn’t feel we can only be happy with what society states to be the so-called ‘perfect’ body.
In the news
This article within the Telegraph discusses the way in which social media is effecting the rise in eating disorders. Emma Woolf, a former anorexic, talks about websites that give tips on how to hide eating disorders and that say posting images of yourself looking skinny on social media will make you feel better - “websites offer tips on how to avoid food (...). They suggest starting a “Fasting Journal”, and posting online “inspirational” images of your ribcage, shoulder blades or thigh gap. They offer advice on how to hide your eating disorder from your family, even on how to “purge” silently.” The article discusses how on social media we can perceive someone as healthy and happy from posts of their bodies or their food diets. This fake perception reveals how easy it is to hide an eating disorder. I would like to raise this problem within one of my portfolio photoshoots, where I will use food to symbolise our thoughts on body image when eating certain things. I will reveal the pressure some people have to not eat certain foods.
Another article by The Telegraph warns its readers of the ‘thinspiration’ and ‘fitspiration’ posts now appearing on social media. The posts claim to promote a healthy body image, when really what lies behind the posts are eating disorders and unhealthy body types. These quotes from the article sum up the problems arising;
“The images also work by instilling a sense of shame in the viewer for indulging in food” “The way ‘thinspo’ can so easily be rebranded and passed off as something ‘health conscious’ is unsettling.” “There is no meaningful difference between ‘fitspo’ and ‘thinspo’. Both terms glorify a body ideal that is unrealistic for the majority of women and is unlikely to be achieved merely through exercise.”
still life the diet pressures of achieving a ‘bikini bod’
This still life shoot is inspired by the pressures to look good on social media. Looking in particular at the growth of ‘fitspo’ posts, and the vast amount of body shamers now on social media. I will present the pressures presented by unrealistic body types, and our ambitions to get fitter and thinner.
“no carbs before marbs”
shoot ideas
Planned shoot ideas A cake cut out in the shape of a bikini - as if to say you won’t be able to wear a bikini if you eat the cake Chips or a potato cut out in the shape of a women to symbolise how we think about our figure when eating certain things Chocolate ingraved with the words ‘Thigh gap’ - as if we won’t get a thigh gap if we keep eating chocolate Burger with ketchup spelt on top ‘abs’ - saying goodbye to abs with a burger
Inspired by the still life images surrounding, I would like to use contrasting pastel colours as the backdrops for these images. I hope to use a different colour for each image to make the photoshoot more exciting and interesting. Contrasting colours for each shoot may be; -
Baby pink for chocolate Lilac for cake Light blue for potato Yellow for burger
practise shoot
‘#Abs’ - favourite edits
With large sheets of coloured paper, I took birds-eye shots of my still life set-ups. Prior to the shoot I bought a Mcdonalds meal, with a cheeseburger and chips. I used the burger against the blue paper to contrast against the orange burger. Before placing the burger I wrote ‘Abs’ with ketchup, to symbolise that you are losing your abs if you eat this burger. I played around with my camera, taking some images with natural lighting and flash on my camera. I also tried taking a bite out the burger to make a more effective eating shot.
‘#THIGHGAP’ - favourite edit
My next still life shot was with a large chocolate bar. Using a knife I carved the words ‘thigh gap’ into the chocolate, trying to be as neat as possible. I had to do a few tests at first, carving more into the chocolate to get a much clearer engraving. This shot was to represent that you won’t get a thigh gap if you eat chocolate. Again I placed the bar against a contrasting colour, trying out with the blue and pink paper.
‘#thinspo’ - favourite edit
Using the chips I got from Mcdonalds, I created a female figure. This was to emphasise our obsession with our figure, naming this shot in particular #thinspo. Using the hashtags as the title for these images also helps to show the reference to social media.
‘#bikinibod’ - favourite edit
My final and perhaps least successful still life shot was for the #bikinibod image. Using a cake I tried to cut out the silhouette of a bikini. However I found it was hard to get a neat and clear cut on the cake, and also feel that the darker cake makes it harder to see against the pink backdrop. I would like to try this again with a lighter cake like a Victoria Sponge.
After presenting my practise shoot in class I received good feedback on my photoshoot theme and the fake perception problems I was addressing. I was given the suggestion to take the food idea a step further, using it for styling with a model rather than as a still life. From this I began to think of ideas where I could explore the idea of using unhealthy food to represent what those following a ‘thinspiration’ lifestyle may not eat. For example, I could use cupcakes or ring doughnuts instead of a bra, blocks of chocolate as abs, or a six pack of beer as abs. I had the idea of creating a fake fat stomach using a clear binbag filled with bright sweets, junk food, etc. I could cover the bag over the stomach of a model to represent what some people may feel will happen if they eat certain foods. I will reveal the unrealistic body images some people who follow the ‘thinspiration’ trend may believe will happen to their bodies if they eat sweets occasionally. Abs - Six pack of beer Stomach - Bin bag filled with sweets Bottom - bread buns or rools, or a loaf of bread with a slit through the middle Breasts - Cupcakes, teacakes Moving on from this I will research more into pro ana and thinspiration blogs to get ideas for shoots. I have also created a mash-up for this ideas (as seen on the right), where I have used pro ana quotes as the background, and unhealthy food to compliment the models body features.
Thinspiration mash-up
This ‘Pro Ana’ blog talks about how anorexia is a great lifestyle to follow and explains how to follow a ‘Pro Ana Religion’ with an extremely worrying and scary set of rules. Rules such as ‘Though shall not eat fattening food without punishing afterwards’ or ‘being thin is more important than being healthy’ are all part of the commandments, where the writer of the blog blindly states that none of these rules are encouraging harmful behaviour.
The blog also has a ‘thinspiration’ page with pictures of skinny and anorexic women that are said to be the inpsirational body type for women. The images reveal unhealthy body types, where many the images are hiding an anroexia problem behind them all. These ‘thinspiration’ posts reveal the fake perception of happiness and health.
In a recent post the writer talks about how she stops herself from eating when she’s hungry by looking at a particular image. She recommends her readers to look at the image if they ever feel like they may ‘break a fast’ or binge eat. The image is worrying. It contains a written note telling readers to really consider how hungry they are and if they really need to eat anymore. It is worrying that people will use this to convince themselves to not eat anymore, even when they may be starving. It shows that so-called healthy and happy anorexic diet is really just a sad and worrying lifestyle.
Location Scouting I visited the Tramway in Glasgow to have a look around the gallery space. An installation by Jennifer West was on called the Flashlight Filmstrip Projections, which consisted of a large dark room with filmstrips hanging from the ceiling. Before entering the exhibition we were given a torch that we were to point at filmstrips, the strips were then projected on to the walls revealing hidden messages and pictures. It was a very cool and inspiring installation. Wandering around the Tramway gallery I thought the space would be very cool as a photoshoot location. Within the gallery there are remains of old tramlines, as well as old beams and structures of the old building. Although the building is not a ‘fake perception’ as such, it is an example of a building which has now been disguised by its new interior. I think the location would tie in greatly with my theme.
instagram inspiration With a large part of my theme looking at Instagram and our behaviour on social media, I have been keeping up to date with posts and also Instagram stories. The following pages show imagery which I found on Instagram that have been inspirational for me for my final photoshoots, whether that’s through styling, photography, colour or storytelling.
i-Dreamland was part of i-D’s Instagram story. I found the colours within the shoot inspirational and similar to the style I would like to follow, with the use of contrasting colours and textures to the surroundings.
Shoot idea Practise
disguise Inspired by fake perception and how social media can act as a disguise, I will use images where models appear to be in a disguise, whether that is through colour, pattern or styling of clothes. Expanding on my idea of styling similar garments and furniture together to create a model in disguise, I would like to start considering outfit options and look at interesting locations and furniture for trying out this photoshoot idea. Within my own home I have a mix of textured furniture, from a leather chair, to a woven, and slightly velvet sofa. As well as furniture, I thought it might be interesting to look at textures of carpets and rugs, where I have different textured flooring around my house.
Inspiration
Test shoot
Using flash on my camera, I was able to get an interesting red effect over my model by putting my hand slightly over the flash. The effect gives the test shoot a more intimate and underground feel, and I think it works well with the idea of being in disguise and undercover.
I feel the shots of the leather outfit with the leather sofa work better than those of the velvet outfit next to the carpet (as seen on the right). I found it hard to get the idea of disguise across, and was surprised at how challenging this shoot turned out to be. I found the images all looked quite similar in the end, and so may try and change my narrative and think of other situations to create a more interesting shoot.
Instagram Research:
hitting breaking point
Ella Mills, aka Deliciously Ella, is one of the most famous healthy eating and lifestyle bloggers. Her life on the outside appears to be picture-perfect, with lots of delicious looking food, a happy marriage, a cute dog and lots of bright and sunny photos. Yet a few days ago it seemed Ella had to express to her followers that her life is not as perfect as it seems. Ella Mills posted an image leading her followers to a blog post where she talks about how we must remember that social media only shows the filtered parts of our lives. She talked about how she doesn’t post the bad parts of her day, such as the less picturesque meals, the sleepless nights from deli openings and the days where she doesn’t look or feel that great. But Mills reminded us that we all behave like this on social meda, and noone should look up to her life as the perfect lifestyle we should be aiming for.
“There are 2.1 billion users of social media with recent studies showing that 90% of 18-29 year olds having an account. The increasing presence of these platforms (...) can draw us into a very powerful world of edited reality, which can work to reinforce our own insecurities” “Am I or my life perfect? Absolutely not! Do I feel good about myself 365 days a year? Certainly not!” “Social media isn’t there to create a platform from which to try and emulate a stranger or aim for a photo-shopped image of virtual perfection. Don’t forget as you scroll through account after account that no one is or will ever be perfect, the concept of perfect is subjective and lies solely in the eye of the beholder.” “Not to say (...) social media is totally false, I don’t think it is, it’s just that we tend to post the most exciting parts of our lives – so it’s a heavily edited, curated reality”
Photoshoot ideas
This photoshoot mash-up is a development of my idea where I looked at health obsessed Instagrammers and the pressure faced on them and their followers to eat clean foods and follow a strict diet. This image shows a model hiding within a fast-food restaurant, disguising herself with sunglasses as she feels guilty for eating unhealthy. The phones below show how the model normally may Instagram the healthy things she eats, never showing the times when she may give in to something less healthy.
The following images within this photoshoot could show other situations of models shamelessly giving in and eating unhealthy food and drink. Situations may include walking into a shop and buying a bar of chocolate, taking an image of a pictureperfect healthy dish whilst eating an unhealthy alternative. The ‘healthy eater fantasy’. The narrative could be a day in the life of the ‘healthy eater’. The shoot could begin with an image of the dream, a fantasy where the model is lying in piles of unhealthy chocolate bars and snacks. The next could follow the picturesque breakfast Instagram, where the model is seen taking a photo of a perfectly healthy breakfast whilst she eats something unhealthy. Below is a moodboard to support my narrative.
Shoot Development
Filter My Life This photoshoot has been planned to consist of a series of images all edited using filters from Snapchat and Instagram. I will not Photoshop any of the images, but instead use filters from social media platforms to follow what seems to be the perfect way to filter our lives. Garage Magazine no.11 issue is a Snapchat interactive issue where you can scan over images of Kendall Jenner and Willow Smith and watch as the Snapchat filters bring the images to life.
Social media has sparked the inspiration for many fashion editorials within the likes of Vogue, and by photographers such as Nick Knight, proving that fast fashion is now effecting the productions speed of photoshoots. Vogue asked Michael O’Neal to shoot three fashion stories using an iPhone, and editing the photos on Instagram. O’Neal began each of his Instagram stories with a hashtag, followed by images telling the story behind the hashtag. I think the use of the hashtag helps tell the story, and show that you don’t need a full set and camera kit to create high fashion imagery.
Nick Knight presented his first Instagram photoshoot on SHOWstudio, where he took his inspiration from Internet memes and GIFs. Cara Delevingne was the model for the shoot, and was styled with over the top jewellery, whilst beside a mix of picture-perfect animals.
Practise Shoot For the ‘Filter My Life’ practise shoot I first tested the Snapchat filters. Using a basic white backdrop and simple styling, I styled my model with minimal make-up and hair tied back. Most filters on snapchat apply a make-up filter onto the face and so I wanted the only make-up visible to be from those filters. Here I hoped the images would clearly show the effects of the filters and how much they can change the natural look of someone’s face. I experimented with taking photos on my camera, then uploading them to my computer and applying the Snapchat filter onto the image on my computer. I used a 50mm lens which is great for portrait shots. As well as this I also took photos straight from my phone using the filters, here I was able to compare the visual quality of using a phone image or a pre-taken image.
The images surrounding were all taken on my camera first, then uploaded to my laptop and taken by my phone with the Snapchat filters. Unfortunately when my phone was focusing on the screen it was picking up glare and pixels. It seems the images, although good quality, would perhaps look better if they were printed first (as they were in Garage magazine). I also applied different filters to the same images to show the effects and differences the Snapchat filters can make to the appearance of the model.
The images surrounding were all taken straight from my phone. Although I can avoid the pixels and glare from the screen in these photos, I do feel you can see a difference between the iPhone shots and the shots taken on my camera. I would like to experiment with printing off my camera images and then applying the Snapchat filters to see if this gives a better quality.
filter practise
Following on from my test shoot I would like to carry on using Snapchat filters within a final fashion shoot. I think it would be most effective to apply no make-up on the model to allow the Snapchat filters to create a picture-perfect face. To find out what kind of images work best with the Snapchat filter applied (i.e. bright, high contrast, black and white, studio or location), I have applied the filters to magazine imagery.
From applying the filters I have found they don’t work very well on black and white imagery due to the slight colour filter that is applied through Snapchat. Lighter imagery also makes it very hard to see the filter, as Snapchat already brightens the image (as can be seen in the surrounding photos).
The high contrast image above works well with the flower filter, where the image is brightened and brings the model to life. The lower images with a contrasting background and natural lighting works best with the filter. I feel that the pose of the model looking directly into the camera also helps. Moving forward from this research I will make experiment with using my model placed next to a contrasting backdrop, with natural or studio lighting.
instagram perfection
I would like to style my images in relation to my narrative, looking at what being perfect means on social media. To tie my photoshoot images into other social media platforms, I decided to look at the most liked posts on Instagram as my inspiration for my photoshoot images. By acting out the most-liked images in my photoshoots, I will be revealing what it takes to get the likes. Initially I will look at the most liked images on Instagram overall, and then will look at the most popular fashion images on Instagram.
most popular instagram posts According to statistics, the following images are the most liked images on Instagram. It seems apparent that the images are liked more perhaps due to the people in them, rather than the photography itself. Selena Gomez holds the most liked post on Instagram (left) with over 5.8 million likes. In terms of photoshoot imagery, I find these posts less inspiring for my portfolio.
vogue’s best fashion instagrams
Undoubtoubly, Vogue’s best fashion Instagrams are exremely more inspirational for my photoshoot. Online, Vogue have a slideshow of over 1000 images that they deem to be the most inspirational fashion posts on the social media app. Looking through the imagery it is apparent that there is a clear trend in imagery. Bright, contrasting colours, odd angle shots, designer garments and the occasional celebrity take up the majority of the images. Taking inspiration from the imagery, I would like to explore the idea that there seems to be a certain type of images that are classified as the best. The same theory applies to the most liked Instagrams, where we can see it is clear that it takes being a celebrity, and sometimes contraversial posts to make the cut. I will still apply Snapchat filters onto these images. I want to make my storyline clear that I am showing the idea of a perfect life on social media through a filter.
instagram imposter Coincidently, after planning on recreating popular images on Instagram in my photoshoot I came across an article of a wellknown Instagram account that has in fact been completely copied by another Instagrammer. The story is somewhat scary and is a warning of how easy it is for someone you don’t know to follow everything you do.
Travel Instagrammer Gypsea Lust is a popular account, boasting 700k plus followers. Her lifestyle of travelling all the time with her partner is financially unrealistic for most people, but it seemed one Instagrammer had managed to completely replicate some of her holidays trips. Instagrammer Diana Alexa recreated Gypsea Lust’s photos from the angle, pose, right down to the same clothes and even accessories. The recreation would’ve been expensive, but also hard work to try and find all the locations, clothes and accessoires that Gypsea Lust doesn’t always tag. The complete photo copies are slightly worrying and scary, showing how it is possible to in fact follow a public Instagram account, and recreate everything on it. For those who followed Diana but not Gypsea Lust, it would perhaps seem like a completely normal Instagram account, before the surprise that it was all in fact a copy.
Research:
Black mirror
Black Mirror is a fictional television series based on modern society and the dark future of new technologies. Within the third season, episode ‘Nosedive’ looks at a future where everyone rates each other. A higher rating allows for better opportunities, as this episode follows a women eager to boost her rating as she feels she will have a better life for it. The episode reveals the unhealthy psychological effects rating each other has on our lives. It reminded me of apps such as Instagram and Facebook where we all aim to get more likes, and on Tinder where people aim for as many dating matches as possible. The episode was almost scary as it seemed as though it showed what the future of social media could look like.
I thought the episode related greatly to my theme of fake perception on social media. Within the episode it shows how people will fake their happiness, hide their true opinions and be someone they’re not all just to get a good rating. I feel that this is relatable to behaviour in our current society, where many social media users even claim that we cannot believe everything we see. Many social media users capture what seems to be a perfect life when in reality it is not as good as it seems. Using the idea of a rating and gaining likes on social media, I would like to show a storyline within one of my photoshoots that reveals how we care too much about how we appear on social media, so much so that we don’t show our true selves. Taking my main inspiration from this episode of Black Mirror, I would like to follow similar photography and fashion styling using pastel colours with clean and perfect surroundings.
Life statistics photoshoot idea
As was seen in the Black Mirror episode ‘Nosedive’, many of us are becoming very obsessed with numbers and facts about us. For example in terms of fitness, many of us look at what we weigh and how much we have lost/gained, what weight we might lift, or perhaps how many calories we burn in a workout. Yet I want to show that it shouldn’t be about the figures. What should matter is that your are proud and happy with yourself and your body, rather than happy with the numbers. Many social media ‘famous’ fitness men and women post about their weight, how much they lift at the gym, and how often they go, as can be seen by Emily Skye (above). But is this focus on numbers promoting and encouraging many of us to believe that these numbers are what matter the most.
I have named this photoshoot ‘Life Statistics’ as I will aim to show in each image what the model in that photo is really concentrating on. This may be the likes of a photo, or a rating on Uber, or the amount of calories we burn in a workout. I will show a variety of situations were we perhaps fake our friendliness, pose in a certain way or go out to certain places all to receive a good rating. As seen above, I took an image off famous Instagrammer Clean Eating Alice’s profile and edited with a caption of her name and the amount of likes she received for that post. This is to emphasise the idea that perhaps Alice was looking to gain satisfaction by gaining a lot of likes on this photo as that is what she may care about the most.
I have edited this photo of a woman in a taxi with an Uber rating to show that her reputation as a customer is something that matters to her. I have edited the below image to represent those social media users who feel the need to post a lot of what they eat and drink, all to gain some likes. These image edits do not represent my photography style and inspiration for this shoot, but are just practises for photo editing and the captions I may use within the image series.
Final SHOOTS
cONTOUR photoshoot
I would like to expand on my idea of a photoshoot inspired by the contouring trend. Originally I had the idea of using clothing inspired by contouring, with patchwork patterns and similar colours to the make-up used. But from finding inspirational images online I feel I prefer the idea of using minimal styling, and using body paint instead to represent the stages of contouring.
Within my shoot I would like to show the stages of contouring through my 6 images. These stages being applying highlighter, bronzer, blusher and perhaps also eye make-up. By using body paints I could paint a model to represent the different steps. I would make styling and facial make-up very minimal , so that the body paint can express my theme clearly.
I would like to carry on the contouring theme within my photoshoot without actually contouring the models face. I feel that by using body paint I can represent the fact that contouring is like painting our bodies and disguising our appearances. Through using exaggerated lines on the body, I hope to highlight features of the body, the same as contouring is meant to on the face.
Konstancja for Atlas Magazine by Koty 2
I will experiment with white paint, and the model. I know from experience that on a body can create an interesting where this may create very interesting
facial make-up ideas
also plaster on applying plaster cracking effect, close-up images.
Within my photoshoot I would like a mix of close-ups and full body shots. I think it would be interesting to see a close up of the hands, as if all the paint (make-up) has been applied by the model, and what is left on their hands is layers of plaster and paint covering their skin. As there is not 6 stages for the contouring, this would mean I could have a couple of images looking in detail at some of the steps.
Contouring stages
HIGHLIGHTER
I will apply white plaster to my model using either my hand, or a paint brush. I plan on applying the plaster on the legs and arms in distinct lines as if to highlight the muscles of the body.
Bronzer Bronzer will be applied again as body paint, where unlike in these photos it will not be used for eye make-up, but instead painting on the body in lines and abstract patterns.
By using pink face paint I will paint on the body of the model again. I want the strokes to be quite abstract and as if they are lines, like the blusher appears before it is blended in to contour.
blusher
Shoot Mash-Up
The main image is a nude image of Marilyn Monroe, which I have cut her figure out of, leaving the silhouette. Using an abstract portrait painting where we can see distinct shading and lines on the face (similar to the colours of contouring) I have layered this underneath the main figure image so that the figure is now of the painting. This is to represent the models body which I will be painting in the shoot.
Contour test shoot For my test shoot I experimented with the use of white plaster and pink face paint. I used this with thick paint brushes to get clear distinct lines on the body. I painted the plaster first, using it to highlight parts of the arms and legs, and also covered the hands to show the look of the model covering themselves with paint (make-up). I styled the model in a basic black leotard, with no facial make-up, and hair tied back. Using the black photo backdrop in the studio, I was able to create a contrast against this and the skin of the model. I wanted the styling and location to be minimal so that the paint and plaster is the main focus in revealing the photoshoot narrative.
Test shoot feedback/feedforward After presenting my test shoot to my class I was given valuable feedback for how I could improve on my shoot. As I found that my test shoot didn’t fully represent my bright and bolder style some students suggested I should consider using the same backdrops that are used within contour YouTube tutorial videos. After watching several videos I noticed most videos used a glitter or lit up backdrop. Moving forward with this advise I am going to try out my contour shoot again, this time using a glitter backdrop.
I felt my test shoot was too atmospheric for my own style, and wanted to re-shoot with a much brighter, and less studio-like style. For my final shoot I have planned to use the studio again, this time opening the blinds to let in natural light. I plan on also using a lighter backdrop, such as the grey colour, as I found the black backdrop didn’t suit my style. I would also like to change the model for my shoot, using someone less tanned and with paler skin to create a more raw, natural and look. I have chosen to use Eve Scaife as my model as she fits this more natural look, and I also like her hair style to go with a more cool and arty look. I have managed to get access to glitter table cloths which I will hang up in the studio as the backdrop for my shoot. The cloths are rose gold and gold, so I will try them both out to see what works best. I will try out a few different styled looks with bodysuits and also just plain underwear. I want to show as much skin as possible so that the paint and plaster is still the main focus.
Model
Kim Kardashian Shoot Photographer Kesler Tran shot this desert shoot of Kim Kardashian. Here Kim is completely naked, using the paint to cover up more private parts of her body, and also to highlight the arms and legs. I like the idea of the paint covering her chest as if to act as a cover and disguise of her wearing underwear. For my own shoot I will be looking at where the paint has been used on Kim’s body for guidance as to where I should paint my model, and also referring to Kim’s pose to make it easier for my model to know how to move around in my shots.
I created this moodbaord to refer to during my final shoot as inspiration for poses, styling and make-up. Images included are of those that use body paint, or of nude shoots, looking at the poses of models bodies, hands and faces.
Final Shoot
This was the initial set-up for my shoot. Using string and clothing pegs I hung up the table cloth in the studio. I set up the grey backdrop as planned, as although I’m not using this as my main backdrop it still gives a certain effect on the lighting and mood of the images. I first of all styled my model in a velvet bodysuit, however after taking a few shots I felt that this contrasted too much to the glitter backdrop and also took away from the main focus of the paint.
I experimented with the use of studio lighting to see how it looked, however I felt the lighting took away the more raw and natural look that can be achieved with natural lighting. The lights also reflected off the glitter backdrop, which ended up taking away the focus from the paint on the model.
After experimenting with different bodysuit looks and also lighting, I finally settled with using natural lighting as was originally planned. The winter light worked well to give a cold and bare look and mood to my camera shots. For styling, I changed my model out of the velvet bodysuit as I felt it was too distracting, and settled with the model wearing her own underwear. This helped the model look for natural and bare. In the shoot I started off with the white plaster on the arms and legs of the model, then onto the bronze, and pink paint, where I painted following the lines of the plaster. I took a variety of close-up and full body shots for each look, switching between my 50mm for close-ups and 18-35mm lens for body shots.
Contour
Final images
Fake Perception photoshoot
tramway Ever since my visit to the Tramway in Glasgow I have been very interested in using the space as a location for a photoshoot. I feel that the Tramway fits in well with my idea of fake perception, as it is a modern redevelopment of an old Tram station. Here an old building is under disguise through modern architecture. The design of the building is very intriguing, where it offers a mix of old and modern architecture, through the exposure of old tramlines, old beams and structural parts of the building, whilst surrounded by modern art spaces. Although the building is not a fake perception, it is some form of disguise of what it used to be. I feel this ties in with the idea that many social media users disguise themselves on social media as people they are not.
Style & My Theme
As I am planning to have my photoshoot based in Glasgow, I looked into using designers from this area. I know students studying textiles at Glasgow School of Art, and after seeing the fashion show last year there are a few designers who’s style I love. From my research into these designers, it is clear that I have an interest in bright and abstract designs. I like the idea of using fashion as a piece of art, where designs may be oddly cut and include strange shapes and playful features. My planned style for this photoshoot ties in to my theme of social media, where I find that many Instagrammers have an urge to discover new things, and be the first out of their following to find new things and places. The designs are mainly from new designers, most perhaps unknown to many as they are still students or have only recently graduated. The following pages show the designers which I have contacted to use their designs for this photoshoot.
Glasgow School of Art Textiles Designers
Emma Boyd-Madsen Emma Boyd-Madsen is a final year knit student at Glasgow School of Art. Her third year collection (as seen in the images surrounding) features morphed knits, unusual knitted accessories, and bright colours suited to my theme. I hope to use her designs within my ‘Fake Perception’ shoot.
Zoe Elisabeth
I appreciate Zoe Elisabeth’s fun and playful designs. The bright pastel colours and odd shapes of her designs suit my style and I like how these pieces seem more like wearable art than ready-to-wear garments. I also love Becky Moore’s colour scheme, and was initially attracted to her work by the abstract prints of her designs. I hope to use her orange and grey dress within my shoot.
Becky Moore
Natascia Forte
I was most intrigued to Natascia’s designs due to the playful textures of her garments. I like the patchwork features in her designs, as well as the pastel colours used.
Clara Mullen shows great references to oriental style, and I love the extra features and subtle colours within her designs as can be seen in the belt and hints of yellow (middle image). I hope to use this piece within my ‘Fake ‘Perception shoot.
clara mullen
Since contacting the designers I have been given permission to use designs from Emma Boyd-Madsen, Clara Mullen, Natascia Forte, and Becky Moore. Unfortunately Zoe Elisabeth has taken apart her designs since the show and so I will not be able to use these. I have also been given permission from the Tramway to carry out my photoshoot within their spaces. They have allowed me to come in on a Monday when they are closed to the public so that I will not be disrupting any visitors, and I will not get disrupted myself when taking photos.
MUA Molly Sheridan
Model Erin McQuarrie
My model for the shoot will be Erin McQuarrie, a Glasgow School of Art student who also has previous modelling experience. I have been in contact with her to set a date for the shoot. I have also managed to book in make-up artist Molly Sheridan for the shoot. I have previous experience interning for Molly and so she was happy to help me out. I have sent along a photoshoot brief to all those taking part in the shoot and also to the Tramway.
The following pages show looks that I have mashed up with the designs I plan on using, on images of the Tramway.
look 1
look 2
look 3
Moodboard
As can be seen by the images in my moodboard, I love the look of low angle shots. I find images taken at more peculiar angles more interesting, and so would like to try this out within my shoot.
Make-up Moodboard
Fake Perception Final Shoot
My first look within my shoot was with Natascia Forte’s jumper. I had styled this alongside a velvet, aqua coloured skirt to match the blue colours within the jumper. This look was also our first try with make-up which I had proposed. With the idea of using lines to highlight the shape of the face, as if a subtle disguise is painted on, my make-up artist has drawn very abstract white lines across my models face.
As our first look in the shoot, this was also our first try using a completed look within the Tramway. For this look we headed to the top floor of the gallery, which featured lots of contrasting walls, from exposed bricks, to smooth white plaster. Some walls also revealed highlights of colour, where I managed to find a wall with hints of yellow to highlight the yellow patchwork within the jumper. As the exposed walls were revealing different layers of bricks and paints, the textures were like patchwork themselves and fitted perfectly with the jumper.
Look 2 Within my second look I used a full outfit from Clara Mullen. The yellow highlights within this outfit also go well with the yellow in look 1, which will hopefully allow my shoot to flow better when all final images are placed together. For this look Molly my make-up artist changed the make-up for more of a statement look. Inspired again by abstract patterns, she drew around the mouth and eyes of the model, this time creating focus around other features of my models face. Molly suggested I do more close-up shots with this look to show the abstract make-up look. Along with closeups I also got some full body shots to show the outfit.
Close-ups
Look 3
The third look for my styling was my third and final look for make-up and hair. Carrying on with the abstract theme, Molly used angular lines across the models face, again giving subtle hints of a disguise as the lines created an unusual face outline. For the styling look I used Becky Moore’s metallic red and grey dress, along with a long sleeved, full-length mesh metallic dress. The underdress highlighted the metallic material of the dress. For this shot I again looked for colours within the Tramway’s structure to highlight my styling. Using a white and brick wall, with a red line on the wall as my backdrop, I feel the contrasting colours and textures of the wall compliment my look.
Look 4 Within look 5 I used my first look from Emma Boyd-Madsen. Her designs also include a yellow colour, which will hopefully fit in with the overall colour scheme of my shoot. For this look I have styled the jumper and statement necklace with wide leg trousers. With the models legs standing wide, I like the flared look it gives the trousers. I tried not to catch the bottom of the trousers within any of my photos as I like the look of not known when they end. I felt the plain white wall worked best with this look, as I felt it is a statement look that deserves to be placed somewhere more minimal.
Look 5
For my fifth and final look for my shoot at the Tramway I used another jumper and accessory designed by Emma Boyd-Madsen. The jumper and oversized accessory in this look flow well with the rest of the colours within my images. Although initially I styled this look with pink flared trousers, I prefer shots where these are not visible as I find they are too distracting against Emma’s designs. I love the statement look the jumper and accessory, along with the make-up create, and so feel the close-ups of this look are more effective.
Disguise
Final images
Green screen photoshoot
My mash-ups for my green screen shoot are to represent the different situations which I will be trying to get my model to act out in the studio. These situations include being on holiday in a pool float (as seen on previous page), hitch-hiking and discovering new things (left). I will also try various situations such as snorkelling, at a party abroad, in Belgium with chocolate, or Las Vegas with chips and money, on a ski holiday, and in Paris. I have sourced various props to go along with this shoot such as a pool float, coconuts to drink out of, chips for Las Vegas, and a snorkel. My inspiration for these shoot came mainly from the holiday situations I had read about that people had Photoshopped themselves in. These included a Dutch student who pretended she went on a gap year, where she went snorkelling and visited various temples and landmarks around Asia (as seen below).
Test Shoot For my test shoot the main focus was to practise the different outfits and situations to see what works best. Some of the looks, as expected, did not look great, and so I won’t carry on using these for my final shoot. These include the Snorkel look, where I feel the model looks too awkward with the mask on, and the Las Vegas look, as I find this is too cheesy. Jess, my model, was great but I felt she wasn’t perfect for my look. She was uncomfortable at points and made quite cheesy poses, meaning the images don’t all look great. It was still good to practise with the looks and the green screen for the first time, as I feel now that I am more prepared for my final shoot. Moving on to my final shoot I would like to reconsider a couple other looks for my shoot and find another model that perhasps has more experience.
Test Edits Going along with the theme that my set up green screen images would be Photoshopped and posted on social media, I decided to experiment with using the Instagram border as if my model had posted the images herself. I managed to get a large and clear Instagram app screen shop online, and manipulated some of the features, such as changing the username to ‘gapyear101’ and adding in locations and description. This helps reveal my narrative and gives my shoot a more comical look.
To contrast with the white and blue border of the Instagram app I added a pink backdrop to see how the effect of this looked. I liked the idea of making the border look as fake as possible, to get the narrative of editing yourself into somewhere.
Inspired by social media and emoji’s which we use to convey emotions or narratives in our own posted messages, I tried out using emoji’s as a way of telling the narrative of each green screen situation. For instance, as can be seen with my pool float scene I have used the sun emoji to give a link to being on holiday, other emoji’s could include a money emoji with Las Vegas, a French flag for the Paris situation, or a snow emoji for the skiing holiday.
Final shoot The photography style for my final shoot changed due to an accident I made with my camera. After putting my camera on a setting with a slow shutter speed, this allowed the camera to pick up colours from the garments and props within the shoot. It was a happy accident as I really liked the effect of the colours and smudged look of the images. I decided to carry on my whole shoot with this look, ending up with my final images which I am very happy with. I also felt that in my previous shoot I was being too obvious with my narrative, whereas I feel this shoot is more subtle and more fashionable than my test.
Final Image edits To link my images back with social media I used mobile phone app VSCO to edit my images. The app is used by many social media users to edit images, as they offer a variety of cool image filters. I found the app great for enhancing the colours of my images, and like the effect it makes on all my final photos. The downside to using the app was that I was worried some of the image quality would be lost when transferring files from the app on my phone, to my computer. However after printing some of the images I had edited I found the quality was still very good. The following pages show the before and after edits of my images.
Before
After
Before
After
Green Screen
Final images
Alexandra Reid