Blog Spot - with Brodie Lee Tsiknaris

Shoot Ready!

Awards season is well and truly upon us, and this is usually the time where my inbox gets flooded with messages asking how to get started? How do we best prepare? And if I have any tips to share! Along with replying to them, having phone calls etc I decided now is the perfect time to write a blog post on it!

First things first:

Get your concept and mood board.

Google like crazy! Instagram, Pinterest, magazines, the inspiration search is endless! Get your mood board going. The more images that pop at you the more inspired you are to create!

Then confirm what is it you want to do, what speaks to your heart? Get firm on the inspo. Live it and breath it. Things to consider when planning your shoot… lighting:

Are you shooting for awards, collection, or advertising? Is it colour or black and white? The hair you want to achieve, is it headshots, full body, crop, or portrait shots?

This is where your mood board and communication with your photographer are essential!

GET YOUR 'A' TEAM:

Photographer: who are you shooting with?

The team you work with will support your whole vision, so choose wisely! A good photographer, a good makeup artist, and a good stylist make for a great success story. Communicating and sharing your mood board is key and then taking it to the next level comes from communication with them and asking their professional opinion. This is where the dream morphs.

Budget: Yes, it’s possible to shoot on a low budget! Some of my fav images have been shot on models I’ve found on the street, trading a free colour, and cut for them in the collection and styled by myself! Plan your budget and understand that agency models will cost more but the girls will move beautifully, and you will get the shot quicker!

Photographers: A young and upcoming photographer vs someone who understands Hair and is an experienced shooter. This will be the difference of the most part of the budget.

Stylist: Makeup Artist - Lunch and coffees for the team - Entry fees - This all comes into the budget. However, Money doesn’t win, talent does. Don’t be put off on a low budget. Get your thinking cap on and Call-in favours, Barter and talk to designer and makeup students and collaborate.

GET ORGANISED:

Be clear about what you want to achieve for your collection and plan every look in detail. Practice, practice, practice for the big day as you can never be too organised! Don’t leave anything to chance. But it is important to have a few options in your mind in case one isn’t working, and you need to change direction.

Shoot for you and no one else – don’t shoot for the Awards to win, shoot for the love of art, creating what you love and what is true to you. It must speak to your heart, represent you as an artist and most of all show your skill set. Stay focused! Don’t lose sight of your beautiful story you’ve created! Make sure your images all work together as a collection and has a nice mood and feel to it.

I wish you all the best,

Brodie xx Rokstar Academy