When doing these conceptual shoots, everything is planned out well ahead of time and stylized to obtain a certain idea that I have. It isn't much different than planning a senior shoot actually, just more time spent getting the wardrobe, props, hair, makeup, lighting and overall look down. It is like going back to my days of making films.
I asked Mackenzi Wood to model for this one and told her that I wanted something that was like an elf that had a tragic love loss. Not too far off from my last conceptual shoot actually! (You can see that one in a previous blog post) Anyway, I have always liked fantasy such as The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings and wanted to do something inspired by that.
One of the things that really added to the otherworldly look of these photos was the swirling effect you can see around her in the tree leaves and background. For this, I didn't want to use Photoshop but instead shoot it in camera to look that way. I chose the Lensbaby Twist 60 that replicates the look of Petzval lens of the mid-1800s. I was really satisfied with the results and even the way too it handled the sun flare. Everything was shot with natural light and a single reflector, though I brought along a strobe just in case.
