A three part concept shoot with my singer/songwriter friend Laura. We'd been looking to shoot again for a while when Laura contacted me with an idea she had. The bare outline sounded intriguing so that Sunday I headed off to her place with my camera and a light.
Once I arrived and began to understand her vision even more I knew we were going to have a great shoot and make some cracking images.
The concept was to shoot three sets of images which told a story of a woman's journey from her childish innocence through the melancholy of pain and loss to the re-birth into a strong and vibrant woman.
For me it was fantastic to have such an idea brought to a collaboration. I loved shooting it and filled a 64gb memory card with photographs. Laura was great to shoot with, she has a very natural presence in front of the camera.
One of my pet hates as a photographer working with models is the faux face touching awkward hands with a pained expression bullshit. Not a drop of that from Laura. High Five ✋🏼
Part 1 : Innocence
Soft natural light, a pretty dress, bunches in her hair, a long loved teddy and joyful happiness.
Part 2 : Melancholy
A very different vibe for this second set of images. The mood changed, the joy left, no makeup and the silence dripped like black waters.
For Part 1 I'd vocally encouraged Lauras exuberance and playfulness as I took pictures. In complete contrast these photos were taken with very little communication. Laura lead the pace and mood while I took the photos.Only a couple of times did I ask her to go back to a position so I could take a few more frames.
Submerging was a spontaneous and artistically thrilling moment. Visceral and beautiful, capturing the suffocating weight of the melancholy.
Again, unplanned, was the removal of the wet black clothing towards the end of the set. Shedding the loss and sadness, a wonderful segue to Part 3
Part 3 : Re-Birth
An incredible dress, glamorous hair, beautiful makeup and a fabulous confidence. Super sassy, fantastic confident look and attitude. The strength within can’t be suppressed and bursts forth telling the world she won’t be defeated.
The End
As I mentioned at the beginning of this blogish post Laura's first passion is music.
If you'd like to listen to her work follow these links