*Rugged Dragon*
Canon EOS300 + Ilford FP4+
Model: Barth
Texture: Artemisia dracunculus
I used this texture, « estragon dragon » or « dragon tarragon » a lot this summer, and I found it works really well both for close profiles and for broader silhouettes. But I really like here that despite its delicate nature, it reinforces rather than detracts from Barth’s bearded ruggedness.
*Root Dryad*
Canon EOS300 + Ilford Delta 100
Model: Iris
In my initial attempts at what I call « inverted treetops » I didn’t pay too much attention at the shape of the treetop. The large trees that line the Jardin des Plantes in Paris are all shaped the same though: evenly cut earlier in the year, with fresh branches popping at the top. I find this worked wonderfully for Photosynthesis, as you can see here. Will definitely be paying more attention to the shape of my treetops from now on!
*Crested Mane*
Canon EOS300 + Ilford Delta 100
Model: Simon
I had few opportunities since the start of the project to shoot long haired male models. Definitely opens up interesting possibilities when it comes to some of the techniques that I felt (until now) worked better with female models. Turns out it was the long dark hair all along!
*Forest Nymph*
Canon EOS300 + Ilford Delta 100
Model: Lorah
This is another example of the « lateral treetops » approach. I love how diffuse this one turned out. It has a quasi abstract quality, in part due to the prevalence of the texture and in part (I think) due to where Lorah’s right hand is positioned. The angle of the wrist creates an unexpected silhouette, but the fact that neither hands appear on the image accentuate this abstract quality.
*Curvy*
Canon EOS300 + Ilford FP4+
Model: Pauline
Usually for Photosynthesis shoots, I’m not so keen on very posed images. I feel like it detracts from the natural feel I’m going for with this project. But like any rule, there are exceptions, and this image of Pauline I find stunning because of the somewhat convoluted pose, not in spite of it. The most amazing about this is that Pauline was exhausted on the evening we shot this. Maybe that’s what makes the pose look relaxed…
*Mindscape*
Canon EOS300 + Ilford FP4+
Model: Nathalie
This something I’ve tried recently, to focus not on a texture from up close but on a landscape shot with a central tree. Unfortunately it’s virtually impossible to find a lonesome tree in Hong-Kong, so I had to wait to be in France this summer to even take the shot. I like the result, though framing is really tricky…
*Bad Hair Day*
Canon EOS300 + Ilford FP4+
Model: N’ko
In the early days of Photosynthesis I left a huge amount to luck when it came to matching texture and portrait. To be fair, it’s still a chaotic process, but I now pay a lot more attention at which texture I’m shooting when deciding which portrait to add to the frame. That’s particularly true of textures that have a direction, like these wild grasses here. I love how « hedgehog » the end result looks like.
*Pulling Hair*
Canon EOS300 + Ilford FP4+
Model: Nathalie
Texture: Artemisia dracunculus
While walking around the Jardin des Plantes in Paris I really fell in love with this texture, small helicoidal leaves. It’s some variety of tarragon, apparently. I find it works really well in both face shots and body shots because of how delicate it is. What do you think?
*Alyssum Mane*
Canon EOS300 + Ilford FP4+
Model: Anaïs
Texture: Lobularia maritima
One of the cool things about spending the summer in France was that I was able to find and shoot new textures that I hadn’t seen or found in Hong Kong. I particularly loved this one, called Maritime Alyssum. It worked particularly well with Anaïs’ spectacular dark mane of hair!
*Leaf Faerie*
Canon EOS300 + Ilford FP4+
Model: Nathalie
Texture: Fittonia albivenis
This is the last of my successful failures from a session in early July when my portable flashes just went haywire on me. A lot of the white background plans turned into quasi-black backgrounds, but it worked unexpectedly. Once I’m back in Hong-Kong I really need to reverse engineer these so I can reproduce that look. I particularly like the soft edges of the silhouettes…
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