Critique the Community

Submit Your Best "Styled" Photograph

  • Submission Deadline: Fri, 22 Nov 19 17:00:00 +0000

    This contest has ended.

  • Voting is closed.

  • Congratulations to the winners!

    View Results

77
Votes
Community Avg
3.1 - "Solid" 

This was a re-shoot for a shot that I wanted to put in my portfolio. I had shot here with Mary Tomlinson and got a really cool image that I really wanted to use in marketing materials. However, the shot with Mary wasn't framed correctly. And the balance was thrown off by some super heavy pillow placement behind her. So I solicited Sarah to come back up to the location with me so that I could right all the wrongs from the previous image. I brought up everything you see in the image, pillows, the sheet, the wardrobe, book, and all the lighting. Additionally, we filled up the airstream with a haze to create a dreamy atmosphere. I opted for warmer tones and colors here. And she's styled in vintage wardrobe and a just-out-of-style hairdo. As I wanted this series to be in between eras.

This shot was turned into a piece of my on-going death of analog series. The series is to show contemporary scenes that aren't aided by technology or more specifically phones. Here Sarah is reading a reference book on birds - something we no longer do with the invention of the internet.

Log in or register to post comments
5 Comments

Love this shot, great work man.

Awesome work. You are one of the few photographers here where I don't have to even look for your name. You have a solid style that is readily identified. I can pick out a "Chase Wilson" immediately. Top notch Chase!

Curious if you like this photo better or the original? Everytime I 1) re edit a photo from scratch or 2) attempt to recreate an image I've already done, the original almost always still sits better with me. Curious if you feel the same way or if you are happier with the second attempt?

This was the original:
https://fstoppers.com/photo/290827

I should say that the original shot wasn’t the shot that I went to the location to get. It’s just the one I liked the most. The original idea was going to be closer in spirit to the shot I got later with Lisa, at the window, reading a letter. But the shot of Mary just felt so innocent, and she looked stunning, so I went with it for as long as I could stomach the poor composition.

https://fstoppers.com/photo/343896

It wasn’t until I was building my website that I decided to reshoot it. The things I couldn’t get past: shes not centered in the window frame, the light is so much cooler but the scene calls for a warmer environment, the pillow on the left was almost as big as the subject, and the sconces aren’t lit up. So I decided for the website I’d reshoot, just so I wasn’t showing people an image I liked, but was compositionally embarrassing.

The reshoot solved all those problems I had with the original. It comes off much more as a point in time rather than a picture of a cute girl. And it’s not a picture I have to talk around or make excuses for.

That said, I’m much more fond of the originals pose and the original model’s natural look. Like i said before, I think Mary is stunning in that photo. It was just my fault for not paying enough attention to the setting. Sarah looks good, and her image fits much more in line with the series I’ve been shooting. So I guess my end verdict would be that I like the reshoot more. Even if it’s lacking what I love about the first.

Great shot - and I especially appreciate the thoughtful explanation of the before/after and your learning from it. That's very valuable for us following along the journey. 👏