Portrait inspired by the Mon Guerlain campaign, where the focus is on the contrast between the light and dark parts of the image.
To achieve the characteristic shadow, I used a 1.5m Stripbox with a grid to focus the light and prevent it from spreading to the background. The grid was angled at about 30 degrees to emphasize the arm's line.
To create the checkerboard effect, I used flags to block the light coming from the main light and also from the background light.
To illuminate the background, I used another 1.5m stripbox.
In the editing process, I converted the image to black and white and used frequency separation with the mixer brush to remove skin imperfections while leaving a bit of texture. I also prioritized the textures of the eyes and mouth.
The shadow created in the portrait was already in the RAW file. I only worked on increasing the contrast and emphasizing the lines. The pose was also designed to take full advantage of the lighting scheme.