Okay, so I wanted to share how I put together this latest photography project I’ve been working on. I had this idea stuck in my head for a while – something mixing old Hollywood glamour with a really creepy, almost dead look. And I definitely wanted that classic fashion photography feel, but twisted.
Getting Started – The Vibe
First off, I needed to nail down the actual look. Vintage glamour is easy enough, you think pearls, waves, red lips. But the “dead spooky” part? That was the tricky bit. I didn’t want gore or anything cheap. More like… unsettling beauty. Like a mannequin come to life, or maybe just after life. And the “looking up” pose felt important, kind of dramatic and a bit vacant.
So, I started digging around for inspiration and props. Found an old silky nightgown-type thing, a bit faded, which felt right. Didn’t want anything too perfect. For makeup, I decided against full-on bright vintage. Instead, went for really pale skin, almost ghostly. Used dark, smudged-out eyes – not quite raccoon, but definitely heavy. And a deep, dark berry lip colour instead of classic red. Hair had to be those classic finger waves, pinned just so.
Setting the Scene
I decided against a clean studio background. Needed texture, something a bit decayed. I ended up using a corner of my room where the plaster’s a bit rough. Threw an old piece of dark velvet fabric over a chair, just out of focus in the background mostly.
Lighting was everything here. I knew I wanted shadows. Deep ones. I used a single key light, placed pretty high and to the side, to sculpt the face and create that upward shadow under the chin and cheekbones from the ‘looking up’ pose. Had to play around with it a lot. Too close, and it was harsh. Too far, and I lost the drama. I used a big softbox on it, but flagged off most of the light so it was quite focused. Added a tiny bit of fill light, like really dim, from the opposite side, just so the shadows weren’t pure black. More like… murky.
The Actual Shoot
Got my subject (let’s just say, the person in the photo!) ready. Getting the pose right took some doing. “Look up,” I kept saying, “but relax your shoulders. Eyes towards the light, but like you’re looking through it, not at it.” It’s a weird direction, I know! We tried slight variations. Head tilted more, chin higher, eyes wider, eyes more closed. Took a bunch of shots. Some felt too staged, some just didn’t have that spooky spark.
- Adjusted the main light angle multiple times.
- Played with the distance of the light source.
- Tried different focal lengths, but mostly stuck to a portrait lens, maybe around 85mm, to get nice compression.
- Kept tweaking the makeup slightly as we went, adding more shadow here and there.
It was a process. You take a shot, look at it, see what’s wrong, adjust one thing, try again. Patience is key, really.
Making it Look Right Afterwards
Okay, so then came the computer part. Dumped all the photos and started sorting. You always shoot way more than you need. Found a few selects where the pose, expression, and lighting felt closest to the initial idea.
Then I got into editing. First thing was the colour. I definitely wanted a vintage feel, but also cold and eerie. So I desaturated the colours quite a bit. Pushed the tones towards blues and greens slightly, especially in the shadows. Made the skin look even paler, colder. Played with contrast – deepened the darks, but kept the highlights from being too bright, almost muted.
Texture was important too. Digital photos can be too clean for this kind of vibe. So I added a noticeable layer of film grain. Not too much to be distracting, but enough to give it that gritty, old photo texture. Did some dodging and burning – manually lightening and darkening areas. Made the cheekbones pop a bit more, deepened the eye sockets, made sure the highlights on the lips and eyes drew attention.
Basically, just pushed and pulled things around until it felt right. It’s less about technical perfection and more about getting the mood across. Did it turn out exactly like the image in my head? Pretty close. It’s got that mix of glamour and creepiness I was going for. Always learn something new trying this stuff out. That’s the fun part, right?
