I'm doing a Matric Farewell shoot on Friday so went to the young girl's home to do a few practice shots and direct her with some poses in preparation. The family - a mother and 3 daughters, live in this tiny little two room wooden wendy house in the middle of the shacks so space and environment are a photographic constraint. Somehow I have to find angles to make the poor & ugly environment look pleasant. I have asked my friend to become part of this venture for safety going into this kind of area
@beckyk365 Thanks Becky. Matric is the South African school leavers examination, so the Matric Ball, or Matric Farewell is a Ball or Dance that all schools have for their Matric students about this time of year before they get into that final stretch to the exam. I think perhaps it might be the same thing as your Prom?
She is very photogenic and I wouldn't have guessed the neighbourhood from this image at all so you did well. I'd play with the lovely textures of that weatherboard (wooden) wall...maybe just have her leaning back against it (if it won't dirty/damage her dress) for a few of the shots... I think the contrast with a nice dress would be lovely. A lot of our magazine fashion shoots are done in similar environments. Have fun with it!
@bf2016 Thanks Barbie. I really battled to get her into that pose, and it was quickly dropped, so I guess she didn't find it comfortable ... and subsequent practice shots with her facing the wall just didn't have the same impact. LOL
@narayani Thanks for the tips, Narayani. That is a good idea to have her leaning back against the wall. When I see her dress I will make a judgement call together with her about whether she is prepared to do that. I believe her dress is black ankle length, with a high neck, but I don't yet know if it is a shiny type of fabric or not. I think you're right about trying to get in closer to the wood to show off the textures and grain.
