Each shoot starts with a single random thought or lyric which I have written down in various locations, including a notebook just for ideas, my phone or sometimes my arm if I cannot find a piece of scrap paper. Depending on the shoot after I have my idea, I’ll move into the research phase. This includes either just researching a topic and writing own ideas to further my original idea or making a mood board. My mood boards change depending on the shoot, some have inspiration images taken from various sources or questions I have about the shoot, or even prop samples. After the research phase which is sometimes the longest part of the shoot I move onto my grocery list for the shoot. My grocery lists include what kind of lighting I want to use, props I’ll need, to wardrobe I plan to use. Once The grocery lists are done, and I have acquired everything I usually move into my shot list. However, depending on the shoot I do my shot list before the grocery list it just depends. My shot lists include a list of all the angles I want to capture as well as sketches of shots, once again it changes depending on the shoot. After all of these things are completed, I move onto the actual shooting. 

 

The first step to the actual shooting involves setting up the set. This includes the backdrop, props, and lighting. During the actual shooting my process changes on based on what type of shoot I’m doing. If its self-portraits I just set up my tri pod and shot list and go from there. It’s the same if I’m doing still life. However, if I am shooting with models, I start by showing them my mood board and explaining the concept to them. To keep the energy up and light I usually play classic pop punk in the background. I also like to talk to my models the whole time I am shooting. Whether I’m telling them a joke or giving them slight directions.  

 

Once the actual shooting is done then I move onto developing. Developing in the dark room my process never changes. When I am developing the images digitally, I always copy my files into LR or LRC depending on the shoot. I then rate my images 1-5 stars. Then anything that is a 3 and above I will edit. I like to create a new preset for each shoot so that all the images are unified in color or contrast. Once all the 3 stars and above have been selected I apply the custom preset. I then go through and make image adjustments to each image. Then I narrow it down to my top 10-20. If I am stuck on an image I reach out to friends or professors to get a new perspective. 

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Once the images are captured and edited, I post them, and I like to post all my images with a song that I feel like captures the mood of the images. I feel like this adds to the mood of the images. 

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However, if I am planning to print images or creating a collection from various shoots my process differs. I will create a contact sheet of all the edited images and make my notes on which images I think are the most successful. My notes are primarily symbols. I have scribbles on sequencing of the images to whether I need to expand on an image, it just depends. Once I have my favorites on a contact sheet I then move into rough prints. This is where I have small scale (usually 4x6) images printed out. To finalize a sequence, I must be able to physically arrange the images. My arrangement process usually takes up a large amount of space and I tend to arrange them in either a color pattern or a narrative. If I am in a rush I can sequence digitally, however, I prefer to do most of my work analog. I feel as though analog helps me to have a better relationship with the collection. I also like to be able to grab and move images and place them next to each other to compare and contrast.  

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This pretty much sums up my image making process, give or take a couple coffee breaks.