Editorial / Practice of Faux Freckles

I practiced applying false freckles on myself prior to my editorial shoot to ensure I was confident in the technique. To create the freckles I used two different tones of pencil, MAC's Oak and Chestnut Lip Liners. I found these worked better than eye liners as eye liners are two creamy in consistency meaning the freckles have the tendency to blur or smudge.  I applied the freckles all over the face, alternating between shades and applying the largest concentration of freckles to the nose as this is typical of naturally freckled skin. I looked at images of natural freckles to help me with the placement and it reminded me to apply the dots to areas like my upper lip and brow bone that I would have otherwise forgotten. 

I tested out the look in black and white as this is what I am shooting in and actually found I needed to use more of the deeper shade to get the freckles to show up. This is good to know for my shoot as I now realise the freckles may look harsh in person but on camera need to be applied so prominently if they are to show up in the photo. 

Editorial / Face Charts

These is the first look in my editorial story. The freckles are a key element of both looks, but in this first look I have used a brown cream shadow to create a smoky, grungy brown eye. The skin is glossy but not luminescent and the lips are nuded out to keep the focus on the eye.

The base remains the same in the second look. however the eyelid is bare apart from a glossy sheen, and on the lips is a dark, matte brown. 

























The hair is the same in both of my editorial looks as in other editorial stories I noticed the hair often stays the same which lets the changing make up be the focal point. I chose to go for a centre parted bob which is relevant to this seasons trends as both centre parts and bobs were seen on the catwalks. I want the hair to look un styled, mostly straight but not necessarily too sleek, with a few flyways framing the face and some natural texture. I wanted the emphasis of my looks to be on the fact that everything stays the same except the eye and the lip, showing the difference in effects this can create by playing up only one feature at a time.

Editorial / Creating Faux Freckles

This YouTube tutorial is inspired by one of my favourite editorial images, seen in Chloe Magazine on model Alice Ma. I love how extreme this look is and how the freckles are such a focal point they look almost un natural. These is the style of faux freckle I want to create for my looks, although I don't think they look the most natural in real life they will look beautifully striking on camera. The tutorial discusses some interesting techniques I will be sure to use when creating my freckles such as regularly sharpening the pencil to ensure the darker freckles you create don't end up looking too big. I think this look comes across very harsh and un natural in the tutorial as the shade being used is far darker than freckles would actually be on someone of that skin tone, but this is what creates such a dramatic editorial feel to the look, perfect for what I'm aiming to create. 

MakeupByCheryl (2014) Glossy eyes, lips, and skin | editorial inspired makeup. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cS3_cNxrU2Q (Accessed: 16 April 2016).

Editorial / Male Make Up

As I don't have a lot of experience with applying make up for men, I had a look at some Youtube tutorials to prepare me for my editorial shoot. The look I am going for is quite contoured, but as I am used to contouring in a way that makes the face look feminine I wanted to research where to contour to make the most of masculine features like the jawline.

I don't want the look of my male model to be feminine or 'drag like' in any way, simply a masculine reflection of the female make up. I liked this tutorial shown above as it naturally perfects and makes the most of the mans features, creating a flawless, structured canvas perfect for applying details such as freckles over the top. Unlike the man seen in the video, I want man modelling for me to not look too groomed, so won't be filling in his eyebrows or perfecting them. I feel when you start to pluck an arch into a mans brow it gives an instantly feminine look which is not what I'm trying to create. I may also need to fill in my models beard as men often have some sort of patchiness to their facial hair and as with the brows I won't be shaving the neck to keep a natural masculine finish to the look. 

Wesley Benjamin Carter (2015) Male makeup Tutorial - step by step. Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sxOldw8RhvI (Accessed: 16 April 2016).

Edit reference

Editorial / Lighting

Lighting plays a very important part in Givenchy's previous editorials and it is partially what makes them so recognisable. I chose to look at some of their editorials shot in black and white for inspiration on how to light my shots. These editorial images above have been shot on grey backgrounds to give a nice mid tone shade in the spectrum between black and white. Something I noticed is common in Givenchy's editorials is the technique of lighting more from one side to cast a slight shadow on one side of the face. This is looks very effective in black and white because it adds interest from the shot and helps the face look multi dimensional by highlighting where the shadow naturally falls. This is a technique I will definitely be using when shooting my editorial looks and I will achieve this by playing around with the positioning of my lights. I plan to begin with the standard beauty set up of two soft boxes and a beauty dish, as I know this is flattering on the models skin and is not too harsh. Once my models are in the position I want to shoot them in I will experiment with moving one of the soft boxes or turning down the flash to create a darker side of the face. I don't want the face to be completely in shadow as this will distract from the make up, but I would like to create a subtle version of the effect in order for my editorials to be recognisable as being done in the Givenchy style. 

Davide (2015) Alessio, Dominik, Paolo & more wear Givenchy for manuscript editorial. Available at: https://designsfever.com/2015/04/02/alessio-dominik-paolo-more-wear-givenchy-for-manuscript-editorial/ (Accessed: 24 April 2016).

Camp, J. (2014) Erykah Badu decked out in Givenchy for purple magazine. Available at: http://www.whowhatwear.co.uk/blogs/www/erykah-badu-decked-out-in-givenchy-for-purple-magazine (Accessed: 24 April 2016).

TrendH (no date) Harajuku LA street style. Available at: https://uk.pinterest.com/pin/287034176224056127/ (Accessed: 24 April 2016).

Edit reference

Editorial / Styling

I looked at Givenchy's previous editorials to gain ideas for the styling of this shoot. As most of their editorials are shot in black and white, texture is really important and as I want my editorial shoot to show the darker, grungier side to the trends displayed in the catwalk Ready to Wear collection, I want to use lots of lace and embellishments, however using black and gold as my theme instead of the blush pink and white seen in my catwalk designs. 

            

This is the first of the pieces I have picked out for my shoot. I knew I wanted lace to be included and loved this sheer maxi skirt, especially with the high neckline of the body it's seen with here. In previous editorials I noticed a lot of the body is often covered and while I like that look, this skirt achieves the same effect without just looking like a block of dark colour. As the clothing will mostly be black I want to use different textures to make the styling interesting. 

This is another piece that I found on ASOS, I absolutely love the high neckline and fluted lace sleeves and think this will look perfect for my editorial, styled with ankle boots or loafers with the legs bare, giving variation to the clothing I use and using skin tone to break up the black. 

I want to style my male model in a leather jacket similar to the Givenchy one pictured below and a pair of tweed trousers which I feel which be an interesting texture to incorporate as well as the colouring of them fitting in well with the dark brown make up. To touch on the embellished face and jewels seen at the Givenchy catwalk show I want the male to wear a false gold nose ring and small hoop earrings. 

ASOS | brown slim fit suit trousers in Harris tweed for men (no date) Available at: https://www.lyst.com/clothing/asos-slim-fit-suit-pants-in-harris-tweed-brown/ (Accessed: 25 April 2016)

Limited, H. (2016) Www.harrods.com. Available at: http://www.harrods.com/brand/givenchy/men?viewall=yes (Accessed: 25 April 2016).

Edit reference

Editorial / Setting

 I want my editorial shoot to be shot in a studio, as most of the shoots by Givenchy are. I like the way the studio gives you the freedom to shoot a group of models and can play around with different lighting. The lighting for this shoot needs to be quite harsh and dramatic, something I couldn't achieve in an outdoor or non studio setting due to the amount of light in the surrounding area. Depending on how many models I can find, I may need quite a big studio with both grey, white and possibly black backdrops so I can play around with how the different backgrounds add to my image.

I am thinking of decorating the space, possibly with some chairs draped in lace or leather fabrics to create more of an atmosphere in the studio and add different levels to the image. Props will also help my models pose and could be helpful if any of them are very different in height.