SCULPTING WITH LIGHT part 2 / The Dress

Welcome back.
Today is dedicated to the dress. One of the most important and expensive item. A bride without a special dress simply doesn't exist and it wouldn't make sense. It is one of the most important thing or maybe the most important one for the bride to be.
You can buy a dress from second hand wedding shops, you can also create one somehow with added details, you can rent one (or buy one you will sell after the wedding day to the same shop), you can keep it, dye it and wear it again for special occasions, you can keep it in your wardrobe for other generations, and finally you can simply go to a wedding dress designer. What ever you do, we know that you dress is something special, highly valuable in price or/and feelings.
Because a wedding dress HAS TO BE THE ONE. It reflects your personality and your other side we do not particularly know. Your wedding day is the right moment to express this other part of you. The style has to suit your world or its limits. There is always the fairytale factor and there is no reason to deny it. The shape has to embrace your physic. You have to feel right wearing it. It is like a very special second skin. It has to look simply special, like you at your best.
That is why taking good photographs of it is essential as it tells an other story on its own. You did put your love, time and inspiration in your dress and the details you are wearing. Obviously if you want great pictures it involves the photographer being with you before the ceremony while you are getting ready, but not always...And there are so many things to capture then...but let's focus on today's topic which the dress. How to take good pictures then ?
In this latest edition I tried to marry two visuals of different weddings to show how versatile it can be. From a technical point of view it is not as easy as it seems. First, you are dealing with an object which has generally a bright colour (white, creme, etc...) and therefore reflects the light. Your built-in light meter will always give you the wrong aperture whether you work with traditional film or new digital. It is normal, the dress is usually the only bright element within your environment, it reflects. You have the same phenomenon when you are watching a fire in the dark. By focusing on the bright part your retina retracts to focus only on that very particular subject. With a camera, the more light your have the more your close your aperture. If you follow you light meter you will always be 1 or 2 stops overexposed. That is why I always bring a separate light meter when working with film, or close automatically my aperture when shooting digital.
Also quite often try to focus manually except if the dress reveal quite a few ornaments you can grip your focusing system on. If the dress is mostly plain bright your camera will not understand where to focus. That is the same problem experienced in dark situations
So, how to shape the light then. Well, I personally think that it is very related to fashion and ways we are looking at objects we love in general. An object fully lit on a white background without nuances doesn't inspire much whereas working with shadows generates mystery and therefore desire.
Nowadays brides tend to choose more simple, nicely shaped designer dress, and it usually looks great on them. To take a photograph of the dress on it own can be a real deception. Those dresses are made to be looked at when they are worn ( Figure 1 on top). The main work of the designer is based on the shape of the bride. Don't they look great !
Figure 2 shows that by adding details in the frame you can translate more than what the dress looks like. You can create layers of interpretations and really get into the bride's conception of the dress. It shows why they knew it would work on them.

Figure 3 is a classic back of the dress shot many enjoy. Classic but you have to get it a the right moment, neither too late or early. It has to be when the dress starts making body with the bride. A gentle tension which renders harmony can be sensed then.

Figure 4 is transparency. Usually linked to the veil but not always. Some dresses have embroidery at the back or front. Some dress use it to create the sleeves. It is always amazing to get closer to those fine patterns and to capture a detail which take you to an other dimension, hours of work and art.
Figure 5 shows a medium shot of the front and back of each dress. Those shots are not easy as they are medium range and can feel bulky. They involve various techniques of lightning and composition with the milieu that make them interesting. You really have to work the whole frame as if you were working with clay. They are almost standard but not really with a lot of details and mini stories.

Figure 6 is focusing on details only and ambiance. On the left most of the dress was plain and what made it so special was this middle part ruban. Very rich item and full of history I decided to play with a very short depth of field and very little light to create some kind of hidden treasure.
The one on the right is light comparatively and I am playing with the flower which could be glowing outside in the field through the widow.

Figure 7 is an overall look at the milieu where the bride is getting ready. Sometimes as the dress is not so easy to photograph because of its simple design. Use that difficulty by using a dark and rich room that will make the dress stand out.

That's all for today. Many thanks