THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE PORTRAIT EDUCATION IN THE WORLD. W E E K 1 STUDIO SETUP. by SUE BRYCE

Transcription

1 THE MOST COMPREHENSIVE PORTRAIT EDUCATION IN THE WORLD. W E E K 1 STUDIO SETUP by SUE BRYCE

2 TABLE OF CONTENTS WEEK ONE 05 Set Your Intention 08 Basic Setup 10 Polystyrene 11 Backdrops 14 Example of 5 Compositions 19 Fabric 28 Diffusers, Camera & Lenses 29 Props 30 Home Setup 33 Wardrobe SueBryceEducation.com support@suebryceeducation.com Copyright 2017 by Sue Bryce All rights reserved. All images photographed by Sue Bryce. No part of this publication may be reproduced, scanned, copied, recorded, or transmitted in any form or by any means. NOTICE OF DISCLAIMER: The information in this book are based on the author s experience and opinions. The author can not be held liable for the use or misuse of the information contained in this book.

3 SET YOUR INTENTION I am an ardent believer in the power of thought and visualization but this is not a win lotto list it s a real, tangible, clearly defined GOAL LIST. What first drew you to my brand and my community? Are you a photographer that wants to add contemporary or fashion style portraits to your existing brand OR are you a hobbyist that wants to create an income with Portraits and leave your job? What do you want? What is your BIG PICTURE goal? Can you see yourself doing this in 2 years 5 years 10 years 25 years? How much money do you want to earn? What sales average do you want? What type of shoots do you want? by SUE BRYCE 5

4 The fastest way to start making your dreams become a reality is to write them down and read them everyday. YOU MUST see what you want in order to create it. Positive affirmations do not work if the underlying emotion and internal dialogue is in opposition to what you want. No one will see this list so do NOT write it with the intention of someone else seeing it and judging you and telling you their limits and the reason you won t succeed at this. Write BIG BOLD DREAMS and then see it every day, see yourself becoming this person, that you are opening up to being and becoming this business. See wealth and abundance EVERYWHERE not struggle. Hear objections from people but pay close attention to YOUR REACTION to those objections because it is your reaction that is going to give you the clearest indicator of your core belief system that needs to shift. IF YOU ENCOUNTER A BLOCK THAT IS STOPPING YOU FROM TAKING THE NEXT STEP DO NOT LOSE FOCUS ON WHAT YOU WANT. Stop and identify the block and focus your attention on the opposite result of the block, not the overwhelming desire to quit or run in the opposite direction. This is NOT a personal attack these lessons will SHOW you YOUR core limits they will show you what you believe and you can change that. EVERY LESSON IS A GIFT, even the bad ones sometimes the gift just takes a little longer to unwrap but trust me it is a gift. Every critic is a messenger, they are simply holding a mirror up to you and showing you YOUR internal dialogue. You will encounter failure and lose, you will experience naysayers and mean people and unsolicited critics, you will fall down hard somedays, but no amount of block or rocks on your path change the GOAL LIST. Stop trying to run from negativity and or rejection because you will see both but the point is not to hold onto both if I feel negativity or rejection and my business or self by simply check whether I believe it or not and if I need to hold onto it or let it go. THOUGHTS BECOME THINGS! Thoughts are powerful! What you focus on expands! What you say and how you say it is powerful but how you FEEL is the most powerful of all. If you go into a shoot or a marketing meeting feeling subservient of Not good enough then you are disempowering yourself. Any area you are disempowered either money or confidence or simply feeling smart enough, it doesn t matter what the situation is any area you are disempowered someone or something will overpower you. So empower your weak spots with giving and service (not to be mistaken for OVER giving) there must always be an equal exchange and you MUST know your WORTH. Just come from a place of SERVICE not receiving. We don t realize it but when we first start out we are inside looking out, looking for validation looking for OTHERS to show us our worth looking for others to tell us we are good enough. Try to focus everyday on serving it s what you are giving and offering that is the most powerful even when you are folio building. Look for respect not attention it lasts a lot longer. Today after my last 15 years of self employment and growth I can honestly say I still get jolted and I still get knocked but I value myself now and I am compassionate with myself, I know now to be kind to myself and embrace this new lesson. Sometimes I am simply reminded that I need to return to loving myself more and old thoughts and beliefs have crept back in it s always a message to reset. Changing old beliefs and changing old pattens requires daily practice it require as consciousness and vigilance it does not take long for an old programming voice to start creeping back in and old patterns will emerge, Changing old beliefs and changing old patterns requires daily practice it requires awareness of your own reaction and responses it does not take long for an old programming voice to start creeping back in and old patterns will emerge so acknowledge them and let it go WEEK PORTRAIT STARTUP

5 FIND A WAY IS MY MOTTO. Maybe you need to work on your confidence, one of the biggest skills that will transform you and your business is working on your relationship building because business is 100% relationship building. Check yourself, is trust an issue for you? Have you been burned in the past? Don t go into new meetings with clients or fellow businesses or even folio build clients with this energy of they will TAKE from me instead shift your energy to one of value and giving. BUSINESS IS A JOURNEY OF SELF I TRANSFORMED BY BUILDING MY BUSINESS. I gained confidence and self value and I changed my money life I changed my debt I changed everything. What you learn and make (Portraits) you then sell, so the ability to sell comes down to how much you believe in the product and value and receiving money is the hardest thing to change for a lot of people. YOU ARE THE FACE OF YOUR BUSINESS DRESS LIKE IT EVERY DAY, put a beautiful profile pic on Facebook not a cartoon or a picture of a dog start acting like a successful business owner now, TODAY. Talk about how in love you are with photography and portraits and what you are learning it s hard to criticize someone that s DOING it and loving it. STOP COMPLAINING! Fall in love with building a folio so when it comes time to sell you are selling something you truly believe in. BE SPECIFIC. Read the list daily. Smile when you read it. Start LOOKING for the opportunities that are right in front of you trust me when you open up they are everywhere on every corner. As you create opportunities and go up a level in your work and service, every step you go up there will be a new lesson and there will also be lots of success above all business is common sense, good product and great service. Think about how many people desire to be seen and heard you can do that for them. Think about how many BEAUTIFUL portraits you will make for these people, portraits become priceless. They will treasure your work for their entire life and then into the next generations. You are a craftsman, you are a master, you are a gift START ACTING LIKE ONE. Everyday I do something that contributes to my education and my business. If you have debt. Stop focusing on the debt in fact, worrying about will just draw more to you because that s what you constantly think about. When you start to think about debt repeat I HAVE THE SKILLS TO PAY THIS DEBT. I HAVE THE ABILITY TO CHANGE THIS repeat it over and over until you break the worry and then set about doing something anything to actively contribute like learning about self value and money or marketing or working on your confidence. Spending your energy growing is 100 times more powerful than being stuck in a worry sickening money pain. ARE YOU STINKY? Watch A Hard Thing to Hear on my blog. Am I the Best Version of Myself? Self Value Workshop by SUE BRYCE 7

6 WEEK ONE BASIC SETUP As you will see in the video, this setup is without doubt the backbone of my business and brand. It is 90 percent of what I still use daily. It is so easy to create this setup in your own lounge if you have to. I honestly cannot reinforce any more how basic this is and how this has never changed for me in 27 years WEEK PORTRAIT STARTUP

7 1 2 3 One window with diffused net curtain. Black 6x8ft DIY chalkboard canvas. White V-flat as a reflector. As you will see in the video, a window (or Strobe diffused) with a Vflat or Polyboard or Seamless or canvas is all you will need to get started -- keep it simple. Look through the massive resources we have documented for where people source these materials all around the world. Paint Polyboards any color and you can even wallpaper them. CLICK TO LEARN MORE: FAQ Polyboards & V-Flats V-Flats in Australia TYPES OF REFLECTORS GOLD/SILVER CARDBOARD FOAMCORE POLYSTYRENE by SUE BRYCE 9

8 POLYSTYRENE Polystyrene is the best reflector in the world. So is white cardboard or foamcore or gatorboard. It will change the way you light and shoot, but mostly, it will give your clients soft, beautiful, even light. A2 or A1 size sheets are EVERYWHERE in the world and can be purchased from ANY art supplies store. Smaller boards do not stand on their own. You may need to prop them up on a chair or an easel or have someone hold them WEEK PORTRAIT STARTUP

9 PAPER Seamless paper range from $60 - $120 If you are having trouble sourcing black Vflats, order a dark grey or black seamless--they are excellent. BACKDROPS CANVAS Paint your own. I created a DIY canvas painting video WATCH HERE These are $20 canvas drop cloth sheets that I purchased on Amazon. I cut them down to 6x8 feet. That is as small as I am prepared to go. Of course, 8x12 foot is better and 12x14 foot better still, but first you need to start small and build up. As you will see in the video,i do not add anything to the paint, however priming the canvas is definitely recommended to save on paint. I used normal interior paint MATT and I have 4 finished canvases. They do not crack when you roll them, but I prefer to keep them hung at all times. by SUE BRYCE 11

10 12 12 WEEK PORTRAIT STARTUP

11 THIS IS AN 8X12 FOOT CANVAS. As you can see, it s big enough for a full shot. The 6x8 will only take you to composition 4 and 5 (cropped above the knee), not full length. by SUE BRYCE 13

12 EXAMPLE OF 5 COMPOSITIONS 1 TO BREASTLINE You can find videos about the 5 Compositions in POSING & DIRECTION here. (More education around 5 compositions coming.) WEEK PORTRAIT STARTUP

13 2 3 TO BELLY BUTTON TO HIPS 4 5 TO ABOVE THE KNEE FULL FRAME by SUE BRYCE 15

14 THIS IS ONE OF MY FAVORITE BACKDROPS. It was a failed DIY, so I just bought Black Chalkboard paint and painted over it. It is 6x8 feet and I use it weekly. Total cost is $40 and there is no texture and I used a roller WEEK PORTRAIT STARTUP

15 I AM ALWAYS LOOKING FOR FABRICS As they are affordable and easy to store (fold away). This is fabric I purchased from Amazon. It is Upholstery Velvet (NOT crushed velvet). Upholstery velvet is really affordable, about $4 a yard, BUT it is DENSE BLACK. When I shoot on seamless black or Vflat, they are not black, they are dark grey. The upholstery velvet will absorb the light and be dense with no hightlight at all. Also, the width is not this wide, this is two strips that are 3 yards long each and sewn together. The bonus is it doesn t need to be steamed as they don t wrinkle that much and you can t see it anyway as it is so dense. There are examples of shooting black on both black Vflats and upholstery fabric in the Vogue Style Portraits video. by SUE BRYCE 17

16 THIS IS THE HAND PAINTED BACKDROP IN THE DIY VIDEO HANGING. As you can see, 6x8 is a great size but you won t be shooting full length. I LOVE this size, but I very rarely shoot full length WEEK PORTRAIT STARTUP

17 FABRIC (Avoid strong patterns) I have always been drawn to strong backdrops but they are very over powering and date quickly I would choose a muted tone over a strong backdrop any day. by SUE BRYCE 19

18 20 12 WEEK PORTRAIT STARTUP

19 HERE I HAVE USED MY POLYSTYRENE SHEETS AND THEY ARE 4X8 FEET. I buy them from Home Depot (see FAQ) and they are known as insulation boards and are 40mm thick (these are often easier to source than V-flats and you can paint them). As you can see, I have wrapped these in fabric to create different textures and corner walls. I simply pin them onto the Polyboard with sewing pins. by SUE BRYCE 21

20 22 12 WEEK PORTRAIT STARTUP

21 THIS IS A BEAUTIFUL EXAMPLE OF MAKING TEXTURES AND PATTERNS WORK, but in all honesty I have never used this dress and backdrop more than twice. Sometimes it s great to get new backdrops because it excites US to get something new, but it doesn t necessarily equate to being cost effective. As you build your studio, you can add-on and collect fabrics, but try to stay with simple tones first. Black, Smokey Grey, light grey, and Creams & Golds look great too. I have done a Textured Backdrop photoshoot video and a Wrapping Paper Backdrop video photoshoot for you too see, as well. This, too, was processed through AlienSkin Exposure X2 Color fading. by SUE BRYCE 23

22 V-FLAT OR POLYBOARD V-flats that are foamcore are extraordinary as they are light and versatile and they are Black on one side and white on the other, so they are perfect for reflectors and negative fill (see above image). Negative fill add contrast around the client so the lighting isn t TOO flat. If you cannot source Vflats source, get polyboards and paint them with chalkboard paint WEEK PORTRAIT STARTUP

23 COULD YOU DO THE BASIC SETUP WITHOUT V-FLATS OR POLYBOARDS? YES, but if you see the boards in use here, you see the extraordinary power of being able to BEND / BOUNCE and control light natural, constant or strobe. They are the best investment in my studio. I have more examples of how I set these up in the Natural Light Studio video. by SUE BRYCE 25

24 YOU WILL FIND THIS SET UP IN THE LIGHTING SECTION, however I want to show you how I use the canvas backdrop in a half light situation. It has a beautiful hair light effect and produces the same beautiful look as the straight back light but the canvas drop creates contrast. This is an Oliphant Backdrop by Sarah Oliphant. You can achieve this same look with a Vflat or polyboard turned sideways or you can paint your own backdrop WEEK PORTRAIT STARTUP

25 THIS IS A SIMPLE WHITE WALL IN MY OLD APARTMENT RIGHT BY THE WINDOW. I love the white brick in my studio now, but that s not always an option. I get asked repeatedly about what color white to paint. I have never seen a distinctive difference in different whites. by SUE BRYCE 27

26 DIFFUSERS SCRIM FABRIC NET CURTAIN CAMERA & LENS Digital SLR and Lens recommended range 50mm - 100mm. Watch Shooting with Angles to learn HOW I use different lenses and tilts to maximize SMALL SHOOTING SPACE, shooting Women with Curves and how I break the old rule of never shoot under 100mm WEEK PORTRAIT STARTUP

27 PROPS Keep it simple. I have many Apple boxes from B&H I have painted them white/black chalkboard and left two natural wood. Apple boxes are brilliant and well worth budgeting for. Any Sturdy wooden box will work, but make sure they can hold a lot of body weight. The ottoman on the left image is from IKEA. I particularly love the step ladders from IKEA, $19.99 each. This inflatable bed is wonderful as it can be put away allowing me so much more room in a small space. BOXES CHAIRS OTTOMAN COUCH AIRBED BARSTOOL by SUE BRYCE 29

28 30 12 WEEK PORTRAIT STARTUP

29 HOME SETUP This was my very first self employed studio. I converted a double garage on a very small budget. You will see from the Images below, and so many people in the Sue Bryce group, that most folio s were built in people s lounges and even bedrooms. Folio building comes with a huge learning curve and it is a challenging time, but I want your focus to be experimental and exciting. You will soon learn with this very basic setup that you can build a foundation to a genre and a business that has so much appeal to our clients and create beautiful fashion style images that they love. Watch the Home Studio segment to see mentor Bethany s first folio building space and Nikki s can be seen in her First Years in Business. by SUE BRYCE 31

30 32 12 WEEK PORTRAIT STARTUP

31 WARDROBE So many people love my brand, they see the flowers and the tulle and the dresses and all the pretty things I make and buy. But for now, let s put that in the next workshop. Please, I beg you not to focus here yet. I worked in a very successful Studio (two, in fact) and then built a very successful business without a single scrap of clothing. Please turn all your energy and attention to getting setup, mastering your light and basic posing, and building a folio that you love and can sell. END OF WEEK ONE by SUE BRYCE 33