Self- Portraits: March

March 2024

Now we’re getting somewhere!

After such a disappointing start to this series, I went to great lengths to ensure this month, nothing would go wrong. 

Taking inspiration from a phenomenal photographer, Marina Williams, for March, I decided to do a simple shoot using cellophane as a sort of filter to create a fun, whimsical effect. Really taking the preparation disaster from February to heart, I made sure no stone was unturned for this one. I looked online and found the cellophane I needed at Hobby Lobby, I got white eyeliner from Target and made sure I had a cute white top and bought an interval time for my camera so I could start using my Canon R again (the best $50 I’ve ever spent). 

Instead of doing these in a studio setup, I used the natural light in my living room. I used a white sheet as my backdrop and positioned myself towards the window, and used the lighting stands that normally hold up lights just as something to clamp or lean the cellophane to so it would stay. 

While setting everything up and getting ready, I blasted music and drank some iced coffee. It was an absolute blast, and I think that’s truly reflected in the images this month. 

This session really confirmed what last month hinted at: it’s all about the preparation and the details for these shoots. The backdrop and outfit was super simple for this, as to not distract from the cellophane effect, but the freshly painted white nails, the white eyeliner and the rings, for example, really added to overall images. If I did this again, I’d lean way more into details like that to really expand on it. 

Overall, I’m absolutely obsessed with these images. I think they turned out amazing and it’s shoots like this that I had pictured when I started this series. They aren’t perfect, but I still love them. It was such a cool concept (thanks for the inspiration Marina!!), and has really encouraged me to think bigger with these shoots. 

One tiny tweak I’d make for next time: I noticed while editing that in a lotttttt of the shots, I’m not actually looking at the camera, but slightly above. I flipped the screen on my camera up so I could see the framing of the shot, since I was sitting so close to the camera for this shoot. It didn’t ruin any images, I just didn’t even realize I was doing it until I sat down to edit. Whoops! 

AND, the interval time worked out so well. There really is such a huge difference between the Canon R and 80D, and I was so happy to be able to use my R again. The interval time worked amazingly. Highly recommend and definitely helped this session go smoothly.