My best images:

To evaluate, I believe this last shoot was the perfect end to my planning and recording aspect of my project. It effectively links to Helmut Newton and his reinforcement of women empowerment, as well as displaying a creative and more personal side to it due to me carrying out this shoot as a female and being able to incorporate my own ideas based on experience. The costumes and props used in this shoot are very similar to the second shoot, where we played similar roles and wore similar clothes to exhibit a strong narrative of the expectations surrounding women behaviour. This is a powerful element to include because I am linking my work directly to historical contexts of the 1960s, when traditional gender roles and stereotypes occurred. I think overall, this shoot conducts a raw and sentimental approach through the camera angles used, forcing the viewer to focus on specific elements such as the heels or the stockings, as this is what women were expected to wear in order to fit into society’s patriarchy.

My third photoshoot was photographed in the photography studio, which is another factor that helps my shoots blend together better. The same lighting was also used: two flashlights, one either side of the camera. The brightness of these lights was very strong, which helps give my images a more staged approach. Although the message behind my work is very raw and honest, I like the idea of my images looking slightly staged, as this follows Newton’s approach, where they look very well put together and the idea presented to the viewer is very clear.

What went well:

• I remembered to use a white backdrop only, the black is too harsh and takes away from the image itself
• Clothing – a successful recreation of what women were expected to wear in the 60s due to it being quite flashy and exposing
• Posing ideas – models look confident and powerful rather than weak, this emphasises the idea of women empowerment
• Range of camera angles – shows variety and differs images from one another

What could be improved:

• Subjects are to close to the backdrop, which allows for strong shadows. This would look more professional if there were no shadows
• Occasional blurry image – ensure camera settings are accurate and work effectively with the lighting in order to reach maximum potential