Still-Life Photography: Nature Morte / Vanitas

Back into teams again for the fourth mini module Nature Morte/Vanitas creation. This had to be the biggest surprise with the outcome and quite how it all came together ill never know. Given the task of recreating an unnamed Vanitas painting but with using modern materials we only had a couple of days window in which we could borrow enough of the items to complete. Even begging books from the library and a skull from another department in order to complete the look.

Our workspace was created on an old classroom desk set against one of the black out curtains in studio 1. A single studio light set at around 10 o'clock front facing and slightly off center to the back of the table. As we were in the studio and had a few extra hands we decided to tether directly into the mac off a phase one digital back on the wide Hasselblad lens. This gives much better detail to the objects and even with the cropped sensor it was still wide enough with the extra wide lens as a starting point.

It took about 3 hours in all moving and positioning around trying to micro manage every part to give the best look that we could and stay as true to the original ass possible.

Only minor post production was need like removing a couple of library stickers off the books and levels.