Photoshoot in a Laundromat
This photoshoot feels as if it was years ago, but it literally happened at the beginning of 2019. Crazy. I can no doubt see the progress I have made as I look back on my older shoots, specifically on how I take photos, the editing, the quality, and just overall look on my work. Speaking on that thought, as photographers or artists/creatives of any kind, no doubt you can agree that it is always an accomplishing feeling when you take a moment and reflect on your progress. I can't stress this enough, whether you are a beginner or an expert, it is so very easy to start feeling as if you are far behind in the industry or how easy it is to slip into the habit of focusing on others, comparing yourself to their level. However, that mindset can be really discouraging. If you're reading this take a moment, forget about everyone else and look back on some of your older work. Remind yourself just how far you've come in your area of expertise. Progress can happen as fast as a couple months or it could take a couple years, in any case, be proud of yourself! Pat yo self on the back and keep doing what you doing!!
Alright let's get into the deets of this shoot.
I like to draw inspiration from Pinterest (for those who know, you KNOW it is THE holy grail of Inspo + ideas). I started to come across a lot of vintage/retro looking shoots taking place in a laundromat and instantly thought that it was such a creative idea and had to try it, putting my own spin to it. Let me tell you, looking for a decent/non crowded laundromat was so stressful, but thankfully after searching around I found just the perfect one to use. Of course like I've mentioned before in other blog posts, I always ask for permission just incase!
Haley was the lovely gal I asked to model for this shoot and it went better than I expected. I was super nervous and had so much anxiety with not wanting to fail or waste this models time. I had to adjust to the lighting inside and at this point I was still learning about different lighting situations, especially with indoor lighting. The struggle is absolutely real when you consider yourself a natural light photographer and then you go into a setting where there is not much natural light to utilize. Yet, once we did a couple shots, the creative juices started flowing and we tried out so many different poses and utilized the entire space of this laundromat- from going on top of washers, inside dryers, from window to the wall (literally), and getting our hands on one of those laundry carts.
The second location was an overpass walk way around the same area. It was definitely a little colder than we expected, but then again it was January.. in Michigan.. haha can't really be expecting heat at that point.
Overall, it was a super cool idea to try out, something different than the normal locations that I was used to. It never hurts to go outside the box or to tackle a creative/aesthetic idea! If there is an idea that you have in the back of your mind or one that you want to try and recreate, I say go for it and own it!