Paintshoot; playing with paint in the studio

This article was translated from Dutch with the help of AI. Read the original.

I'd had it on my list for a while to do a paint shoot, bringing a model and paint together to create great photos. Recently, model Amanda and I got to work in the studio with this idea.

With Amanda, I'd previously had a great shoot, so we already knew each other a little. She was also keen to do a paint shoot, and it was on her list too. So that worked out well.

Amanda paints herself, so we chose two types of paint shoot. One where she appears as the painter, and one where Amanda herself was the canvas.

Portraits of a painter

It also helps to make the background appear a little darker than the foreground. This draws more attention to the foreground.

I always enjoy taking portraits where the model is actually doing something. The surroundings and the action give the photo a story. I usually choose to shoot on location for this, but with a little extra work, the studio is certainly suitable too.

The photo above was taken with two studio flashes, by the way. One to the left behind the easel and one to the right out of shot, but also about a metre or two behind the model.

Both flashes had softboxes, and I used flags to block some of the light from the softboxes. This prevented too much light falling on the background or, in this case, shining through the canvas of the painting.

Your model as a canvas

Amanda had brought her own paint, of course, but I had also stocked up. I had bought some large tubs of poster paint. It's affordable paint that also washes off easily.

What I hadn't thought of, but the model had, was bringing a supply of plastic plates. They are handy for putting some paint on so the model can smear it on herself.

With a bowl of warm water and a flannel, Amanda could clean herself up fairly easily in between, allowing us to try out different colour combinations.

Surprisingly, we managed to keep the studio fairly clean. I'd actually expected it to become a much bigger mess. In the end, a damp flannel was enough to clean the studio again.

A paint shoot like this is definitely a fun activity. You do need to find a model who is willing to cover herself in paint, of course. Amanda was an excellent model for this.

Definitely something I'd like to try again. There are always plenty of ideas that you can't all try out in a single afternoon.

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