An exercise in processing

I’ve been experimenting with new ways of lighting in the last few months and I wanted to develop a style of processing these types of shot that matched the feel of the lighting. This shot was taken with a number of flashes to bring the level of the lighting in the shade closer to the lighting elsewhere whilst still providing some direction to the light on the subject (who is in this case me!)

I wanted a painterly feel to the image so spent a lot of time dodging and burning as well as different blur layers to make the subject pop. I’m really pleased with the result!