Vanitas II

Model: Just Joycee | Make-up: Tina van Lent | Canon 5D mk II / EF 135mm F/2.0 USM | 1/160 - f/16.0 - iso 100

When creating shadowy photographs of the female body (although the same approach works for the male body), photographers often refer to this style as *shapes*. The images can be so abstract that you see only isolated forms, such as part of a leg or a shoulder. This photograph reveals a little more, but it is still quite abstract.

Although this style can also be done in colour, it is often shot in black and white. A white or black background is also popular. In this case, I followed the trend completely: black and white against a black background.

It's an enjoyable style of photography. You focus more on shapes than on content. The light sweeps across the model's body, revealing all kinds of details.

By positioning the light on the left, just beyond the model, you can create a beautiful interplay of light and shadow across the female body. During post-processing, I rotated the photograph by a quarter turn. It's a different way of thinking that you need to get used to. If you wanted to create this image exactly as it appears, you would have to suspend the flash above the model. That's certainly possible, but a little more challenging. I also think it is probably more difficult for a model to pose lying down in a way that looks as though she is standing.

Why the title Vanitas II? Because There is also a anotherVanitas.