Myrissa and I met at my studio to do some dramatic portraits with coloured light gels and a fog machine. The studio portraits we created exhibit a strong sense of drama and mood, achieved through posing, styling, and lighting. Myrissa, my model is centered in the composition, with her pose exuding confidence and emotion. Her various poses progress from a sense of vulnerability to sensuality and strength. Myrissa’s style further amplifies this mood, with her black, mesh-detailed dress introducing intricate textures that interact beautifully with my lighting. Myrissa’s stunning bold tattoos, dark hair, and striking red lipstick add a sense of individuality and contrast, drawing the viewer’s attention.
For lighting, I chose a sophisticated dual-tone approach to create depth and separation. A warm, key light to camera left highlights her face and hands, casting soft yet deliberate shadows that sculpt her features. On the right side, a cool, blue accent light adds contrast, providing a complementary tone to the warm light and creating a striking interplay of colors. This rim light also helps separate Myrissa from the dark background, emphasizing silhouette and enhancing the three-dimensional feel of the image. The background itself is a subtle gradient of darkness, which avoids distraction and reinforces the overall mood of the photograph. I took great care that the shadows and highlights were carefully balanced, bringing out the texture of the mesh dress and the detail in Myrissa’s tattoos, adding richness to the visual narrative. A fog machine was used to add richness to the background colour.
This is a demonstration of how styling, posing, and lighting come together to create dramatic portraits, polished, and visually compelling.
Check out the images from this session below!
