Viking Themed Burlesque Photoshoot

Back in September I had the absolute pleasure of photographing newbie burlesque performer Bella Emerald.
She had been working on her debut solo act and wanted to get some promo shots done. As her act has quite an earthy vibe with a Viking-esque edge to it, we decided to take advantage of our beautiful surroundings in the Forest Of Dean, and do most of the shoot outdoors.

We headed down to Cannop Ponds. One of my favourite local locations to shoot, as you have the ponds as well as plenty of dappled shaded areas amongst the trees, big rocks and bridges. So plenty of options to shoot against.
You do have to head out fairly early though to miss the crowds, as it's a popular location for dog walks and bike rides.

Bella was quite specific about how she wanted her hair and makeup styled. I had previously done a Viking shoot with a friend, so was well practiced in the style. I used gold eyeshadow mixed with fixing spray to create a liquid, black gel eyeliner and green eyeliner, which I layered on top of pure white foundation to help the colours pop. Eyes were dark and Smokey, and I did a series of ladder braids, and different plaits at the front of the hair and loosely curled the rest.

I have worked with Bella a couple of times before, and her burlesque training means that she is very easy to work with and pose, making shooting with her a breeze.
Her costume was a mix of handmade items, with lots of different textures in the feathers, fur, lace and velvet. I find texture is extremely important when photographing dark colours. They capture the light better and show the contours in the body and movement of the fabrics.

After a full lap around the ponds and a couple of locations amongst the trees, we headed back to the studio for some extra shots. When capturing promo shots for burlesque performers it's particularly important to get a good headshot. Something that can be used for posters and advertising, as well a social media profiles. You can see from this headshot below that I have once again added in a blue coloured gel, set to the one side of Bella, to help add depth to the image and pick up the details in the fur and feathers. The blue light also helps to emphasise the stripe on the chin and bring the colour out more.

Overall we had a really great day shooting, and managed to capture some beautiful shots. We postponed the original shoot due to bad weather, so we were lucky to catch a brighter day a week later.