For this shoot, I wanted to take my boots into the studio with the intention of capturing my album cover for this project. The boots directly link to Swift's reputation album, resembling a pair she had worn, additionally the black and red jewels and snake design carry on the motif of the album.

 

I wanted to capture shots of the boots looking like they were taking steps. I positioned them close together and pointing to the side to mimic footsteps and create the illusion that they were walking. I also wanted to capture stretched shadows behind them as I feel like that resembles the dark path that Swift endured leading up to this album. 

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In post processing, I experimented with adding a spotlight onto the image as I wanted it to feel like they are finally stepping back into the spotlight after being hidden away for a long time. 

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I experimented with different lighting techniques, mainly focusing on rim and silhouette to create a sense of mystery and am almost hidden away feeling. I experimented with flash to capture the detail of the boots more clearly and highlight the black and red contrast and I also tested out different colour lights, however, I found that it was difficult to find a colour that matched the aesthetic while also highlighting the colour on the boots. The red light worked well but blended into the red on the boots, where as the green contrasted it and made them stand out more. I think if I were to do this again I would stick to white light. 

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I originally had to use a very high ISO of 5000 as the scene was so dark and the subject was also dark, however, after using a tripod, I could lower the shutter speed to 1/2 a second and lower the ISO to a better number of 300. I also used a low aperture of f4.5 to not only ensure the image was well exposed but also blur the background slightly behind the boots and pull focus onto them without distractions. 

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I think this shoot went well, I tested shooting the boots from different angles, adding additional props onto the boots, and different backdrops as the first one I used didn't allow me to capture the boots at the distance I wanted for the album cover. Overall, I think it was successful and with editing, I think I have captured the cover.