Our homeschool group holds an annual Father Daughter Dance. Two years ago I did a special photo project beforehand to decorate a wall for the event. I was asked to take photos of as many fathers and daughters as I could and then edit and print them: high contrast black and whites in which the heads tilt to one side.
These hung on a wall like headshots you sometimes see of famous people in restaurants. We even provided black Sharpies so that the prints could be autographed!
I shot portraits in the hallway during homeschool parent info meetings; in the parking lot after choir classes; or in my dining room, like this one of my daughter. Under the before and after shots you can see how they were displayed at the dance.
The Edits:
- Apply Lightroom’s Punch preset (increase clarity and vibrance).
- Apply a preset from X-Equals called x=the+400 (convert to black and white; increase clarity, brightness, and contrast).
- Tweak exposure and contrast.
- Crop and tilt.
Can you think of a fun reason to try this technique? This dance was two and a half years ago and some of the shots of my family still hang on cork boards around our house!
31 Days of Before & After Shots | click here.
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To read my other 31 Days series, 31 Days of Encouragement and 31 Days of Real Life | click here.
Oh Dawn, what a BRILLIANT idea!!! What a gift to those dads and daughters!
Marsha, a friend read this post this week and asked me if I’d do these shots again for the yearbook we’re making for our Classical Conversations program!
Your smart friend has a very good eye for talent! 🙂 I think every child (and their mama) should have a good picture of themselves. Everyone is beautiful in God’s eyes… sometimes we have to capture it in print to prove it to them.
Wow what an amazing idea! Love the photos!