Before / After - 5

There was one concept I had been planning to shoot, the only thing holding me back was that I didn't possess the right resources to execute.

I wished to create a towering character, one standing high & proud on ground. I already had an idea of how to achieve this effect, however I was still looking for a long gown, with fabric that stretches beyond the feet. I also needed a location that adds more depth & interest to the image.

A disussion with my preferred model bore fruit; we agreed to use a black evening dress she had in her wardrobe with some black fabric attached to elongate the dress & give the illusion of a 'one piece gown'.

What was left was finding the right spot to shoot. I had recalled that on a previous ocassion, while surfing my Facebook feed, I came across an interesting patch of desert scape ... one with cracked earth. It looked dramatic, and would have been the perfect match for my concept.

Coincidentally, I had come across a more recent image from a fellow photographer in Dubai who had captured a landscape image of a similar location. Upon contacting him, he was kind enough to share valuable details about the whereabouts of said spot.

What I did next was something a serious commited photographer should not do ... plan, set up, have the makeup and team ready then head out to the 'unknown'. Yes, I failed to scout the location prior to the shooting date. My excuse? As lame as it can get; the location is too far & I'm lazy to go check it out beforehand!! :)

So, we head out to Fujairah Emirate looking for our location. 2 hours of driving and we finally arrive only to find out the government had blocked access to the area, as they were renovating & turning it into a touristic attraction. Oh no, the cracked earth wasn't the attraction! Apparently, it contained a wildlife and beautiful scenery to be witnessed.

Ok, what next?

Well, the usual. We look for an alternative. Thank the heavens, I came across a spot not too far off which looked interesting enough to have me stop in my tracks & tell the team we're shooting.

Of course I knew there will be some challenges due to the nature of the ground (as evident in the image below), however, I was hopeful I could overcome those challenges with a little help from Photoshop.

For those wondering, yep ... our model was standing on a stool. :)

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