This was supposed to be my entry for Illusions II, but I never got the chance to shoot it. The image may be a little disturbing to some, but it was intended be more "Wile E Coyote" than "Silence of the Lambs". The model is actually wearing the shirt "section," but a matching zipper on top creates the illusion that the shirt is below the skin.
The setup was simple, but tedious. I cut out the shirt in the shape you see here and added a bright pink zipper from an old Barbie lunch box. I hand stitched the zipper onto the shirt and used double stick tape to attach the other side of the zipper as seamlessly as possible to my wonderfully tolerant wife (I promised a PG-13 rating). I used a single monolight and umbrella on the right side to enhance the shadows.
I ran the original through Noise Ninja first for a smoother look. In Photoshop, I cloned out freckles and tan lines, softened veins and lines on the hand, and straightened a few stubborn kinks in the zipper. Then I colorized the zipper to match the skin tones and used a partially transparent clone brush in color and luminosity modes to fade the edges of the zipper. Once the zipper matches, there's not much left to do. Finishing touches with Levels and the Channel Mixer for a slight saturation boost. The setup is obvious when the zipper doesn't match.
Now I just have to wait and see if "cool" outweighs "creepy" ;-)
Post challenge: OK, so cool doesn't outweigh creepy. WHOA! Look at all those votes of 3 or less! Ouch! Since so many commentors apparently were fooled into thinking this was really a suit, I can at least take comfort in the thought that I might have kicked butt in Illusions, where this was intended.
Statistics
Place: 36 out of 118 Avg (all users): 5.8988 Avg (commenters): 7.1538 Avg (participants): 5.4725 Avg (non-participants): 5.9975 Views since voting: 11672 Views during voting: 1579 Votes: 484 Comments: 99 Favorites: 19 (view)
The good news is I figured this out before I read your post on how you did it. The bad news is that it did not place higher. I thought this shot was fantastic. I could also tell that this was not a "fat suit". THere are some stretch marks on your wife's left breast that a suit would not have. This was my favorite shot of the challenge even though it is a little creepy - but wow! I still love it. Congrats.
Shannon you are a genious... blue ribbon for sure in illusions... I think you are correct that this was a little too creepy for some voters... amazing!
Also, if a voter doesn't see nipples and bums in the shot then I think that they think 'cop out' LOL
This was set up so perfectly that even though it partially creeped me out, I was so facinated with it, I gave you a high score. A perfect illusion for this challenge. Thanks for the notes.
Maybe if you had left the imperfections in, the freckles and veins...
Yeah, probably, but I was worried about getting hit for imperfections that would have been easy to remove in Advanced Editing. I also forgot the nail polish. ;-)
Shannon, I have to be honest with you. I thought it was a man zipping a fat suit over a dress shirt. So, your illusion worked too well! The skin did not look like skin was my problem. Maybe if you had left the imperfections in, the freckles and veins, I would have seen it for the wonderful illusion that it was. Sorry!!!
This is one of the most stunning images of the last 12 months of challenges, If you dont post how this was done afterwards your obvious forthcoming ribbon should be taken away from you and your membership revoked. 10
This has to be the weirdest picture in the challenge. I can't decide if this is a picture of a woman placed over the shirt or if it's an actual suit made to wear in a movie. Whichever way, it is brilliant. bumping up and going into my notebook of ideas.
This is quite the interesting shot. I'd be very interested in knowing how this was accomplished. Composition-wise, i find the shot's lighting a little dull but well mastered. The picture feels more like a Tutorial (on how to do the zipper thing) rather then some sort of art. Overall, quite nice. 7
This is TOTALLY AWESOME! WOW... This definitely will ribbon - and it's only the 3rd image I've seen. Bumping up to 10. Not to be indelicate, but the breasts look so real - even have stretch marks/veins. Very impressive illusion.
I appreciate the thinking outside of the box that you used for this photograph. It is a great illusion and would have done fantastic in that challenge. I do however feel slightly cheated as a photographer when I see this shot in this challenge as it took a lot of courage for me and my model to enter a more traditional style of nude shot. Nice shot overall with awesome lighting. I just personally don't think it fit's the challenge in this instance.
TC
I get a silence of the lambs vibe here. It also confuses me heavily as to how it would be possible. That being said, I just don't really like it. I would like to see a "how I did this" when the voting is over.
Wow! Very well executed! Love this take on the challenge! Maybe just a tiny tad more light as some of the shadows are a little distracting, but overall, a really good shot. 8
First word that came out of my mouth: Remarkable!! and then cocked my head sideways thinking "Buffalo Bill" with style? ("SIlence of the Lambs") Great work and very creative I must say.
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