I wanted a to capture a joyful 1940's kind of classic mood and feel - only in full color. This is a play on the song "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head" (thanks to my husband's suggestion). Hmmm, I seem to have a thing going for umbrellas don't I (This one will be the 4th).
I am a major perfectionist.
I did 7 photo shoots over the course of a week JUST to try to get the lighting and the mood right. The grand total of photos taken just to get this one: 253. That said I still had to do touch-up work on this photo to get the final result.
I finally decided to move away from a stark white backdrop that I had in the first 5 photo shoots because my style might be recognized so I decided to move the shoot outdoors to get some blue sky and clouds.
I have got to say I NEVER again want to wear that much make-up, sweat this much out in the hot sun or the garage, or use several sewing needles to thread the gumdrops on a line. And of course Mother Nature never cooperates as I had a devil of a time with tangled lines because of the high winds that would blow up from time to time....not to mention that I had to put plastic bags to protect the candy from ants the night before the photo shoot.
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Yes, the dotted pattern of the umbrella was the wrong choice; and though it would have been a real pain, another hundred or so gumdrops would have looked much better ;-Þ but overall, a fun shot.
My 2 cents not worth anything at the rate the USD exchanges on the world currency markets these days: The polka dot pattern of the umbrella distracts a little and camouflages the "drops." Perhaps a simple coloured umbrella might have been better? The metaphor is a bit off kilter in that nothing falls on ones head if an umbrella is deployed. If the umbrella was held off to one side thereby allowing the drops to fall on the head, then that might have been better. Fiction or nonfiction a certain realism is necessitated. I think the cropping is a bit tight - but then again.... and the background might have been better as an out of focus street with a vanishing point... but that relates to composition and I am stepping out of bounds by making any comments on that...
It's good, but I have to ask myself why they are falling from the umbrella and not the sky.
I know the practical reason, but often in shots like these, it's that kind of logical disconnect that mars the photo far more than the unreality of the original idea.
REminds me of that Barney song... if all the raindrops were lemondrops and gumdrops... oh what the world it would be!
Good detail on the face, too. A little off hue (sky turned pinkish in the lower part) but not too distracting. The gumdrops - especially the ones that overlap with the umbrella - do not appear too real, which IS distracting.
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