Second Makeup
When applied to the face, I wanted the prosthetic to blend out well, almost like it was apart of the models face, almost unoticable.
I also wanted to experiment with flocking, to see how it would appear like on the face/neck.
The shoot would be filmed within the studio room, that way the surface area is larger to work on, and all work can be layed out nicely.
The lighting would also benefit my final piace from the mirros point of view, which is what I wanted.
my work station, ensuring all liquid substances were away from the electrical points, and everything was neatly presented for the application process.
Not forgetting my health and safety checklist!
During The Application
I firstly started with the hair, using a curling wand, I curled evenly proportioned strands of hair, parting the hair as I went to ensure every piece of hair was curled. This was the longest part of the practical.
The ears were firstly applied to the models ears, I firstly applied Prosaide to the models surrounding area of the ear, applied a cool hair dryer to help set the adhesive, and repeated it again, and on the prosthetic itself.
When applying the ear itself, at first it didn't want to stick, as I needed to use a stronger glue, I do think it was also because the ears were heavy in a way. In the end I resorted into using Matrix glue ( spirit gum).
The ears themselves were my favourite part of the prosthetic making, and the appearance of one stuck to the models ear already started to bring the character out.
My alternative solution to the ears, was to just cover the hair over it, so it couldn't be seen. Although I know the right approach would be to ensure the edges are thinner next time, for easy blending.
The back of the hair once it had all been brushed out, the curls were beautiful, and fitted the purpose of replicating the tight curls in a fauns fur. My interpretation of a faun was curly hair represented wool.
The ear looked extremely effective from this angle, and the hair surrounding the ear, really helped bring it out
I was a little disappointed in the edges at this stage, partly because one side blended better than the other, and despite how accurate the colours blended, the nasty edges made it seem like a mask, which was what I was trying to avoid. Also the flashing around the eyes appeared thicker, which was also something to comment on.
A close up of the edges that wouldn't blend out properly. At this point, I didnt know what to suggest to help take that edge away, I just hoped the use of the flocker would cover it over.
From this angle, the lighting made the right side near the mouth area seem blended. It did infact blend very well on the one side, it was just a shame the other side didn't match it. The eye areas were hard to blend out too as it just appeared like she was wearing a mask rather than a prosthetic, which was the intention.
This side appeared less noticable than the other side, from afar the blended edge seemed seamless. The concept however that I wanted it in, didn't really match up . For film, edges are meant to appear hidden, and not noticable. This was one thing I knew the camera would pick up. The ears however did look effective from this angle, as they looked natural the hair hid the edges very well. From this angle also, I loved how the nose looked so natural and realistic.
I then did some comparison shots, one from afar and one slightly closer up, as you can see from this point of view, the colour matching was spot on which I was really proud of, and the blending almost goes unoticed until you go directly closer.
I then started to experiment with the flocking machine, directly applying fine fibres onto the neck. Using prosaide as a base adhesive for the fibres to cling onto. It was such a great experience when the fur looked very effective. I then moved onto the face, which then started to bring the edges out more prominently, which was rather frustrating to me, I also felt like the machine wasn't blowing on places I wanted it, and the more I shook it, it was thickening up on areas I didn't want anymore applied.
Touched up/Edited Images
This is my favourite image I took, in the mirror. The image presented my model to have no seams or any harsh edges, which would of been great from a theatre concept. The overall outlook looked so realistic, and I loved how it was progressing. ( This was before flocking was applied, I felt flocking actually ruined my prosthetic ) .
With the use of photoshop, I used the simple blur and clone toon to blend out the harsh edges, the colour itself didn't need to be changed as the coloured blended naturally anyway, It just goes to show how realistic it would of looked if the edges had blended out smoothly.
Again, the clone tool was used to erase all the harsh edges around the prosthetic, no major imperfections were correctly, which showed where I went wrong. I really like this image, it may just be one of my favourites, I love how natural it looks, and how the slight changes to the face can change a person completely.
I love how the ear drooped in this picture, but all the edges are so prominent in the image which made it seem so unnatural. I had quite a bit of work to do on this, ensuring the edges were blended out, and the patchy areas I had missed with the flocker had been added in afterward so the colour blended nicely together. The horns also refused to stick on accurately, so It was a race against time take photos.
Again, photoshop was used to blur and blend out the edge of the prosthetic. I thought it would be a good photo to edit as I loved the angle in which she was looking downward. There wasn't much to edit, but the little bit that was edited made the biggest difference.
Flocking had been added here, but a direct, straight on photo made the prosthetic seem fake. I didn't like how patchy it turned out, and some of the prosthetic wasn't fully covered. The edge on the left was incredibly prominent on the camera, and i definitely wouldn't recommend using it if you have thick edges that need blending out. The colours were blended out, and clone tool was used to make up the colour that was missing under the eyes, cheek and jawline areas. The colour of the image was also increased, along with the contrast to bring out the image more.
I then decided to take a picture outside, sadly the lighting didn't play a huge part in the shot as by the time the practical had finished, the natural light was becoming dark. The edges were more visible outside, the colour to the neck needed to be flocked more, colour under the eyes, cheeks and by the ear were added in, edges were blended out. I really liked the hand in this image because it's really realistic. The horns unfortunately didn't stay on very long at this point, and the ears were beginning to fall off ( hence why she had her hand on one of the ears to prevent it from falling off ).
The edited version here looked a lot more realistic than the one that had the horrible edges, I was slightly disappointed with the fact the horns didn't stick on, I just felt like the entire finished outcome wasn't finished. I will take this makeup into consideration, and every obstacle I faced in this project will be improved for future reference.
Good Points:
- Colour of the prosthetics
- Prosthetics themselves
- The texture
- Hair punching
- Appearance of the prosthetic
- The hairwork
- Time management
Bad points:
- Bad edges on the prosthetic
- Baldiez didn't blend as thick flashing
- Flocking brought the edges out more prominently
- The flocking didn't spread evenly
- Burn't myself several times with the curling wand
- Glue wasn't strong enough so I had to use an alternative, this was due to the ears being too heavy
- Hand wouldnt blend, so had to put a glove over it, so make it look as realistic as possible.
Improvement
- Thinner edges to blend
- Hollow silicone ears to make them less heavy
- Ensure the horns have strong enough glue for them to stick
- Fibreglass mold will be molded better and accurately next time so no seams of no thick edges are left
- Flocking only to be used when edge is fully blended, so avoiding lifting it up and missing areas.
I overall look at my project, I think I have still yet to show my true ability to this course, I am still a learning student afterall, and I can say I have improved a huge amount compared to my last project. Everything was just about right, I cant be too disheartened by the fact some things didn't go to plan, because at the end of the day, we learn from our mistakes, which is what helps us to become more professional and skillful.
I took so many photos of the ears because I simply loved them. I applied the second ear no problem, but I had a difficult time blending the edges out.