CLS Camwhoring

To be very frank, I am not a seasoned camwhorist, nor do I indulge in the narcissistic enjoyment of adoring one's own physical attributes. I usually stray away from having myself photographed, especially by myself; for one reason I do not consider myself physically attractive, for another I most of the time end up being behind the lens than in front of it. A few nights ago, I had the chance of being alone in a hotel room with nothing better to do and a camera with accessories that permit me to capture photos using off-camera flash. There was a mirror in the room and seeing that I wanted to test my newly procured camera accessory (and having the newly-acquired ability to trigger an off-camera flash) and found no other subject of interest beside yours truly, I proceeded to my first official self-in-mirror CLS camwhoring session. 



 

That's generally how I look in the mirror (flip the picture horizontally and you'll see my real self). And that's how I took the photo --- camera towards the mirror, eyes looking at camera in the mirror (to establish proper eye contact with the viewer). You can see where my shadow is at the back --- from the position of the shadow you'll know that the flash was positioned at the lower left side, aimed to the upper right.  


 

I wanted more shadow contrast on my shirt so I changed to a stronger flash setting.  


 

Changed pose and angle of the flash. I lost detail in this shot, there was little shadow contrast to communicate shape and depth. 


 

Harder shadow on the neck. Notice that since I have black hair, the dark background made my hair lose its detail. For this reason, I need a second off-camera flash aimed at the back of my head for backlighting.



 

Held the flash pointed upwards from below the face. Some harsh shadows communicate shape, but the angle of the flash needs improvement I think.  


 

My favorite photo of the set. Some shadows on the shirt and face, although the flash direction could be improved. As with previous photos, the hair seems blended into the background, therefore a backlight is needed. For this reason alone, I might consider purchasing a second smaller (cheaper) speedlight.  



Creating the above pictures would not be possible without my latest procured camera accessory, the Phottix Tetra wireless flash remote trigger. 

 

Looking forward to more CLS (not necessarily camwhoring) photos with this gadget! 

By the way, which of my camwhoring photos above do you like best?