Tutorial: Fashion Photography Expansion

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Tutorial: Fashion Photography Expansion

I uploaded this speed editing video to my youtube channel a long time ago, and I finally thought it was time to write up a tutorial to follow it! Above is the final image and below is the image I took straight out of the camera. You can watch the youtube speed editing video to see my process, and below I have finally written up the steps I took to create this image! Enjoy!

01. Lightroom Editing // This is the original image straight out of the camera, no editing done yet whatsoever. The first thing I do to any image is open it in Lightroom. In Lightroom I applied my Wild Bird Preset from Digital Film Action to colour my photo to work as a base for my expansion. I made a few minor tweaks to the exposure and white balance and opened up my image in Photoshop.

02. The Expansion Process // In Photoshop begins my expansion process. I didn't plan to create an expansion with this photo when I first took it, so it took a creative eye to find the right background to stitch to the photo from other photos I took on the day.

I went through all the photos I took around this one and picked out the ones I could use the background of to add to this image. I then imported all those photos to Lightroom and synced the edits so all the images would have the same colours and tones applied to them to make the stitching process easier.

03. Stitching Images Together // When expanding a photo with a busy background, I aim to focus on particular areas and expand the image slowly rather than doing all of it at once. In this case, I started with the top left hand corner first as it was the easiest in my opinion - it was very blurred bokeh trees that were easy to blend together. I used the Lasso tool to select a similar looking area from another photo then dragged it into place on the image I am working on. I add a layer mask and use a low opacity (about 20%), soft brush to slowly blend in the edges.

04. The Stitching Continues // I continue with the process on focusing on particular areas to expand my image. First I expanded the top left hand corner of blurred colour and texture, next I focused on the lavender field in the bottom left hand corner, then the blurred flower bush in the right corner. Finally I added some more blurred bokeh tree to cover the structure that was distracting in the background of the top right hand corner.

There are no real shortcuts to expanding images like this. It takes a lot of patience to find the right sections that you can copy from other pictures to blend into the one you're working on. After about an hours worth of work, I was finished!

05. Subtle Details // Once I saw my image expanded as a whole, I could start getting creative with the extra details. The first thing I added is very subtle but I thought added a nice touch. I used a large, soft brush at an opacity of about 5% and painted with a solid white colour in the bottom of the right hand corner. This was to add to the washed out back-lit look of the photo.

06. Adding the Bugs // During this shoot, I photographed some closeups of Elle in front of a lavender bush and there were hundreds of little bugs flying around catching the light around her which I thought was a lovely addition to the photo. I really wanted to add that aspect to this image I was working on, so I collected a few different bugs from those close up portraits and added them to this picture. I made sure to add a variety of these bugs - some are in focus, some are on her hair or over her clothes and some are blurred out from the depth of field.

Just like the background images I used for the expansion, I also applied the same Lightroom presets to the bug portraits to make sure they would fit in to the picture. I then selected the individual bugs with the Lasso tool and with a layer mask and a soft brush, painted out the background until they blended in and looked natural.

07. Adding Light Leaks & Final Colour Grading // One of the last details I want to add to the image is another light leak, this time opposite to the first one I added. I create a new layer, select a vibrant yellow/orange colour in my palette, then use the Gradient Tool set to a Radial Gradient to create a circle on the top left hand side of the image. I set the layer to Screen and lower the opacity until the light leak blends in.

The final step I take in editing an expansion is one last colour grade. I first colour grade the image in sections. I use the Lasso Tool to make a selection around Elle and set the feather to 200, then use the RGB Curves tool to increase the contrast and tweak the colours. I also colour the blurred flower bush to the right of the image on it's own as well as the lavender bush. I then create one last RGB Curve layer to colour the image overall and we're done!

And here's a little fun GIF I want to leave you with of all the process images I saved throughout my editing! Please leave a comment letting me know what you think and if you'd like to see more blog posts like this.

If you would like to see more tutorials, please check out my Digital Film Actions Blog which is updated twice a week, as well as my YouTube Channel - also updated weekly with tutorials and daily with vlogs!

 

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white sands

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white sands

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sea of purple

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sea of purple

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first day of summer

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first day of summer

After spending the majority of my year overseas, the first thing I wanted to do when I got back to Australia was to experience sunset in one of my favourite places. I love the way the beach seems endless here, the water washes so far up to shore it creates a mirror on the sand for the sun and clouds to reflect themselves in it. This place never fails to make me feel happy. Warm and free on the first day of summer.

edited with my L.A. Lightroom Preset

 

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jackson

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jackson

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new zealand instagram diary

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new zealand instagram diary

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mount aspiring national park, new zealand

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mount aspiring national park, new zealand

On a rare afternoon off during our week of shooting editorials in Wanaka, New Zealand, the team and I decided to go for a little adventure. Only a few minutes away from where we were staying is the amazing Mount Aspiring National Park. We drove through fjords, pulled over on the side of the road and went running into the landscape to get up close to waterfalls. All you could see around you were snow capped mountains and crystal clear water rushing through the park. There were hundreds and hundreds of sheep that afternoon, all running through the fields and around the gravel road we were driving on. We stayed at the National Park until the very last glimmer of light had disappeared before heading home for the night.

all photos edited with my New York Lightroom Preset

 

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fog peak, new zealand

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fog peak, new zealand

As part of the editorials that I was photographing for Well Travelled Bride while in Wanaka, New Zealand, we were taken on a private helicopter ride to the top of Fog Peak - a snow-capped mountain in Mount Aspiring National Park. The views on the flight there were incredible, we were all laughing and screaming and taking so many photos on the way there. We were dropped off on the top of a snowy mountain where all you could see around you is more snow and more mountains. It felt amazing hopping out of that helicopter and being the first person ever making footprints in the snow.

We spent a little while that afternoon shooting part of out editorial here, warming up our bride model Alex in between photos as she was not surprisingly freezing up here in Kelsey’s sequin wedding dress! At the end of our shoot, we left the bride and groom on top of the mountain and we all headed back to the helicopter for a few last photos. We circled around our couple with my door open and it was one of the most exhilarating things I’ve ever done! Our behind the scenes photographer John captured a few photos of this which you can see on my Behind the Scenes blog post. 

Once again a big thank you to Lake Wanaka Tourism and Aspiring Helicopters for making this happen!

Here are the final photos from our crazy whirlwind afternoon of getting flown to the top of Fog Peak.

You can see all the final photos from our editorial here!

 

all photos edited with The Wedding Collection for Lightroom

 

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beach blues | michaela wain for hello molly

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beach blues | michaela wain for hello molly

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well travelled bride. wanaka, new zealand.

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well travelled bride. wanaka, new zealand.

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roadtrip to paradise, new zealand

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roadtrip to paradise, new zealand

On a rare afternoon off during our week working in Wanaka, New Zealand our team decided to head off on a road trip to Paradise. From Wanaka we made our way to Queenstown making a quick stop at the Cadrona Hotel and the Famous Bra Fence on the way there. From Queenstown we officially hit the road for Paradise. We stopped off more times than I can remember on the side of the road to take a picture of the sun hitting the mountains or the clouds lazily hanging over the lakes that we passed by. If the state of the car is to decide how much fun we had that day.. you’ll see by the end of this blog post just how much we got up to!

 

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well travelled bride BTS. wanaka, new zealand

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well travelled bride BTS. wanaka, new zealand

While I was in Poland, Kelsey Genna & Yvette Edwards emailed me asking if I wanted to be part of a new venture they was undergoing with the title Well Travelled Bride. I jumped at the opportunity, loving the idea and as quickly as I was home in Sydney for a few short days, I was already on another plane again heading towards New Zealand. I had no idea what to expect coming in to Wanaka, but if the flight there was anything to go by, I knew I was in for a treat. I’ve never experienced a flight where almost all the people sitting in the airplane were looking out the window. We flew over the New Zealand alps, snow covered and doused in a warm glow from the sunset for about half an hour before landing in the most beautiful airport I’ve ever been to in Queenstown. As soon as I stepped off the stairs of the plane I was smiling from ear to ear, admiring all the mountains surrounding us.

My first day in New Zealand was spent location scouting with the Wanaka Tourism Board and John Bozinov, another photographer on board for the editorial. We visited mountains, lakes so clear that if the water wasn’t moving you wouldn’t even be able to tell it was there, fjords, beautiful houses nestled in the countryside and countless of beautiful sights we would be able to turn into locations for our coming shoots. 

Even though our week was packed busy with full day shoots, the team and I managed to spend some time enjoying our wonderful accommodation in Wanaka, going for nights out in Queenstown, adventuring through the local Mount Aspiring National Park and visiting the local sights in Wanaka such as That Wanaka Tree. We made a couple of trips to the picturesque town of Queenstown throughout our week staying and shooting in Wanaka. The little city is shadowed by a tall wall of redwood trees that you can see from the streets as you walk around. I was in love with it! We came back on our last night for a couple of drinks to celebrate an amazing week of working together. We ate at Ferg Burger, which is a must do in Queenstown - every time we saw it the line was out the door and trickling onto the street walkway. 

A few moments from our time in Wanaka I will never forget include a day where we were taken on a private helicopter ride to the top of Fog Peak. I flew around our models with the helicopter door open and it was truly something I will never forget. You can read the whole story and see all the pictures from that day here!

We had a day scheduled to shoot at the top of Treble Cone. Early in the morning we packed the van full of goodies and headed up to Treble Cone to have a picnic with a view. When we got to the entrance of the mountain and started driving up in our van, Yvette didn't have much faith that she could get us up to the top. So we sat around in the carpark, our hopes deflated until she decided to run up to some strangers and ask if they could drive us up instead. We met Tibone and his friend Alex who drove us up to the top, two French snow boarding boys who have been living in New Zealand for the past four months. We ended up having our picnic at the top of treble cone after all! 

On our last day in New Zealand, we were treated to a special jetboat ride through the fjords of Mount Aspiring National Park thanks to Wilkin Jetboats. In the morning, we made our way towards the jetboat where we set off on our adventure. I’ve never seen water so clear and so blue before, I couldn't stop taking pictures of it. We were taken through the valley of the mountains where we would get closer and closer to the snow in the distance. It felt like we were being taken through completely untouched land that no one has walked on or been to before. We were dropped off on an island where we had a picnic set up and waiting for us. We had some snacks, red wine and some well known kiwi food including the whitebait fritters that were caught locally and cooked right in front of us. 

Wanaka, you were seriously one amazing adventure and I’m dreaming of coming back one day soon! 

I just wanted to say a big BIG thank you to

Well Travelled Bride
Wanaka Tourism Board &
Air New Zealand

for letting this wonderful adventure happen!

all photos edited with my Wedding Collection Lightroom Preset

 

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ireland instagram diary

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ireland instagram diary

Follow me on my instagram accounts:

 

main account  @julia trotti

personal account  @juls.trotti

 

I also have some exciting news because I've started sharing more fashion shoot behind the scenes videos + Lightroom & Photoshop Tutorials on my YouTube Channel! Be sure to subscribe as I upload 2 new videos every week x

 

You can also see all the final photos from this trip in my Ireland Photo Diary + Travel Guide blog post!

 

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seaside | steph claire smith for ladyluna summer campaign

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seaside | steph claire smith for ladyluna summer campaign

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ireland photo diary + travel guide

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ireland photo diary + travel guide

I have previously written travel guides for the European cities of Gdansk, Krakow and Szczecin and today I bring to you my personal travel guide for Ireland! You can see my photos throughout my week roadtrip through Ireland in a few different blog posts including Slane, Kilkenny, Wiklow Mountains National Park, Dublin Botanic Gardens & Howth Cliffs. See the travel guide below!

Getting there // I flew from Gdansk to Dublin airport to get to Ireland. It was a fairly short three hour flight (compared to being used to usually taking 14 hour flights anywhere from Australia!) that went by quickly. The majority of airlines fly to Dublin, both from Europe and across the world. You can also catch a ferry from the UK to Ireland. 

Getting around // I spent the majority of my time in Ireland exploring the countryside, which I strongly recommend is best/most convenient by car. You have the ease of being able to go wherever, whenever you want, you can stop the side of the road to take photos whenever you see something interesting (which dan and I did way too many times!) and you're more available to going on spontaneous road trips. On our first day in Ireland, we visited Slane and from there decided to take random roads to explore the island and accidentally almost ended up in North Ireland where all the road signs are only in Gaelic. I feel like I should make a note that the highways in Ireland are smooth and spacious but pretty much all the other roads are SO tiny, they seem like one lane but are two way, you have cobblestone fences half a metre away from your car while you're driving through them and most of the time you can't see around the corner because of all the trees and overgrown shrubbery. If you're not up for the idea of driving in a different country or on the narrow winding roads but still want to explore the countryside, there are lots of coach busses that you can book day tours with that will drive you to different country towns. 

If you want to spend most of your time in Dublin, then I would suggest to forget about a car completely and just explore the city by foot. There are so many stores, pubs and restaurants crammed next to each other you would miss out on too much driving through the main streets of the city. Everything seems to be walking distance in Dublin. Dan and I spent a day on one side of the river at the botanic gardens and managed to make our way across to the other side and ended up at Dublin castle without an issue. 

Where to stay // The Irish countryside is known for its amazing bed and breakfast accommodations. So without a doubt I would say to go online and look for bed and breakfasts to stay at while in Ireland and you probably can't go wrong. While in Slane we stayed at this gorgeous b&b, they had a cute kitty that followed us around while we took pictures in their huge gardens. This place is a very close drive to all the main attractions in Slane. We also got fed an amazing breakfast when we woke up in the morning, we didn't need to eat for the majority of the day!

In Kilkenny we booked a guest house accommodation, and although this wasn't a traditional bed and breakfast, the owners were very welcoming and would bake fresh Irish bread for everyone every morning and provide local jams, honey and organic farm yogurt for breakfast. We grew to love our little but very spacious room in Kilkenny. It was situated in the most perfect and convenient location, if we ever come back I would stay here again in a heartbeat!

What to do // I can only offer advice for things to do that I personally experienced, so I’m going to go through each of the towns I visited while I was in Ireland! 

Slane // First stop is the beautiful town of Slane. There are an abundance of things to do in Slane starting from experiencing the historic town itself. Lined with limestone buildings the town of Slane is built alongside the River Boyne. In and close by to the town you can visit Hill of Slane, Slane Castle, Newgrange and Hill of Tara Tombs, plus so many more! Just take a look at TripAdvisor for the endless list of places to visit! It is worth mentioning that something we didn’t know while visiting Slane is that most of the places to visit you need to have an online pre-booked tour or have your bed & breakfast book you a tour the day before. We missed out of seeing a couple of things since we didn’t know this and were sadly in Slane for only a short time. 

Kilkenny // Walking through the city of Kilkenny and visiting Kilkenny Castle is an absolute must! The city is huge with a maze of streets filled with cafes, restaurants and pubs. If you make your way to Kilkenny Castle, be sure to walk around the castle grounds and make your way to the Canal Walk by the River Nore. Nearby are the beautiful gardens of Butler House, a hidden gem tucked away on a side street near the city centre. Lyrath Estate Hotel also makes a great late morning or afternoon getaway, a mansion covered in vines just outside of Kilkenny for a perfect brunch or high tea spot.

Dublin // I personally spent the majority of my time in Ireland exploring the towns in the countryside, so I only had half a day to spend in Dublin. During the day, I visited Dublin Botanic Gardens. There is no entry fee to the gardens, only a small 2 Euro parking fee if you are driving. I couldn't recommend the gardens more! There are around 5 greenhouses with varying themes including a Palm garden, Succulent garden and Orchid House. The grounds are huge and you could easily spend a couple of hours walking around through the rose gardens and getting lost within the abundance of Cherry Trees, Cedar Trees, the list goes on!

If you are just visiting Dublin while in Ireland and don’t want to venture too far away from the main city to visit other towns, there are still plenty of things to do! Howth Cliffs is almost an island, connected to Ireland by two main roads and only a half an hour car or train ride from the centre of Dublin. You can easily spend a day in Howth exploring the small town, eating the delicious fish and chips and spending time hiking in various spots around the island. A few of my personally recommended hikes include the main Cliff Walk, Bailey Lighthouse and Red Rock Beach.

One last spot only a 30-60 minute drive from Dublin (depending where you want to go within the park), is Wicklow Mountains National Park. This is definitely a full day trip where you can spend your time driving around the National Park, pulling over in various spots and going for a small hike. There aren’t too many “official” hiking and viewpoint spots within the park, the gist of the park is you drive around and when you see something, you pull over and make your way towards it. We saw SO many cars pulled over in the most random spots throughout the day, with us being no exception. A few of my more memorable stops in the park include Lough Tay Guinness Lake, Powerscourt Waterfall (although this was the only spot that was extremely busy it was still beautiful), Glendalough Monastic Site, Glendalough Lake and many others viewpoints which don’t even have a name on a map!  

 

I hope you’ve enjoyed my Ireland Travel Guide and Photo Diary! If you have any more suggestions or things that you absolutely loved experiencing while in Ireland, please share them with me in the comments! I was only in Ireland for a short time and would love to go back one day to explore even more of what this beautiful country has to offer.

all photos edited with my Gdansk Lightroom Preset

 

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the tide | white magazine editorial

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the tide | white magazine editorial

Editorial for issue 30 of White Magazine.

 

models  phoebe @ chadwicks & madalynne

styling  carla burrell

styling assistants  renee mantle & mikhayla marxsen

hair + makeup  abbey love

florals  little wren flowers

for a full list of jewellery and dress credits
have a look in issue 30 of white magazine! 

 

all photos edited with my San Francisco Lightroom Preset!

 

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poland instagram diary

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poland instagram diary

Follow me on my instagram accounts:

 

main account  @juliatrotti

personal account  @juls.trotti

 

You can also see all the final photos from this trip in my Gdansk, Krakow and Szczecin blog posts!

 

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howth cliffs, ireland

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howth cliffs, ireland

On our last day in Ireland, we had some free time so Dan and I were trying to decide how we should spend it. While we were flying into Ireland, we remembered seeing these amazing looking cliffs that were close to the city. After doing a little research we headed towards them to explore up close what we had seen from above a week earlier.

We ended up driving to the town of Howth, which is almost an island, connected to Ireland by two main roads. We spent the rest of the afternoon hiking up and down the cliff edges, my fingers running through the fields of purple flowers as I walked along the rocks at the top. I’m so glad we came here, it is just another little spot that feels so special to me after spending some time admiring what was around us. The water looked so blue and icy from the top and the wind was relentless, but Howth was a spectacular spot that I couldn’t recommend more to anyone who visits Dublin.

That night we headed back to the city one last time for some dinner and drinks. We had a date with the airport at 4am the next morning so we didn’t bother booking accommodation. Instead we opted to sleep in our car for a mere 3 hours that night before we had to wake up and head off. At the airport we sat down waiting to board our plane back to Gdansk, sleep deprived and sad we were leaving such a beautiful country behind. I loved Ireland so much though, that I’m sure I’ll be back in no time!

all photos edited with my Gdansk Lightroom Preset

 

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wiklow mountains national park, ireland

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wiklow mountains national park, ireland

Nothing makes me happier than being on the road, surrounded by trees, fields, clouds, basically anything natural. Ireland is the epitome of this. On our second last day in Ireland, Dan and I travelled from Kilkenny to Wilkow Mountains National Park and spent the day driving around the winding mountain roads, chasing sunlight in between the rain.

We pulled over more times than I can remember, running in the direction of something that caught our eye from the road. Whether it was through fields, pathways or fjords, we explored everything we could during our day in Wiklow. The wind was icy all day even though it was the middle of summer, but I remember I was so happy that the goosebumps on my skin didn’t matter. 

One of my favourite spots in the park was a field of grass so vast you couldn’t see where it ended - it just connected back up to the mountains looming in the distance. As I got out of the car, the wind swung my door open sharply and my hair went flying in every direction. Dan and I ran as fast and as far out as we could into the fields, laughing hysterically and giving each other piggy back rides on the way there. When we abruptly stopped running, shoes muddy from the damp grass and wind howling into our ears, it was a moment where life really sunk in. I am me. I am here. I am happy. SO so happy right now. I never wanted to leave.

Each location we visited in Ireland had it’s own little piece of magic that I could easily say every time that “this is my favourite place”. I’ve come to the conclusion that Ireland in general is just a marvel of green and hidden secrets. Every town we visited and every park we explored holds a special place for me. I would go back to Ireland to explore more in a heartbeat.

all photos edited with my Gdansk Lightroom Preset

 

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backyard baby

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backyard baby

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