How I made the Star Catcher

come behind-the-scenes with me

Feb 16, 2024

Years ago, the character for The Star Catcher walked into my head and took up residence of her own accord.

I saw her as a vision: a solitary, silvery fae carrying the night sky in her hands. They trailed off her gown into the woods around her, the branches forming a cathedral overhead.

This is how almost all of my photoshoots start: with a flash of an image in my mind’s eye. The scene gave me a feeling of stillness, apprehension, and melancholy. I didn’t know if this creature was capturing the stars or setting them free.

For two years she stayed with me, living in the back of my mind. I made a sketch of how I originally saw her and tucked it into my pile of future photoshoot ideas, waiting for when the time was right to bring her to life.

That moment came shortly after my husband and I bought our current home in Portland. We left the corporate suburbia we’d been living in, all concrete roads and cookie-cutter apartments, for a hilly, wooded neighborhood closer to town.

One of the things that drew me to the house was the presence of the trees. I can do photos right here? I thought to myself with giddy delight. Before I’d always had to scour for locations, but now, there was an enchanted forest just outside my front door.

Planning the Scene

The process of translating one of my photoshoot ideas into a reality is best described as deconstruction. After spending days, weeks, years, sitting with the character and getting a feel for the vision, I start breaking down the practical steps of how to create the scene.

THE MODEL:

My talented friend and oftentimes muse, Cassie.

THE DRESS:

Beaded and silvery. Usually, I try to source from small independent designers for costumes or make my own, but I defaulted to Amazon for this one.

THE PROPS:

A lantern my mother gave me, dangling between her hands and filled with twinkle lights. I debated about also using paper-cutout stars, but eventually decided against it.

THE LOCATION:

There’s this one trail near my house that dips down between the hills. It has a creek running along the bottom with trees arching overhead. The moment I saw it, I knew it was the perfect spot for the Star Catcher.

Once I’ve figured out all the tangible parts, the next step is to try and convey this strange, beautiful vision to my model. For this, I like to use Milanote; it’s been a lifesaver for creating moodboards. I sent the inspiration to Cassie so she could do her hair and makeup according to the theme.

The Photoshoot Day

We took the photos at dusk on an evening in May. Cassie came over after work to get dressed and then we drove to the edge of the trail so that she wouldn’t have to traipse around my neighborhood in a ballgown.

I set her on the rocks in the middle of the creek, with the water pooling around her. There was a giant log across the back that I knew I’d have to edit out later in Photoshop (photographer’s famous last words). The light was dim under the canopy, dimmer than I’d expected, and it was my first time using the little portable light I’d brought with me. Cassie was a saint, patiently waiting as the evening cooled.

It’s always a strange feeling for me, the moment when I capture The Shot. There’s so much prep and time that goes into planning my projects, that when I finally click the button and know I got it, it feels a little surreal. After only 20 minutes of testing our light and readjusting positions, I pressed the shutter and knew I’d captured the composition that had lived in my head for two years.

At that point, the shoot became an investigation. Knowing that I had the hero image I’d planned for, we started experimenting and exploring different compositions to build out the character’s story. Cassie bravely lay on the rocky ledge along the creek bed so we could capture some close-ups, even when a curious horsefly came to visit.

These unplanned moments are so special to me. They add a level of depth to the character that I’d never imagined.

As Cassie lay in the ferns I began to envision her as a fallen star. Stories like Neil Gaiman’s Stardust and the myth of Asteria came to mind. It was like reading a book for the first time; I was being told the story as much as I was creating it myself through the camera.

When the light faded and the rain started to fall, we packed up and headed back to my house for some hot food and a glass of wine.

Editing the Images

During a shoot and when I finish the final images are the two moments when I feel complete creative fulfillment. However, there’s an important and arduous task that has to take place between them: the Edit.

Digital post-processing is not something that comes naturally to me. I started out as a film photographer, where the only changes I made to my images were some minor dodging and burning.

When it comes to digital photography, my straight-out-of-camera image is more like an underpainting than a finished piece. I’ve spent years teaching myself how to use Lightroom and Photoshop to enhance mood and atmosphere.

This edit was harder than others I’ve done due to the amount of physical changes. I had to remove that damn tree that lay across the back of the creek; I ended up not liking the look of the twinkle lights and removed them in favor of brushed-in stars; I merged two images so I could get Cassie’s posture and expression just right.

Then there were layers of retouching, light-painting, and color-grading to create the mood. I worked on the edit on-and-off for four months. Cassie, who’s shot with me before and knows my process, was ever-patient with my timeline.

I never know when I’m going to finish a photo. I’ll reach a point during editing where, looking at the image before me, I get the same feeling that I had when the vision first came into my mind. That’s how I know a piece is done. It may not look exactly the same as it did in my head, but as long as it feels the same, I know I’ve created what I set out to do.

Seeing the final images of this shoot, I’m filled with a sense of wonder and melancholy. The Star Catcher has transformed into a fallen star. Her brethren swirl around her in a cloud and trail in her wake. They follow her, kept safe in her lantern, to accompany her as she wanders the earth alone.

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