annsley – Brandon Jackson Photography

Feature Friday | Annsely at the Dive Motel

Time for a bit of fun in the sun for this Feature Friday with Annsley Wood at the Dive Motel. Last summer, Annsley and I were looking at doing a styled shoot together. She worked with the kind people over at The Luxury Label Nashville to get some fantastic clothes and accessories to have on hand.

This was great but of course we needed to find the right venue for the shoot. With most venues closed down or on very limited access thanks to COVID, this took a few weeks of calling around before we landed a location.

The plan was for a poolside look and feel so we really couldn’t have asked for a better spot than the Dive Motel in east Nashville. The Dive Motel just drips with character and the design of the pool lends itself well to shallow “just in the water” top down images. The image at the beginning of this article is an example of how the sloping end of the pool lets one shoot straight down over a subject that is in just a few inches of water.

We had a limited time to shoot so we wanted to make sure we made the best use of out time. The Dive Motel space is relatively small so it was easy to shift our shooting spots and create a variety of looks quickly. It also helped that Annsley was able to change outfits very swiftly.

Who’s Ready for Summer?

I know I’m ready for fun (as well as work) in the sun. It’s time to start thinking about things like poolside images not unlike this favorite from my session last year with Annsley Wood at the Dive Motel. This was my first time shooting there and I’m definitely heading back this summer. This image was shot in afternoon sun (behind me) with a Godox AD600 strobe to my left and a couple of feet above me. Thanks to The Luxury Label Nashville for providing the Gucci top Annsley’s wearing here.

HMUA: Amanda Dowd

Sony A7rII

Sony 85mm 1.8 lens

Glow 48″ parabolic softbox (front diffuser removed)

Ethereal Annsley

Annsley Wood looking lovely and ethereal in this image from our shoot at the end of last summer. The late afternoon sun was truly on our side this afternoon as it was setting behind her at camera left. A silver reflector was used at camera right to provide some fill and add that spark to Annsley’s eyes.

Sony A7r II
Sony 85mm 1.8 lens
Lastolite Tri-Grip reflector

A Bright, Sun-shiney Day

A lovely sunny afternoon with @Annsley.Wood at On Track Studios in Franklin. Carmen and I brought this chair out from our home (Carmen’s awesome idea!) and placed it initially under a large tree at the studio’s location. Once it got to be around 4:30 in the afternoon we discovered there was the spot where the setting sun (behind and to Annsley’s right) was reflecting off of the studio windows. The fill light coming from the windows, which are about 80 feet away, had a fantastic quality and it plainly shows in this shot. As a result, this image has very little post processing done as it simply doesn’t need it.

Sony A7r II
Sony 85mm 1.8 (at f 2.2)
Daylight + sun reflecting from a distant ( 80ft) window for fill

Reach for the Sky!

Seems like just the other day we were enjoying the Summer sun at The Dive Motel for this shoot. Annsley Wood of course did an amazing job in front of the camera and Amanda handled the hair and makeup making my job of final editing super easy! Annsley’s showing off this top from Gucci provided by The Luxury Label Nashville for this shoot. Put it all together and this is definitely one of my favorites from this shoot.

HMUA – Amanda Dowd
Sony A7r II
Sony 24-105 4.0 lens

Amazing Annsley

The amazing Annsley Wood working the space in front of my lens from the wheel of Darin Simmons’ VW Westfalia camper van. The view through the windshield creates this lovely, faded color palette and yet Annsley’s eyes cut right through the glare and grab the viewer here. So many more images coming from this shoot.

VW Westfalia hired from: instagram.com/trippintn_/
Sony A7r II
Sony 85mm 1.8
Godox AD 600 w/48″ parabolic softbox to camera left for fill

Summer Extension

Stretching Summer out as long as I can here with another poolside shot with Annsley Wood at The Dive Motel & Swim Club in Nashville, TN. This shot was an idea of Annsley’s based on an image she saw in Vogue Italia. The tote shown here was provided by The Luxury Label Nashville.

HMUA: Amanda Dowd
Sony A7R II
Sony 85mm 1.8 (at f2.0)
Godox AD600 strobe
Glow 48″ EZ-Lock parabolic softbox

Too Cool at the Pool

The lovely Annsely Wood showing off these CHANEL sunglasses (courtesy of The Luxury Label Nashville) during our recent shoot at the Dive Motel in Nashville. Captured as the sun was going behind the nearby trees, the light is a mix of daylight and a Godox AD600 in a 48″ parabolic softbox with only the inner baffle in place. This produced a nice strong, yet broad light to really make this image pop. Amanda Dowd took care of the hair, makeup, as well as assisting for this shoot.

HMUA: Amanda Dowd

Sony A7r II

Sony 24-105 f 4.0 lens

Godox AD 600 strobe (above and to left)

Glow 48″ parabolic softbox

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