The Ember And The Shadow

The cosplay shoot: The Ember And The Shadow

A clearing at the edge of a wood, with dry grass, fallen branches and a large limb cutting across the scene on a diagonal. The light comes in low and warm, late afternoon in feel, and in one frame the sky opens onto an orange sunset that colours the whole background. The palette stays on rust, burnt earth, black and muted green, and the first blades of grass in front of the lens stay out of focus, like a natural curtain to look through.

Two models occupy the space quietly: they sit on fabrics spread over the ground, lean against the branches, touch and look at each other, then turn back to the lens. One wears an orange dress and a wide-brimmed hat trimmed with lace, black hair, dark lips and a thin pendant at the chest; the other black, red hair, tattoos uncovered on shoulder and arm, rings on her fingers and a pointed hat that looks made of twigs. Around them plenty of props: pumpkins, bones, baskets, drapes, a net that recalls a spider's web.

In the wide shot the pair becomes tiny inside the tangle of wood, and you can see how much the set was built and at the same time left to happen: a pale cloth laid on the ground, sticks, a hat resting among the pumpkins, the light dropping in from behind and flattening everything into a single tone. In another frame they are close together, almost conspiratorial, with something raised between their hands and a basket beside them, and the gesture is enough to suggest a ritual without explaining it.

There is also a single portrait, the red-haired model standing among the vegetation, a small pumpkin held at chest height and her gaze sliding off to one side, out of frame: here the pose turns more inward and the green of the background lets the black of the dress breathe.

It is Halloween with a bit of esotericism inside, and with two models like these the set cooks itself.