Covid-19 FaceTime Photoshoot: Mesha

Instead of getting frustrated about not being able to photograph people in real life, I got inspired by Melissa Isabel’s Instagram account, and decided to start shooting using the FaceTime app. I decided to put the message out there on social media, and Milan-based Mesha was my first booking.

During our 30 minute shoot I remembered how much I loved interacting with people, and quickly worked out how the technical issues could affect the outcome. For this shoot I thought, ‘well, you’re a photographer, so of course you have to use a CAMERA’. So the set-up involved me shooting the images coming through my iPhone, using my Sony a7iii. However, poor wifi notwithstanding (you just won’t get a clear shot without solid wifi), I wasn’t 100 percent happy with the image quality.
I later found out that most FaceTime shoots actually take place using the Live photo setting within FaceTime on either a laptop or phone. But by the time I found that out, I’d actually accepted the image quality, and started to appreciate the blur; it reminded me of vintage photographs, and more importantly, Mesha loved the shots. Nothing made me happier than seeing her friends in her Instagram comments tell me that I had captured who she really was. There’s nothing better. That said, my next few shoots were all done through either my laptop or phone - it was really freeing and I’m definitely getting used to it! If you’d like to book a FaceTime shoot, email me at info@charissekenion.com.