One of the things I’d like to do soon is a gold bodypaint shoot. I already have the model lined up but I’m looking for recommendations on which brands have good coverage and also won’t cost an arm and a leg. Also for a full body how long would it take to apply? Also I’d like to use gold foil and I’m wondering what adhesive is used.
Gold leaf - when I shot with this once many moons ago the MUA applied Vaseline to the model's skin for the gold leaf to adhere to.
Full body paint - I have heard that covering a person's skin completely with paint could kill them. No idea if this is true or not.
FiL I read about this only a few weeks ago: it’s not true (very pervasive, plausible-seeming myth derived from the Bond film “Goldfinger”).
Thick body paint will obstruct sweating until the paint breaks down a bit, though, so it’s not something to do in a hot studio on a hot day without precautions for comfort. You could risk heatstroke.
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/gold-blooded-murder-180949433/
Edited by Unfocussed Mike
FiL said
Gold leaf - when I shot with this once many moons ago the MUA applied Vaseline to the model's skin for the gold leaf to adhere to.
Full body paint - I have heard that covering a person's skin completely with paint could kill them. No idea if this is true or not.
I think the latter is a myth based on the film "Goldfinger" ?
Unfocussed Mike said
FiL I read about this only a few weeks ago: it’s not true (very pervasive, plausible-seeming myth derived from the Bond film “Goldfinger”).
Thick body paint will obstruct sweating until the paint breaks down a bit, though, so it’s not something to do in a hot studio on a hot day without precautions for comfort. You could risk heatstroke.
Can heatstroke kill, or does it just cause survivable injuries and/or discomfort?
As long as the paint is non toxic, I can't see how covering your skin with paint is any different from wearing a full latex catsuit.
Yes, heatstroke can kill but it's not a significant risk at normal room temperatures if common sense is applied.
Most photograhic situations aren't hot enough that the subject has the need to sweat profusely to survive, indeed these days most people normally use anti-perspirants to eliminate sweating completely with no ill-effects.
WatkinsPhoto said
As long as the paint is non toxic, I can't see how covering your skin with paint is any different from wearing a full latex catsuit.
Absolutely, any non-breathable fabric would cause worse problems since they would insulate more. Exercising in non-breathable waterproofs is quite unpleasant.
I think more serious concerns would be toxicity, eye harm and staining, again common sense can avoid issues and there are loads of tutorials on YouTube, but personally I'd recommend a good makeup artist experienced in this area, as you are likely to get much better results too.
Mehron gold powder (there are others, bronze, silver etc), mix with small amount of baby oil (for shiny look) apply with small sponge, goes everywhere, makes a mess, have a shower to hand, or use their mixing liquid it will give a matte look.
For foil get leaf or substitute, use a skin adhesive, there's one dancers use to keep socks in place.
Edited by indemnity
Slightly o/t but based on her latest Sunday Lunch video you could ask Toyah...
Just a tip if you're intending doing this full body/nude, use a mua or someone with experience in doing it, don't attempt it yourself unless you're on intimate familiar terms. You'll need to sheet up area of work and not touch anything whilst doing it, afterwards model straight into shower.
FiL said
Unfocussed Mike said
FiL I read about this only a few weeks ago: it’s not true (very pervasive, plausible-seeming myth derived from the Bond film “Goldfinger”).
Thick body paint will obstruct sweating until the paint breaks down a bit, though, so it’s not something to do in a hot studio on a hot day without precautions for comfort. You could risk heatstroke.
Can heatstroke kill, or does it just cause survivable injuries and/or discomfort?
I suppose it could in extremis, yeah!
But you'd know if someone had heatstroke and as a non-painted photographer you'd be in conditions where you'd experience the heat yourself.
The distinction of the whole "painting yourself from head to toe can kill you" myth is traditionally about the idea that something specifically deadly happens when your "skin can't breathe" (which is the unscientific bit).
Whereas really all that body paint seemingly causes heatstroke much the same way clothes do, so a clothed person in the same environment as a naked-but-painted person is going to experience the heat.
I imagine there are stupid paint choices that make it worse, mind you!
Edited by Unfocussed Mike
Mehron powder is the MUA’s preferred choice I believe. Check out this video - very helpful.
Gold body paint: Mehron metallic powered, mixed with either mixing agent or baby oil.
Baby oil is great if you want a sheen to it, and it’s perfectly safe. This is how it turned out for me. Hope it helps.
Edited by OMZ
I would think that the quality of the paint and the experience of those applying it would be of the most importance, doing it on a budget without all the
things in place to do it safely may well put the model at risk, I am sure there are paint products out there designed for this probably breathable and made
with safe ingredients though they wont be the cheapest, I know that wrapping in cling film can cause overheating so it may depend on the paint used.
indemnity said
Mehron gold powder (there are others, bronze, silver etc), mix with small amount of baby oil (for shiny look) apply with small sponge, goes everywhere, makes a mess, have a shower to hand, or use their mixing liquid it will give a matte look.
For foil get leaf or substitute, use a skin adhesive, there's one dancers use to keep socks in place.
Edited by indemnity
+1
This is what I’ve used in the past and it worked really well (Mehron silver powder with baby oil). We applied it with soft goat hair brushes. Around the eyes just the dry powder. I did experiment on myself with the mixing liquid but - as you say, it looks more like stone than a shiny metal and it was very hard to remove!
The baby oil mix does need constant top ups as any contact (finger tips, crossing kegs etc) leaves marks, but the glossy result was well worth the effort.