I am endlessly fascinated how people adorn themselves. The face becomes a blank canvas, and the sky is the limit in various cultures around the world. One of my favorite events to photograph is the Jember Fashion Carnival in Jember, East Java, Indonesia. Children as young as five years old participate, and the face decoration, the costumes, and the creativity that goes into putting this altogether is second to none. Most of the day was overcast yesterday, and that was ideal because shooting portraits outdoors is always best in diffused light. That means that the subjects aren't squinting from a bright sun and contrast is held to a minimum. In addition, contrary to what many people think, bright colors show best in soft light.
Some of the participants wore outrageously colored contact lenses, like the young man below, and that made for exceptional portraiture. For all of these pictures, I used a 70-200mm focal length and 400 ISO.
All of the models were extremely friendly and happy to pose for pictures. By moving in tight I could avoid busy backgrounds and focus on the unique makeup and the details of their costumes. During the parade itself, I photographed the entire costumes with the thought in mind to replace the backgrounds entirely.
