Fear of Sleep

This shoot was part of the Fatal Phobias prompt for GUNK Collective, featuring a conceptual makeup look by Shannon Addison inspired by the fear of sleep and night terrors. Her design captured the haunting effects of extreme exhaustion — from exaggerated eye bags to a disoriented, dreamlike presence.

To visually enhance the theme, I used strategic backlighting to illuminate frizzy, flyaway hair — evoking the static, restless energy of sleeplessness. The lighting played a key role in expressing the tension between reality and hallucination, amplifying the psychological depth of the concept. The result was a raw, atmospheric set of images that leaned into the uncanny space between dreaming and waking.

MUA and Model - Shannon Addison
Photographer - Aster Cook