A Fashion Photography Guide
Calling all fashionistas! Wouldn’t it be mythological to combine your passion for photography with your passion for fashion?
Oh, wait. You can!
Fashion photography is a large industry that will only alimony getting bigger. And it doesn’t only include photographing upper malleate in New York or Paris. Local merchantry owners, friends selling vintage suit online, and plane kids who love to play dress-up need malleate photographers just as much.
Here’s how to learn the specifics of malleate photography and get your start in this heady genre!
The Basics of Malleate Photography
Every genre of photography is a little different. Technical skills, equipment needed, and technique can all vary — sometimes by quite a bit.
On its surface, you might seem that malleate photography and portrait photography are pretty similar. That is, you’ll use the same equipment and techniques to photograph both types.
However, though the scenes are similar, the subject is completely different. In portraits, your subject is the person. You might fill the unshortened frame with their squatter so that their suit isn’t plane visible and it is still a portrait but there is no way it could be a malleate image.
In malleate photography, your subject is the clothing, not the person wearing it. If you are photographing the suit as a product, the unshortened purpose of the image is to show off the suit and make the viewer desire it.
Gear
Gear can be all over the map in malleate photography. You can take spanking-new photos with natural light or you might set up multiple studio strobes or flashes with giant softboxes to get “perfect” lighting. It depends somewhat on your upkeep and the purpose of your images.
For lens choice, many malleate photographers choose a 50mm. It is an inexpensive lens that offers a true-to-life perspective. You can get good bokeh if you like and it is relatively fast for shooting in lower lighting conditions. (Though most malleate photography is not shot in low light).
Some malleate photographers prefer a 35mm. This can be helpful for shooting in small spaces since spare bedrooms or other spaces are often turned into makeshift studios.
Posing
Posing is very important in malleate photography. Depending on the garment, you’ll want to show off how it gently hugs the curves, shapes and supports the body, or provides all-day comfort. The right posing will communicate these ideas.
Though the model is secondary, you want to convey that the suit makes the model squint good. Flip through Pinterest or malleate magazines to get some ideas of poses used by professional malleate photographers.
You may notice that females are rarely photographed standing straight and facing the camera. Kicking a hip out to the side, resting the weight on one leg, and turning well-nigh 45 degrees to the camera help underscore her curves. This dimension will requite increasingly life and depth to the suit so alimony this in mind while photographing.
If you’re working with professional models, you’ll find posing to be super simple. They once know how to position themselves and you won’t have to worry well-nigh it too much.
If you’re working with newer models, you have to be prepared to requite increasingly direction. Bring a few reference examples on your phone or (gasp!) printed off on paper so you can show the model what you want.
Composition Rules
Compositional rules for malleate photography are increasingly or less similar to portraits. However, don’t forget what your subject is.
Negative space virtually the model is a unconfined technique, expressly if you want space for ad copy, but you don’t want to leave too much negative space and make the suit too small. People don’t want to need a magnifying glass to see the suit details.
Even though the person isn’t the focus, you still want to be enlightened of where you yield the image. As in portrait photography, you should stave cropping the model at joints (knees, wrists, ankles, etc.)
Full soul shots are increasingly worldwide in malleate photography considering you want to show off the clothing. However, closeups are moreover unconfined to largest capture details.
Use lines or curves in the environment to “point out” your subject or frame your subject with doors, windows, and other strong shapes.
Working with Your Model
Again, though the model is not the focus, you still want him or her to express the right vibe. You want them to exude happiness, comfort, relaxation, or whatever feeling the suit is supposed to inspire.
A nervous model isn’t going to produce the results you want.
When you start shooting with a new model, don’t swoop into the heavy stuff right away. Chat a little first to put them at ease and let them get to know you.
As you start shooting, it can be helpful to take increasingly posed portrait-style images first. As the model relaxes you can move into increasingly candid-looking poses with the model sitting, standing, and walking around.
Actively squint for positive feedback to requite to your model. Stave negative words like “no” or “not like that”. Redirect instead and lavish praise on the things they’re doing right. This will help them squint increasingly relaxed and happy in the images. Stressing your model out is definitely not a unconfined way to get wondrous images!
Once both of you are really in the swing of things, you can whip out the Pinterest model poses you wanted to try.
Have fun with it! Your (and expressly your model’s) excitement during the shoot will come out beautifully in the final product.
Photographing Suit to Sell Online
A lot of the malleate photography work you’ll run into these days is with small merchantry owners selling suit online.
Many people think it is sufficient to show the suit spread out on the floor. However, to really be successful in suit sales online, you need images that are increasingly true-to-life.
You can probably attest to this yourself when shopping online. It is easier to envision how the suit will squint on you when a person (or at least a mannequin) is wearing it or when it is spread on the floor.
In this type of malleate photography, it isn’t unchangingly necessary to have the model’s throne in the shot. A plain preliminaries is usually weightier and you want to alimony props to a minimum if any.
The point of the image is the piece of suit and you want to fully uncontrived the viewer’s sustentation to the garment.
Sometimes, you might be the only model misogynist for the images. In this case, all you need is a tripod and a method for remotely tripping the shutter.
Photographing yourself can be easier for getting the poses you want or harder considering you can’t see what you’re doing.
A simple way to help with this is to download your camera manufacturer’s app. Major camera manufacturers all offer an app that will indulge you to connect your smartphone to your camera (if it has Wi-Fi abilities).
You can see what the camera sees on your phone screen and plane retread the settings surpassing taking a picture. Put your camera on a 2-second timer to requite you time to hibernate the phone surpassing the shutter clicks.
Photographing Kids
Fashion photography doesn’t unchangingly have to be well-nigh making money. It can simply be a fun way to spend time with your kids or grandkids. If the children in your life love to play dress up, they will love that you get involved and take pictures of them in their fun outfits as well.
This type of photography blurs the line between portraits and malleate photography. While stuff models, your kids are still somewhat the stars of the show!
The main thing to think well-nigh when photographing kids is to alimony it fun and lighthearted. Plane if you want some serious faces as part of the shoot, let them get silly first and it will be easier for them to wifely lanugo once they get the wiggles out. Both whoopee and unslanted shots add depth to your shoot and make things increasingly fun for the kids.
Have fun planning the shoots. Choose backgrounds that support the costumes in terms of mood and verisimilitude or help tell the story. This is key for producing professional-quality images.
Photographing your kids can serve increasingly than one purpose. Spending time with them is unchangingly awesome, but there’s nothing stopping you from using the time and images to help build your photography business.
This is a fantastic way to practice photographing malleate as well as build a portfolio you can use to vamp clients. It can moreover be a unconfined source of social media content you can use to connect with your followers and find increasingly clients.
Make A Splash in Malleate Photography
Fashion photography is an heady genre where you can have a lot of fun. Whether you’re creating product images for an eCommerce store or designing elaborate costume shoots, it’s an superstitious experience!
Interested in learning increasingly well-nigh variegated types of photography? Check out increasingly of our content!
