Introduction

Fashion photography is all about fantasy. It is about creating an alternate reality, even if that reality is just a perfected version of what already exists.

Fashion photography can be whatever you want it to be:

• It can be Zen-like and peaceful, or it can be rebellious and in your face.

• It can be delicate and refined, or it can be tough and gritty.

• It can be quiet and muted, or it can be bold and colorful.

Fashion is about fantasy—whatever fantasy you envision. As a photographer, this freedom is truly rewarding.

The ability to create fantasy appeals to many clients. Most people don’t want to just look like themselves in a portrait; they want to look like the “perfected” version of themselves, or better yet the version of themselves they see in their mind. People usually don’t desire the reality; they desire the fantasy. They can have the reality any day, but they come to you to create what they wish they could be or experience what they wish they could have.

In fashion photography, you allow your subjects to become part of a piece of art. There are no restrictions and no right answers. I love fashion photography because of the freedom it allows. I can envision anything I want and make it come to fruition through photography. If I want to create an image of a girl wearing a huge wig with rain and fog surrounding her, nothing is stopping me. In fact, I have done that very shoot, as seen in Figure I.1. I had a vision, and I wanted to bring the vision of this beauty to life. That type of creativity and freedom is liberating. Fashion photography has no restrictions.

Figure I.1. In this shoot, I was able to create bizarre hair in an unusual scene purely for the sake of enjoyment and creativity.

If you can imagine it, you can create it. You are not limited by what exists, because you can modify your subject or environment in Photoshop. You can put subjects on an entirely different background, change the color of the clothes they are wearing, make them skinnier, and do pretty much anything you can imagine.

Why This Book

Tens of thousands of people want to become fashion photographers. There are even TV shows about them. But the field is just not practical for most people. It is extremely competitive, with unrealistic career demands for most individuals. You have to be willing to travel a lot, live in a big city, work odd hours, and often put up with a lot of stress.

The concepts of fashion photography, however, are applicable to any portrait or wedding photographer. That’s where this book comes in. Other books instruct people on how to become fashion photographers, including getting established in the industry or working with models. This book introduces you to the concepts of fashion photography and shows you how to put these concepts to work in your wedding and portrait photography. This book is practical and geared at making you money. It doesn’t just focus on the career path of a fashion photographer or the creative process. It covers everything from fashion poses to essential fashion lighting techniques to important ways to retouch your clients to achieve the fashion look. You can take these skills to the bank now by offering your clients unique fashion flair in their portraits.

This book opens by discussing the preparation required to add a fashion twist to your images, including location and styling, and then the poses, lighting, and equipment needed on the day of your shoot. It then covers in-camera techniques, fashion lighting essentials, Photoshop techniques, and a variety of other tricks to achieve the fashion flair aesthetic. The book would not be complete without the final section on business tips that will really make the fashion flair approach work for you. Marketing, social networking, products, and services can all be found in Part V.

Your Clients and Fashion Flair

My clients love my fashion flair approach to photography. Many young men and women want to feel like models, even if that is not their career—in fact, especially if that is not their career. With shows like America’s Next Top Model, people are craving the chance to look or at least feel like a model. You can give your clients the opportunity to fulfill this desire.

The fashion flair approach turns a portrait from a chore into a great experience. People no longer just show up at a studio in plain clothing, smile, and pose. Instead, they prepare clothing, maybe get their hair and makeup done, and show up at an exciting location. The shoot becomes their own. You make the shoot an experience to remember and the images something to brag about.

My clients know that with me as their photographer, they can express something about themselves. Whether it’s in their clothing or in their location, we work together to create a piece of art. People don’t want to hang a boring picture of themselves on the wall. But when a photo becomes a piece of art that the client is incorporated into, it becomes something to be proud of. This book will show you how to do that.

Your Business and Fashion Flair

Each photographer has a different style of shooting and desired aesthetics, but no true photographer wants to be boring or typical. The point of photography is to have a unique vision, which can translate into your portrait and wedding photography.

People can go to Wal-Mart to get boring headshots. But if they want unique quality imagery, they need to go to a professional photographer. If they want imagery with a fashion twist, they need to come to you.

By distinguishing yourself with your fashion flair approach, people won’t seek out your services for boring portraits. You won’t be expected to stick someone in front of a background and snap a few static, formal portraits. Instead, they’ll seek you out for striking and powerful imagery—imagery that says something about them or stands out as a piece of art. The image in Figure I.2 is a piece of art that tells a story, captures a moment, and would look stunning as a huge print on a wall. This image is what fashion flair is all about.

Figure I.2. I took this image in a train yard at sunset. It embodies the fashion flair approach of photography through its use of location, lighting, styling, and posing.

Distinguishing yourself with fashion flair can be invaluable to your bottom line. Because you will offer boutique and high-end services, you can ask a much higher price for your photography. This boutique approach will bring clients your way who already have a passion for photography and often a budget to invest in it.

Don’t be ordinary. Be extraordinary ... and charge for it. Be couture.