Fashion photography is essential for brands and businesses to inspire their customers and investors. The fashion industry is a multi-billion pound market that does not just revolve around the clothes we wear, but highlights brand concepts and how they translate to the target market.
Fashion photography is a vital element of this. Keep reading our guide to find out why.
What is Fashion Photography?
Fashion photography is a genre of photography (as well as film and literature) concerned with displaying clothing and other fashion items. Fashion photography is most often conducted for advertisements or magazines, including many household names such as Vogue, Harper's Bazaar, Vanity Fair or Cosmopolitan.
One feature of fashion photography that makes it different from "Street Style" photography - is the use of professional models, accessories, and other expertise e.g. hair stylists, makeup artists and fashion stylists. This expertise all has a focus on showcasing fashion and branding in a creative and well-executed manner, providing successful results.
Why Fashion Photography is Important For Brands
A fashion photographer's job is to capture the uniqueness of each model, garment and set by highlighting their truly important qualities. Fashion photography should not be thought of as just photos of clothes, but more so the feeling it creates and inspires about your brand in your target audience.
Great fashion photographers can work alongside various different brands, objectives and creative parameters to showcase exactly what each brand stands for, who they are or where their brand is positioned in the industry.
Each brand has a story to tell and fashion photography can be used as a way to capture that, boosting your fashion brand storytelling process. With great fashion photography, the possibilities are endless, so it is important for brands to make the most of them.
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The History of Fashion Photography
Though the earliest known fashion photographs date back to the 1850s, the use of photography as a fashion advertising tool didn’t gain popularity until the early 20th century. In these early stages of fashion photography,
As technology developed through the early to mid 20th century, the field progressed. One key player in this part of the history of fashion photography is Richard Avedon (pictured below), who worked for both Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue throughout the 50s and 60s, two of the first big names in the fashion magazine industry.
From the 1960s, colour photography soon overtook black and white photography as the dominant form of fashion photography. As a result, fashion photography began to cater to the demands of magazines and advertisers who wanted full page colour images.
Throughout the rest of the 20th century, the field continued to develop. By the 1990s, photography had become digital, and fashion photography was one of the first types of photo-shoot to move towards digital photography.
Fashion Photography Today
Today, fashion photography is one of the more lucrative genres in commercial photography. Fashion photography has also evolved with technological advances in digital photography, including photoshopping, image editing and computer software.
Today, fashion photography can still be shot on film but most often produced as digital files. The rise of consumerism has renewed interest in fashion photography with brands commissioning more professional photographic work to advertise their products than ever before.
But why is fashion photography so important for brands today?
It all comes down to the fact that fashion photography has been proven to be one of most effective mediums, not only for promoting your products, but also for widening your overall brand identity.
The typical fashion photography shoot includes models, multiple hairstylists, makeup artists & fashion stylists - all of them experts in their field. Therefore it is hard to imagine how brands can provide the level of expertise required to achieve the desired results.
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Important Features of Great Fashion Photography
Varying Visual Moods
Most of the time an image can convey a certain mood depending on how it has been shot. This is why it is beneficial to hire the right professional who can understand your target market and create visuals which will resonate with them.
Layered Shots
It is important to use a range of visuals to make a strong statement and display more of your brand or product. Using more than one image allows for this variety so that the audience can see the bigger picture.
Shooting Outside and Inside
Using both indoor/outdoor shots can be used to help tell your story within fashion photography. Depending on what you are trying to achieve, both use cases have different advantages. Remember that the key is to capture a moment in a creative way and represent your brand in a way that makes sense.
Understanding Your Audience
It is important to present your brand in the right light, meaning one that is appropriate for your audience. As always when hiring a photographer, make sure they know who their audience is and who they are trying to attract. By doing this, the images will help reinforce your brand values and encourage people to interact with your business more.
The Right Equipment
A fashion photographer will always make sure they have the correct equipment for the job. They may choose to organise this through their production team or they may also bring along their own equipment depending on the nature of each shoot.
It is important that your brand hires a professional who is creative, up-to-date with trends, innovative and highly skilled. They are the ones who will help you represent your brand in a way that is both exciting and engaging for your audience!
Additional Accessories & Resources
Fashion photographers will have access to a wide range of additional accessories and resources to create the perfect shot. This might include SFX, hairpieces, wigs, microphones etc. They will also carefully consider the placement of their models in order to create new visuals for their audience.
Creative Backgrounds
A fashion photographer must know how to choose the right background for their shot in order to ensure they get the best possible result. This may require them to travel far and wide in order to find new sets, locations etc. They will often use this chance to capture different reactions from their models by presenting them with new scenarios.
Competitive, Up-to-Date Knowledge
It is important to be aware of trends and keep up with what other fashion photographers are doing if you want to make your mark within this creative industry. Fashion photographers keep an eye out for creative ways to capture their audience's attention by using the latest technology and tools available.
Ongoing Training & Education
A successful fashion photographer will endeavour to keep themselves up-to-date with industry knowledge in order to stay competitive within their space. This may mean taking part in workshops, seminars or even visiting colleges/universities in order to meet like-minded students and broaden their creative horizon.
Understanding of Lighting Theory
The lighting of a photo is important for two main reasons:
1) To bring focus to the model and his/her features.
2) To create the mood or tone of the image.
Great fashion photographers understand the importance of lighting and how it can be used to showcase their model's features, moods or even emotions. They will usually spend a lot of time carefully considering the lighting aspect of each shot so that they can create something new for their audience.
Post Production Colour Correction/Grading
Most images require some amount of colour correction/grading. During the post-production process, you will notice that there are many different channels in photographers' photo editing software. The majority of these channels can be used to alter the tone and feel of the photograph.
Post Production Retouching
The most common retouches include removing blemishes, changing facial expressions (ex. widening eyes or making a smile appear wider) and removing clothing that is inappropriate for the target audience. This is an important step in fashion photography as it creates a seamless look for advertisements.
Expert Fashion Photography Shoot Process
A typical fashion photography shoot will include the following steps:
1) Shoot planning - deciding what, where and how it will be shot.
2) Pre-production - choosing locations, models, wardrobe and accessories.
3) Set-up - finalising lighting and adjusting accessories.
4) Shoot - shooting the models and taking multiple shots of each outfit.
5) Post-production - editing using photography tools and software.
Great fashion photographers will have a tried-and-tested shoot process that can enhance your brand image. Using photography to promote your business is all about saying something with what you do. Using the above information, there are numerous possible ways to capture your brand identity through fashion photography, so don't be afraid to try out new ideas!
Want To Ensure You Choose the Right Fashion Photography For Your Brand?
At James Hillman, we offer expert fashion brand consultancy. This includes ensuring your brand is presented in the right way across the board, and we understand that fashion photography is an important part of that. We can help you with choosing the right photographer, on-brand messaging and more.
Check out our Fashion Brand Consultancy Services for more information, or Enquire Today!
