Fashion photography is a complicated thing to ace. Out of all the other photography niches, it is probably the one that demands full focus and skills from a photographer. Fashion photographers need to capture the subject’s clothes and their facial expressions in the most precise possible manner. Fashion shoots are now happening almost daily all over the world.
There is quite a tough competition for anyone who wants to enter this circle of photographers. Also, the standards of acceptance for any fashion photoshoot are quite strict. Any picture that doesn’t have the element of creativity or perfection is simply rejected by the viewers. This means that anyone looking forward to winning at fashion photography must expect a lot of hurdles.
As a novice photographer entering the field, it is natural to expect huge things from yourself in the very beginning. Chances are, you might send your first ever fashion shoot to a magazine for a feature, and it would be rejected. However, such rejection in no way asks you to stop practicing and chasing your dreams.
If you’re serious about becoming a professional fashion photographer, then the first step is to invest in a good camera like the Nikon D750. This camera comes with almost all those features that a fashion photographer can benefit from. Among other elements of the Nikon D750, its easy setup, grip-assisting lightweight body, 24MP powerful lens, 6.5 fps. AF, fast continuous shot, efficient burst mode, and a wide variety of sensors can help you improve your fashion shoots.
Once you invest in a camera as good as the Nikon D750, the next step is a lot of learning and practice. Below are some of the most useful fashion photography tips you can use while practicing with this camera to achieve perfect results.
Give The Right Posing Instructions
Elaborate and confident posing is what usually differentiates a good fashion shoot from a bad one. Fashion models are supposed to pose in a manner very different from regular models. Also, a single fashion model must know thousands of poses to strike the one that suits the purpose of their shoot the best.
However, fashion models usually rely on their photographers for the posing part. Having a camera in your hand, you can better decide the pose that would go well in the selected frame and under the available light. You might want to focus on what your shoot needs to show the most and then suggest your model the right way to pose for the picture. This explains why you must be excellent at suggesting and instructing poses.
Even when many photographers know many poses, they aren’t good at explaining to their models how they want them to pose. This usually happens when you and the model aren’t comfortable with each other. You both are a little confused and thus can’t frankly clear things out among yourselves.
If possible, you must try to hire the models who you know. Also, suggesting good poses becomes easier by looking at what others in the field are doing. You can also use your Nikon D750’s excellent storage space to save some good poses. Later, you can show them to the model on this camera’s crystal-clear LCD screen. This way, you can not only ensure the most amazing poses for your shoot but can also easily explain them to the model.
Focus On The Model
Fashion shoot’s subjects are usually human models. This makes fashion shoots a bit different from night skies or landscape shots. The presence of a human subject flaunting fashion items requires the photographer to focus the picture on your model. You need to give due importance to selecting the right angles, the best possible light, and the framing techniques.
However, all of these come after the model in focus in fashion shoots. In other words, if your model is looking the best and is under the right light, then you can compromise a little on the other photo elements easily.
Focusing on the model, however, requires you to display some skills too. You cannot simply use your camera’s manual focus feature and capture a picture with the model being the most elaborate element in it. Instead, you’d have to see which exact angle and element of the model needs to be focused on the most.
If you are shooting for a jewelry store’s magazine, then there’s no point in putting an equal focus on the model’s jewelry and shoes both. Rather, the latter can be easily ignored to some extent. Thank God for the efficient AF feature the Nikon D750 comes with. This camera usually self-detects the most notable element in the subject and focus on them in the best possible way on its own.
Work With A Good Team
It is hard to take care of everything on your own in a fashion shoot. Putting together a great fashion shoot needs multiple skills that are rarely there in just one person. You would need the most amazing clothes, expert makeup artists, good props, a comfortable venue, sets, and backgrounds that go well with the shoot, and many other things. When focusing on such things, you’re likely to become so stressed and tired that giving your best during the shoot becomes impossible.
Therefore, it is a good idea to have a small team of your own with professionals who can help you with other things as you focus on the shoot itself. It is important to note that smaller groups with people who you know well and can work comfortably with are far better than a huge team with multiple people doing the same thing. Try to put together the best and the most responsible people you know and make them a permanent part of your team.
Interestingly, your Nikon D750 is also better than other ordinary cameras when it comes to working with a team. It is easy to use, and its setup can quickly be learned by anyone. Using these features to your benefits, you can teach a few of your team members the basics of using it so that they can keep the work going even when you’re not available.
Break The Rules
No fashion shoot can ever be as good as the one that’s done with a sense of rebellion in mind. Undoubtedly, following the trends in the field and drawing inspiration from your seniors is a good thing. However, always sticking to fashion photography conventions can lead to boring shoots with no creative element in them. To counter this monotony, you must break yourself free from the traditions and try to work in a new way.
From a simple play with the light to extra intense use of shadows in your shoot, any element of creativity can make it stand apart from others. You can also ask your model to shoot in the newest way or use an angle that has never been used before. Your locations and the props you use can also help your bring some change in your generic photo shoot aesthetics. No matter whatever method you adopt to add the element of innovation in your shoot, it must be done with great care.
Good fashion photographers first practice their new ideas for a few days. It is only after they are sure of their innovative ideas that they execute them professionally. A user-friendly camera like the Nikon D750 that also has a long battery life helps the photographer practice as many creative ideas as and when needed, thus allowing them to become better at their game.
Shoot Where You’re Comfortable
Fashion shoots are usually about unusual and littler elaborate poses. The photographer for such a shoot may also sometimes need to sit or stand in weird positions, trying to get THAT PERFECT SHOT. Both of these ideas need the model and the photographer to be very comfortable and confident. With so many unknown people looking at you, you would hardly ever try out newer and odd things. This keeps you confined to whatever is the norm of the day, hindering all the possibilities for you to display your style. Severe weather is also a hindrance to comfortable shooting.
These reasons explain why you should always select the most comfortable location for your fashion shoot. As a rule, try to select a location that is both picturesque and calm. It must have the right kind of weather for you to shoot and should be clean enough to help you move about quickly.
Also, it should have all the needed facilities to help you fix backgrounds, set up props, and have suitable eating stops. Thankfully, the Nikon D750 is a lightweight and portable camera. It can be taken anywhere you want without fearing the weight and hard work that you would have to put in taking it everywhere.
