Fashion Photography

It can be difficult enough to photograph adult models, but using children as models is a new level of challenging. There are a few tips to remember to make your shooting process a bit easier.

A report by The Boston Globe adds more prominent photographers to the list of those accused of sexual misconduct. Princess Diana's personal photographer and two Victoria's Secret photographers are among the newly named. 

The in-between stages of fashion photography can be knowing which ideas for stories serve best as test shoots and which are worth pushing forward as a full editorial. Do the benefits of a cohesive editorial outweigh the efforts required to make it? This article breaks down the steps required from idea to execution. 

The depiction of women across the media is something currently facing a lot of scrutiny. Now, a prolific former fashion photographer, Jennifer Moss, has spoken out on the issue, addressing how she feels women are often fetishized like “corpses” during photoshoots. 

We often draw inspiration from several mediums; art, music, and film to name a few. These inspirations are blended together and found within our work. This article digs deeper into what may give our work moody undertones and makes us feel exactly how we feel when looking at it. 

I have always loved shooting in ugly places such as gas stations and abandoned buildings, but it took me a while to learn how to make these places look magical in my images. You can't just put a beautiful woman in front of these places and expect it to work. 

You book a commercial job and the client wants a beautiful face to grace their next ad. The client relies on you, the photographer to help with the process of hiring the model. The crew you hire rely on you to select the right candidate for their needs. That's great, right?

How many times have we had moments where we wished we had brought our camera with us? Luckily, the technology is advancing fast and far, and our smartphones are becoming more capable of substituting our cameras, at least as a back up for those one-off moments that cannot be always revisited.

So much of photography is built on social relationships. Models, makeup artists, hair stylists, designers, and assistants all play a crucial role in contributing to the creation of an image. At the center of the photographer's work is the model, yet photographers may find it difficult to reach out to modeling agencies for collaboration.

The upcoming March issue of British Vogue has a Hadid sister on the front and back cover draped in shimmering Versace gowns and in the inside spread a photo suggesting incest?  

What appears to be a long-kept secret to the general public, apparently has been a common knowledge for those who have worked in the fashion industry.

You’ve reached a point with your work at which shooting friends and family doesn’t quite cut it. Your curiosity to challenge yourself and move forward is piqued, and you have a good sense of established skills that make you think seeking out agency-represented models is your best move. The question is: Where do you go from here and how do you even start?

Patrick and I decided to create a video series where we compete to see who can come up with the best image based on a set of randomly chosen rules. This week, one of us got to use an iPhone and the other had the entire studio at their disposal. 

I was completely blown away when I came across Diane Villadsen's project “Old Friends,” a high-fashion, conceptual take on aging. To celebrate the process all of us will go through eventually, why not do it in a unique way through photography and fashion? I got in touch with Villadsen to find out more about her inspiration for the shoot. 

There's a lot said about film versus digital, and a lot of it tends to be one extreme or the other, but like most things in life, the truth lies somewhere in the middle. This great video takes a very balanced and honest look at the merits and drawbacks of each when used in a fashion shoot. 

Condè Nast and other media companies have severed ties from powerhouse Photographers Bruce Weber and Mario Testino after several allegations surfaced in an investigation of both of them beginning as early as last Thanksgiving. 

At first, you could wonder how a hairstylist found inspiration in deep sea creatures and avatar to make a collection. But then, when you see the actual looks and how a talented photographer such as David Sheldrick can make the most out every element to create masterpieces out of it, you actually start to hate yourself for not thinking of it earlier!

When the idea for “Trans Atlantic” came up between me, Isma, and the crew from Pekat Photography, we quickly fell in love with the concept and decided to make it a joint effort. Since slavery is a sensitive topic, we decided to do our best to approach the topic from a more academic and historical reference point.

I believe that upon our journey in whatever craft you choose, we encounter people who not only inspire, but assist in pushing us to grow more, and photographer Lucas Passmore has been exactly that for me. Initially, from the Midwest, Lucas is a fashion photographer living in Los Angeles.

To be a successful photographer, you don't have to be physically stronger, faster, or tougher. It's not like pro sports where it's normal for the number of men to overpower women. So why are women still facing so much systematic sexism and harassment in the photography industry?  

So you have a great photoshoot idea that's been burning a hole in the back of your brain. As amazing as it sounds to you, you continue to push it back. Finding the task of planning and executing said shoot has been daunting to say the least. I'm someone who as a beginner found this to be a problem that held me back more times than once.

This year has been marked by a single hashtag: #MeToo. From Hollywood to the Oval Office, it seems that accusers are finding their voices and taking a stand for themselves and countless others who haven’t been able to speak out. Naturally, awareness of sexual harassment is coming to light in all industries, and the photography industry is no different. 

In September I was lucky enough to have the pleasure of a couple of hours of Liam Gallagher’s time to shoot a magazine cover and 12-page spread. Here’s a detailed breakdown of my thought process, creative ideas and how the shoot was executed on the day.

For this shoot I used the following equipment:

Fashion Photographer Alexi Lubomirski recently sat down with Kyle Hagler, president of NEXT models, for an intimate and candid chat about the modeling industry and what photographers can do to succeed. Hagler offered an array of fantastic advice that almost any photographer can draw on.

Whether you're shooting a high-fashion model, a mom to be, or a high school senior, the clothes always matter. I'm a sucker for over-the-top drama in my own work but am not always able to find a stylist to help me out with these shoots. Even if you don't have a need to do this yourself, give it a go from time to time.

In a new book, “The Essential Marilyn Monroe,” Milton H. Greene’s son, Joshua Greene features 284 of his father's images with 176 images never before being seeing by the public.

If you are interested in the commercial side of the photography industry, working with models and agencies is a must. Approaching a modeling agency and asking to work with models can be intimidating, particularly when you aren't sure how to get started.

Boudoir photographers know that collaborations with vendors that fit their brand can be extremely beneficial for all parties involved. It alleviates some cost of the product for the photographer and it gives the vendor professional images for their sites. Getting connected for shoots such as this is not as difficult or impossible as it may seem. 

In a recent article entitled "Why You Shouldn't Submit Your Photographs to Magazines," I discussed Vanity Magazines and how, in my opinion, they often fail to deliver enough value to justify the photographer's effort.

Outdoor on-the-go DIY style editorials are really picking up in the fashion world. It is a good skill to have in your toolkit as a budding photographer. In this article, I want to break down how a small team of talented artists and myself went about producing and shooting two full on-location, outdoor editorials for Bullett Magazine in less than two weeks in NYC. 

High-end retouching is all about keeping details and texture intact in an image so that it looks as natural as possible. Making sure the picture looks unretouched but polished is a matter of patience and wise choices in retouching techniques. In this video, watch retoucher Pratik Naik editing a photo shot by Andrea Belluso. 

Albert Watson. Legend. Period, end. With a career spanning five decades and multiple iconic images, his career in fashion and portraiture would be the aspiration of any budding photographer. Alongside Irving Penn and Richard Avedon, PDN recognized him as one of the twenty most influential photographers of all time.

Our friends at ViewBug are proud to present the Earth First contest series. These contests awards top-end gear that was lovingly used by another creative individual. Providing high-quality, pre-owned prizes puts less strain on the planet, and allows ViewBug to offer even bigger prizes. Classic win-win!

If you touch my hair I will hurt you. In life, we take many chances. Like, riding our bike with no hands, getting minimum coverage on our car insurance and petting stingrays. However, for the chosen few who have the superpower of catching our eye with their beautiful hair, there is no chance to be taken. The following is meant only for a lighthearted fable for this Frida

Are you considering taking some fashion video to complement your photos? Here are some great tips by Kazu Okuda, a filmmaker who has produced videos for Nike, Vogue, and the MOMA. In the video, he shares how he lights, what the differences are between lighting a feature film and a fashion orientated video, and how to achieve it.  

You really are spoiled for choice when it comes to posing female subjects in your photographs. Working with males, on the other hand, can be a little more limiting, as a lot of the shapes which look great on the fairer sex don't always translate over so well. Use these key fundamentals when trying to get the best out of your male subjects even if they are not models. 

A few weeks ago, I got an email from the website-building company, Wix, asking if anyone at Fstoppers wanted to be a part of a zero-gravity photoshoot. Um, yes please.  

Polish photographer Konrad Bak straddles the line between high concept fashion and lush fine art creations. Images collected in his book Konrad Bak PhotoART range from the elegant to the surreal could easily find a home in advertising campaigns or on gallery walls. However, Bak's work can surprisingly be found in the files of stock photography websites.

We talk about gear and how to take better shots or process your images all the time, but less often do we discuss the non-camera related side of photography, engaging with the subject, though it's obviously of the utmost importance. This helpful video gives you five tips to produce better engagement with your talent. 

Almost all photographers nowadays are familiar with modern equipment and use it to create, show, and improve their work. Some is necessary like new cameras, lenses, computers, and some is complementary. It all depends on your work style and the photos you want to create. But let's ask a question here.

If you have ever been assigned a full-day catalog shoot for a big retail brand, you probably know about the hectic process, especially if you are not working with a producer who deals with everything.

When it comes to deciding how good a particular image is, there are three aspects that I think are most important: composition, lighting, and colors. These three properties could be described as the technical attributes of an image.

From Vanity Fair covers to designer fashion shows and theater stages, artist Sarah Oliphant has painted her way into the fabric of fashion by creating beautiful canvases worthy of framing on a scale large enough to become the industry's leading backdrop painter.

Following the lead of Billboard and Conde Nast's Traveller, a full fashion spread inside the new issue of Elle Australia – including the front cover – has been shot entirely on an iPhone.

Australian photographer Georges Antoni - who has shot for the likes of Wonderland and Harper’s Bazaar – was enlisted to shoot the cover.

Jessica Kobeissi is back once again to challenge some big name Instagrammers to photograph the same model in just five minutes in their signature style. 

Perspective Control lenses for SLR cameras were developed primarily for architecture, interior, and still-life photography applications. PC lenses simulate some of the movements and control that photographers can get from a view camera. They are great for keeping lines parallel and subjects in focus.

Some model poses seem to pop up everywhere repeating across different mediums and across decades. Many photographers deride these posing cliches, but these cliches can be useful on fashion and other model shoots, especially when working with new models still learning how to move.

There is no shortage of educational material on the market for getting started in virtually any industry of photography. Moreover, fashion is one of the most crowded spaces in regards to this sort of education which can mean the volume of repetition offered from one educational video to another can become rather tiresome.

Creative genius rarely erupts onto the scene full force and in your face. Its entrance into the world is often quiet, gentle, allowing only a few to see it and recognize its brilliance.

Browsing YouTube can be an exercise in either frustration or bliss, depending on the day. Today, though, I happened upon something that truly speaks to me. If you are a portrait photographer, or anything resembling one, you owe it to yourself to check out the documentary, "Darkness and Light," a part of the American Masters Series, produced by PBS.