Fashion photography is basically a kind of photography. It has been in existence since the earliest days of taking & processing photographs. It first appeared in the French magazine La mode practique.
Fashion photography not only involves photographing clothes or other fashion accessories and items but even interpreting the underlying themes of the season or ideas, the designer, the brand or the clothing range. It is mostly conducted for fashion magazines or ads. Over time, it has become very much concerned with beauty in which the look of garments as well as the style of fashions are intensified by presence of unusual and exiting accessories, locations or lifestyle. In the recent times, it has gained a great popularity because of the expansion of world wide web and ecommerce. Knolling, ghost mannequin and clean product photography have now become the usual practice in fashion industry.
Fashion photography is perhaps the most desirable field of photography. A career in this field requires a hell lot of things. Firstly, you need to be in any of the fashion capitals where fashion is happening. To bypass the queue in front of the doors of fashion houses, you either need to have connections or patience or ideally both. You will also need to have a lot of self-control for you will have to work with the prima donnas quite often. Finally, it involves a lot of will as well as creativity for building a portfolio with a unique and recognizable style.
To be fit for this role you even need to:
- have ambition and dedication towards your career
- work efficaciously under pressure
- have a thorough knowledge of fashion industry
- have excellent creative & technical skills when it comes to photography
- explore and experiment new ideas as well as techniques
- have outstanding communication and networking skills
- have in-depth technical knowledge of photo-chemical & digital methods as well as all types of cameras
- be able to control location or studio situations, directing the entire creative team
have a great sense of visual composition & perspective
This genre of photography has in fact turned out to be a never-ending demand across the industry for its innovation and originality. But only those photographers who understand the fashion trends, take eye-catching images and sell the style and look of clothes are more in demand. They charge huge fees and often work with a creative team that includes editors, art directors & other creative staff.
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