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Straight from the horse's mouth!
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I’ve been commissioned for fashion shoots in my time and I always find them so different from my normal style of shooting because they are so styled and planned. Artistic license is something we all enjoy and in a prepared shoot with a brief you may expect to be limited but you still hold all the cards with the lighting, angles and emotion of the images you produce. Of course these generally need to satisfy a client and not just your audience so be mindful of that! In this blog we have a real treat for you! We are going to look at a fashion photographer’s profile plus we will go through 10 great tips for fashion photography. Dave Kai-Piper is a phenomenally talented photographer and one I have been lucky enough to meet and spend some time with. Dave is a deeply creative man and one who has had worldwide success with his fashion photography. When I spent the morning with Dave I was surprised that he was photographing someone in direct sunlight but Dave likes to do things differently. He follows his vision and creates what he pre visualises in his head - it’s all part of the process! To help in such bright conditions, Dave used a portable Camel flash to fill shadows on the model’s face whilst keeping them in place on her surroundings. Shadows give texture and drama to an image and they bring out the texture of background objects. Pre-visualising an image is a crucial part of thinking like a photographer. You have to know what you want from an image in order to tell the camera what to do. | ||
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My knowledge and experience means that I have been able to teach photography to beginners and enthusiasts for almost thirty years. In our Photography Locked Down group we have some exciting photographers whose work has been selected for competition short lists and publications nationwide which just shows individual growth in their aspirations to professional photography. This is a more personal one for me because I didn’t turn 18 and confidently pursue a career as a professional photographer. I took a more abstract route and you can too. | ||
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Patterns - Look for patterns in your composition. Shapes or repetition can really add to the feel of a photograph and add some creative sparkle to it. Change the viewpoint - Don’t just shoot horizons horizontally and people vertically! Switch it up. Lie on the ground and shoot up, shoot down, try from above - be as adventurous as possible with your viewpoint. You will bring home some really great shots! Fill the frame when you compose a photo - Don’t be afraid to fill the frame with your subject, it adds intimacy and can completely change the feel of an image. Use leading lines - Whether a natural line created by a river or row of trees or a man-made line of road or railway. Leading lines help add depth to your image and are instrumental in leading the eye into the further reaches of the photo. | ||
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There are so many impressive effects we can create with our cameras. The beauty of photography is the creative interpretation and slow shutter speed is one of the great ways we can do this! Once you have gained the technical skills you need to be confident in using your camera - knowing the ins and outs of how everything works - you can bridge the gap between execution and creative thinking. Slow shutter speed is one of three core camera skills to master, Aperture and ISO being the other two. You can achieve amazing results with slow shutter speed. However, you need to have a great understanding of how it works and the techniques to execute it properly, so that you end up with photographs that mesmerise your audience. | ||
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Lifestyle photography is just one of many genres and a popular one to boot. I love dabbling in a bit of everything myself, particularly landscapes and photojournalistic lifestyle photography. I’ve had some awesome experiences when delving into the world of lifestyle photography and I’ll share a couple highlights with you in this blog. I also want to explain a bit about what this style of photography actually is and explore the core elements you need to do it well. Once you’ve got a better understanding and some useful tips, you can decide if this genre is the right path for you. I would love to help get you started becoming a lifestyle photographer, so read on and let me know if you’re ready to explore your creativity and discover this new style of photography. | ||
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I am a big fan of shooting from the hip, so you’ll often find me using auto focus. But any good photographer knows that manual focus opens a world of creative possibilities that auto just can’t quite provide. Yes auto focus in today’s DSLRs has become so advanced, BUT that doesn’t mean manual focus is being neglected. In fact manual focus is becoming a more prominent feature in most camera models, even those that are not of high-professional standard. Photography enthusiasts are becoming more accustomed to the variety of settings available when purchasing a camera, and can often become quite daunted by them. It really doesn’t need to be intimidating though, getting to grips with manual mode is easier than you might think!
I’ve written this blog to help you learn more about manual focus and how to use it effectively. No one likes blurry photography so getting it right is really important, but you need to know what to focus on - without the help of auto! We’re going to look at what manual focus is, where to focus and top tips to take away. | ||
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Foreground is a big part of composition and it often requires the photographer to think outside the box. Any scene or situation, no matter how uninteresting it may seem at first glance, can be transformed into something eye catchingly beautiful. All it takes is a bit of creativity. There is so much to learn and explore within the art of photography, whether you are a budding or seasoned photographer, you can create absolute magic with your camera. In this blog we’re going to talk about using foreground and I’ll leave you with some great tips to take away and practice with. First though, let’s get into what foreground actually is... | ||
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We’re jumping head first into a historical debate today and comparing the greats; Nikon and Canon. This is as big as the tea vs coffee debate - so hold onto your hats! We are going to look at as many aspects of this argument as possible and consider:
I use both makes and feel that it depends on what you’re looking for, your main photography interest and features of the model itself. Having said that one is more popular when we look at the numbers but I’ll keep that to myself for now! | ||
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I often get asked “Would a one day photography course be enough?” Well you may as well ask me how long a piece of string is. If you want to change careers and become a world renowned photographer then you may need a little more than a single day long photography course. However if you are an avid enthusiast of photography who wants to improve their skills and explore their creativity, then this is a perfect choice. I’ve written this blog to share how a one day photography course can massively benefit you as a photographer. But also whether this type of course is the right path to take depending on your goals and preferences. | ||
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Aperture is one of the most important tools to understand in photography. I have a handful of foundational controls I expect every budding photographer to understand and aperture is definitely one of them. As always, the best way to test your knowledge is to get out there and practice. Read this blog and once you have a better idea of what aperture is and why it’s important, get out there and practice. I’ve broken this up into sections so it’s easy to follow and to put into action. This is what you will learn from this blog:
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