Creating a Successful Editorial Shoot€¦ · and frame to reinforce it. You can shoot straight-on, but also move around the garment and explore which angles work best to accentuate

Creating a Successful Editorial Shoot          

Editorial vs. Commercial Photography Editorial photography is featured in top fashion magazines. It is often featured as a mulit-page narrative that is based on a theme. Editorial photography is artistic, serious in nature, involves complex lighting, highly considered environments and features celebrities, top models, couture or clothing by top designers. The clothing is always the focus, but the environment is equally import to telling the story . Commercial photography is used in ads that sells products or brands. It is straightforward, upbeat, does not always contain an environment and uses simple lighting to focus on the clothing. The goal is relatability and mass appeal.  

VOGUE editorial, “Garden of Earthly Delights”, April, 2015

Styling Hair and Makeup Your story doesn’t end with your garment. How can you use hair and makeup to continue the story and exaggerate, eliminate or transform features so that they are a compliment to, or continuation of the garment?

Lighting Tips  Natural Light: The best time of day for natural light is mid-morning and late-afternoon when the angles of the sun are low and cast long shadows. Low Light: When shooting in low light, you will need an extra light source. A simple clamp light with a piece of tracing paper taped over the top can create direct, diffused light. The more pieces of tracing paper, the more diffusion. You can also back-light your garment with a clamp light and use reflectors to project light onto one side of the model. Creating Light: When shooting indoors, in overcast daylight or in shadow areas, position reflectors to project light onto the model and garment. Light will keep your photos from losing color, contrast and depth.

Framing Photos: Point of View

Framing itself can tell a story. Think about your concept and allow your composition and frame to reinforce it. You can shoot straight-on, but also move around the garment and explore which angles work best to accentuate the story you are trying to tell. •  Bird’s-eye: Use fire escapes, stairs or a teammate’s shoulders and shoot from above •  Horizontal Frame: A landscape view can create a sense of grounding and relaxation. •  Worm’s-eye: Crouch low and shoot from beneath to elongate the body •  Angle the Frame: Frame the photo on a slanted angle to create a sense of instability

Framing Photos: Distance You also want to consider the relationship between garment and location. What elements of the location are essential for telling your story? What is the balance between subject and background? Vary the distance between camera and subject so that you have a range of photos from close-up, to full-body to depth-of-field shots, between model and location. Don’t be afraid to crop into the body as long as you are not clipping into the head or losing too much of the garment.  

Good Depth-of-Field Good Close-up Bad depth-of-field. The garment is too far away and the chair in the left foreground is distracting.

Modeling the Garment: Still vs. Moving Consider how your garment and its material are meant to move (or not) and exaggerate that potential with your pose.

Modeling the Garment: Movement Your goal is to feature the garment and bring it to life. •  Use your hands or the wind to move the garment and show its function •  Elongate the body and utilize exaggerated angles in the body •  Exaggerate movement •  Give a confident posture, especially on centered frames •  Don’t always look at the camera, look outside of the frame

Modeling the Garment: Environment Fully consider your environment. What story are you trying to tell between the garment and the environment? How can your poses communicate this story? Make sure to interact with the environment or change your poses to create a connection between the model and the environment?

Photo Shoot: Be Prepared In advance, determine how are you transporting everything to the photo shoot locations. Where are you changing into the garment? What could go wrong at a photo shoot and what would you need to solve the problem? Create a schedule, assign tasks to each person in your team and know what you are responsible for bringing on the day of the shoot in addition to the garment and shoes. •  Parsons ID •  Sewing supplies/tape •  Makeup/Brushes/Hairspray •  Camera/Lights/Reflectors/Tripod for low light •  Camera battery charger •  Make sure your camera is set to 10MP or higher •  What else might you need?  

Good Luck!