Fashion and Advertising.

Fashion and advertisement.

   In this unit i intend to do three studio shoot for each fashion and Advertisement. For the fashion i have decide i'm going to photograph shoes, as i feel like i can create some interesting shoots doing this. For advertisement i'm going to photograph Daisy perfume , as i feel as though i can add lots of interesting props into this.

Fashion research.

Fashion photography has always been a big topic within photography, as theres fashion is changing so rapidly photographers get more and more creative with there imagery to keep each photograph different from the next.

I've chosen some images that caught my eye and have written about them below.

Personally i don't really think this photograph is representing fashion. I do however like the lighting that brings out her collar bones.

i choose this image as i like the colours, and because of the layering effort you are forced to take a more details look at the clothing.

I think this is a really good photograph to advertise fashion, as the colours of the models clothes are very simple but the splashes of red really get your attention.

The reason i like this photograph is i love the way the lighting is not centre, and even though the model is doing a simple structured pose its still very capturing 

I find this image really powerful with its use of colours, its probably one of my favourite images that i have came across researching fashion photography.

I thought this image was good for inspiration as its been taken in a studio, which is where i'm going to be shooting all of my fashion shoots.

I really love this image, and it has showed me that using fabrics and pattern can be a lot more powerful than you expect in a image. 

Favourite fashion Photographer.

After researching many fashion photographers, the one that really stood out for my was Nick Knight.

Advertisement. Nick Knight is a british photographer, who has had a very successful career, with releasing books, working for big brands such as Audi, Calvin Klein, Christian Doir and Royal Ballet.

Later in his career he's even gone out to start directing music videos. 

I like this image because of the vibrant red, i alos like the gap between the models teeth as i feel like it brings something quirky to the image.

This is probably my favoruite image of Nick Knights, i love how the makeup and light contours the models face and how clear her collor bones and bone structure is. 

I chosen to write about this image because i like how the model is position, with one glove covering one eye, it make it rally clear what this image is advertising.  

Advertisement Photography.

advertisement photograph is a huge part of every business, anything can be advertised for coca-cola to Dior lipstick. Many photographers do this for a living, Its more common to just be advertising a product but when advertising things such a lipsticks, models get brought into the images.

Here are some of my favourite advertisement images.

I really love this image as the makeup of the model really stands out, which is a strong part of advertisement as the products aren't actually on display.

this photograph is actually a recreation, as the original image was taken around 20 years ago, but as its by the same company advertising the same product they decided to modernise it.

A simple advertising image, i liked this image as its so simple yet colourful and appealing. I also like the way its placed between the fruit bowl and the background being the kitchen, as it gives a good family feel to the image which will appeal to many people.

For me this image has a christmassy feel to it., which is probably down to the colours. I do feel this images is bright and attractive, and also clear marketing.

My first advertisement shoot.

I decided to focus on the daisy perfume range for my advertisement.

I struggled creating the right lighting, as the text on the perfume bottle was hard to bring out, so i didn't get many successful images in this shoot.  

My second advertisement shoot.

For my second shoot i decided to add some props, which to keep in with the flower theme, i used white flowers. i enjoyed this shoot more as there was more creativity.

My final advertisement shoot.

As i liked the outcome of my second shoot, i decided to bring some more flowers in. Even though i do like this image and i am pleased with the outcome i feel like a white background would look more professional

I feel like i should of taken more risks, and thought of some more unusual ideas, as even though i am pleased with how my shoots came 

My first fashion shoot.

I feel like my first fashion went well, however i choose the wrong shoes to photograph. As the shoes were covered in sparkles, whenever the flash went off it would reflect on the sequins, distracting you from the shoes itself.

My second fashion shoot.

I choose better shoes to photographs for this shoot, but i struggled with creativity. I found this shoot really hard, as fashion is not my strongest point of photography, i do feel like i have gains some experiences in the subject.

My final fashion shoot.

 I decided to take a few images without the use of a model, and a few with the model. I decided to stick with all black shoes as i thought it would create a use series, but now looking back i feel like i should of experiment with more interesting shoes, maybe doing a punk pair with spikes, girly pick ones with bows and then a classy black pair.

Comparing fashion and advertisement photography.

When working in the studio there are several thing’s you have to do for health and safety, such as keeping any loose cables taped down so no one will be able to trip over them. As the lighting equipment is very expensive, you should not allow food and drinks in the studio, as it could damage the equipment, or become a slipping hazard. The lights can also get very hot, so people shouldn't move them after they have been set up in case of burning themselves. If you need to change the lights around, its best to turn them off for a couple minutes just to let them cool down a bit, even though this is time consuming i you've got a booked amount of time in the studio its worth it to save yourself from being burnt. Another thing to consider is that when the studio is in use, its often very dark accept the area that’s being photographed, so make sure people aren't wondering around in the dark in case they trip, bump into something, or harm themselves in any way. It’s also advised not to have extra people just hanging around, as it could be a distraction and over crowded.

Often when using a model its best not to keep them waiting, as they will loose energy just waiting around and you wont get the best out of them. It also looks a lot more professional if you are already to go when the model arrives. As a photographer the model is looking to please you, so feel free to direct and give advise o how to pose and use the props they have been given, as you're the one who can see how its looking on camera. Models are more commonly used in fashion shoots. While doing this its nice to compliment and encourage the model as well, as it will make them feel more relaxed and enjoy the shoot more, which often created better images. You need to work as a team, you the photographer, the model, and any helpers, to make sure it all comes together well and you get a good final result for the client you are working for

With your team you can compare all the images that you have taken and decide which one is the strongest image. Even though models are more commonly used in fashion and beauty shoots, you do however sometimes have them in for in for advertising shoots, as the model helps advertise the product. Fashion photography involves working as a team more than product photography does.

You can however, work alone while doing product photography, as the photographer you can set the studio up yourself and set the product ready to be photographed, and props in if you wish, or later Photoshop the images. However doing a whole shoot on your own often takes a lot longer, where a usual shoot may be two-four hours, on your own it can take up to a whole day to get a good series of images. On an average shoot, you can take up to a couple hundred images and to keep them all different and interesting you can always change to backgrounds around, and keep moving the lighting and model/product to keep each image different from the next. Many photographers choose to change the background colour on Photoshop, as they believe it creates a better over all finish. 

Working in a studio can be stressful at times, the lights heat the room, and there is no natural light so you cant open a window to let some fresh air in, so its a good idea to keep a fan going or get some air conditioning put in. Everyone has stressful days at work, but try to keep the studio relaxed, as your not going to get your best images if everyone is over heating and stressed. Many photographers fine having the radio on in the background is a great way to keep calm and a cheerful atmosphere throughout the studio. With working in a studio you are also able to rescheduled if you are not successful in you first attempt.

Often when you work with a model, you'll be working with a brief on how the company want the final image to be like, so as a photographer its important you try to follow these guidelines that the company give you, and its also your job to make sure the model know what there excepted to help create. While doing advertising shoots, the model is often the prop, as your focus is to focus the images around a product, such as a bag, lipstick, perfume, shoes ect..

Using pops while in the studio is very important, as it can make a simple image turn into something so much more. The use of shadows, fabrics and any there object you can use as props.

Many Photographers enjoy doing studio photography more than location, as it means there’s no worrying about weather conditions and all the light in controllable.

 In conclusion, I have written about all the things you should consider when working in a studio and the differences between doing a fashion shoot and a product, and I believe these two types of photography are actually quite similar, as you as the photographer are always trying to catch the view eye, and make the product appeal to viewers, and often you are following a criteria that has been set for you. I personally find product photography easier, but I know many people disagree with me. I enjoy product photography more as you are able to focus all your energy onto to one thing, when with fashions there often lots of distractions.

My Evaluation of this unit.

I really enjoyed this unit as i haven't done anything with fashion or advertising before, so it was good to try something new. However i do not feel like this section of photography is my strong point and i would not choose to do anything like this again in my free time.

Out of the two topics, i feel like i enjoyed shooting the advertisement shoots more. As i just found it easier to create ideas and use props, when with the fashion i found it harder. For some reason i struggled with creativity with the fashion shoots, and am disappointment with how my final images came out. So i would definitely go down a different route if i was to do this again, and be more experimental and set a harder challenge for myself to get some more rememberable  images, as i feel as though mine are fairly plain images. If i was to do this all again i probably wouldn't use shoes as my fashion piece, as i found it limiting.