Things to become a good Fashion photographer

While fashion photographers are not required to have a degree, they can gain a greater understanding of the craft by studying photography at a college, university or trade school. Many schools offer a bachelor's degree in photography, which allows students to study photography history, lighting, digital photography, and fine arts. Fashion photographers may also attend graduate school or enroll in programs that focus on fashion photography. Here we can discuss about the things to become a good fashion photographer.

1. Preparation

This is the most important one regarding the fashion photography. In fact, don’t just prepare, over prepare! Never walk on to a set without having a concrete idea of what I’m looking to achieve. Be prepare from  books, and books of tear sheets of images of lighting, makeup, hair, styling, posing, editing, the location, clothes and time.

2. Shooting is agroup-effort

One of the first things I learned was how much of fashion photography is a group effort. It isn’t just that the fashion photographer is the rock star, and everyone obeys his/her whims. Rather, it is the stylists and the makeup team who control the creative vision, and the photographer is often the person who comes in second.  Good only photos come through group-effort.

3. Be a Director

Fashion photography should convey an essence of authority, so your direction of the model(s) needs to be confident and self-assured.  Showing signs of anxiety, stress or lack of direction will invariably be reflected in the performance of your model so make the subject feel comfortable and involved.  Organize a shot list before the shoot and rehearse technique and composition for each shot in your mind. Prepare the location, props and clothes ahead of time and for a truly effective shoot be sure to communicate your agenda, objective and posing directions coherently and calmly.

4. Location

Getting the right location is important if you want to convey a narrative within your shot. A studio is an ideal place to perform a fashion shoot because photographers can easily control lighting and stabilize conditions. If you are shooting in a studio environment remember to meter all areas of the scene to avoid unwanted shadows and the use of a separate light meter rather than the one in your camera, will offer a more accurate reading. When shooting in low light or into the sun, you may require an extra light source. If all you have is flash then rather than shoot straight on, set it to bounce of a nearby reflector, wall or ceiling. Experiment with angles to create an array of effects and discover what works best for you and the scene you are shooting. Be careful to pay attention to unwanted shadows that may fall across the face and body.

5. Model Poses

A fashion photographer needs to know different model poses for various outputs. Understanding the various model poses is not difficult. If you think the face of the model would look wider in the shot, tell her to tilt her face. This would help you avoid head-on shots. For a seductive photo, the model needs to stand slantingly so her hip and breast receive the camera’s gaze.

6. Retouching

Many photographers retouch their own images, but many also send the work to retouchers to get the job done. Regardless of your choice, you should learn how to retouch. You want to be able to make personalized edits to your images that make them individualistic, and not just deliver the product of another retoucher’s work.

7. Confidence

The best way to learn is to completely throw yourself into it. Every time I make a mistake on set, I learn, and know better for next time. My first shoot with clients, I almost walked off set because I didn’t trust myself, and I was so scared of making a mistake, and embarrassing myself. I sat there running through all the possible disasters that could occur, and then I shut it all out because I knew if I didn’t shoot then, I never would! The images from that shoot are some of my favorite images to date!