Successful fashion photoshoots are a perk to anyone in the fashion industry, be it a professional or a brand owner. And it not so as easy as it looks. It requires a really good effort from all the people involved in the shoot along with a good fashion photography retouching process. Making yourself composed and completely focused might help you to pull it off correctly with the best game plan.
So here we’ll discuss some tips and tricks for you to roll it up your sleeves to execute a confident, perfect, and successful fashion photoshoot.
Research Extensively
Maintain a detailed brief for your shoot and do some extensive research for the same that falls in line with your fashion photoshoot concepts or ideas. And if you’re stuck in between, don’t give up, but keep on proceeding with the research until you find the perfect stuff. Consult your colleagues who’ve done such shoots, and take on their advice. Always have your fashion references (magazines, journals, etc.) handy, even the iconic ones, and online material ones that will help you with inspiration and to sink into your creative mindset. Observe the aesthetics of those fashion photoshoot so that you will have a better idea about its subtlety.
Scout for Your Models Through Online Sources
The online and social media platforms are the best for model scouting. There are endless aspiring and professional models for you to consider for your shoot or are looking for gigs. Through these platforms, you can also get your model’s attributes and interests in a much better way than from conventional methods. Not only models, but you can also find your other personnel (professional retouching services, fashion stylists, designers, photographers, etc.) through these online sources.
Maintain a Journal
Keep a handy journal with you always, so that you can jot down spontaneous ideas or anything that pops into your mind. If you don’t have a physical one make use of journal apps in your smartphone which can serve you with an exact experience, virtually.
Maintain a Proper List for Your Shots
If you have a well-planned list for your shots it can help you plan, manage, and stick to your budget and other essential requirements. The most important ones are:
● Outline of expected shots
● Detailed storyboard
● Number of outfits involved
● Props needed
● Places where you can get your requirements (outfits/props/location, etc.)
● Post-production (image editing services/professional retouching services)
● Facial expressions of models
● Lighting angles
When you share this detailed list with your entire team, (photographer, high end retouching personnel, makeup artist, models, etc.), the chances of your photoshoot to become a big success will be high. The storyboard is good at keeping everything in check while the shoot is in progress, and to make sure every element is executed perfectly.
Decide on the Personnel
Assemble a reliable team for your fashion shoot who knows his/her exact roles, or people who are flexible in doing more than one role, sometimes due to budget constraints (especially high end retouching). It’s not about holding onto your reputation and experience, but about making the shoot a big success.
Plan Where You Can Market/Sell Your Images
There will always be high-quality fashion image requirements for companies. They will use it from catalogs, fashion magazines, websites, social media posts, etc. So have a clear idea about who should be your buyers, their required number of images, and the final budget for the same.
Call Sheets
This is a really important document that should be sent to each person involved in your shoot. The document will contain the shoot time, their arrival time, parking information, the facilities available, and a shooting schedule for the day. The other details included in it will be about outfits for the fashion brand and how to assign models for individual scenes. Always be prepared for incidents as there might be possibilities for things to get held up that causes delays. So make sure to call everyone half an hour before the schedule to ensure their availability and to cut down delays.
Get a confirmation reply from each party after sending the document which will help you understand that they have received it and understood the contents. If someone has not replied to the same, ring them up to check-in.
Always Have a Backup Plan
The common enemy that can hinder your shoot could be the unpredictable weather, especially the outdoor ones, or models getting sick or having other issues. Line up a secondary photographer who knows all the details of your shoot in case you can’t make it as well due to unforeseen circumstances.
These are only a few tips and tricks that will help you make your fashion photoshoot a big success. With your dedication and passion, you can also find other ways through which you can do the same. As every individual is different and has a unique perspective, it wouldn’t be bad for you to brainstorm! Also, make sure your professional retouching services are excellent if you’re planning to carry out the post-production by yourself or you could consider the cost-effective alternative of outsourcing fashion photography retouching or image editing services.