Fashion photography is just like any other genre of photography when it comes to camera gear and accessories. However, you should not make things complicated when you are busy shooting for any project. It is important that you attempt to keep things as simple as you can. There are even some rumors in the industry that suggest you should bank on a single camera, one light, and a single lens when you are taking fashion photographs.
Bruce Weber is a well-known fashion photographer and filmmaker from the USA famous for his iconic images that redefined the world of fashion way back in the 1970s. The Bruce Weber photographer collection is seldom in color, and most are monochrome. You will also find several of his photographs published in books.
According to him, when it comes to taking fashion photographs, you should keep things simple as per your experience levels. Now the question is, why should you keep things so simple?
Learning fast
The reason you should keep things simple is that you can learn the tricks of the trade faster. This applies to the fashion industry and every industry in general. The goal here is to create your individual style. This helps you make your mark as a fashion photographer in the industry.
If you carefully consider the skill set you need, it should be creative. Fashion photography is one of the most variable genres of photography in the world. So, be free to express your original concepts and incorporate them in the shoot.
Getting the correct camera settings
There is no magic formula when it comes to the correct camera settings for the shoot. However, there are some general guidelines to help you when it comes to taking the best shots. For instance, you should shoot in the RAW mode as this gives you the opportunity to store photographic data in your image to help you enhance it better during the post-processing mode.
In case you are working on a basic shoot in the studio, ensure everything is sharp and focused. Some recommended settings that you can adjust later could be-
- Aperture around 7.1 or at 8.
- The shutter speed could be around 160.
- The ISO should be 160 to about 200.
When it comes to the mode of shooting the photograph, you should not use the Auto Mode. When you are in complete Manual mode, you get better control and more consistency to the photographs.
One effective Bruce Weber photographer tip is that your camera’s shutter speed depends upon the light that you use for the shoot. In order to keep hand-shake at bay, you should use a shutter speed that is over 1/100th. In case you are using the flash mode of your camera, you should not go beyond 1/200th per second.
If you are planning to catch your images in action, the perfect shutter speed for your camera depends upon how fast you want this action to be photographed. For a good shallow field depth, control the camera’s aperture settings as per the focal point for the audience that you wish to achieve.
