Saturday, December 13, 2008

Fashion Photography and Elephants

By Gugu Martini

The big improvement in shutter speed and photo resolution, makes Digital Photography convenient and easy for both beginners and professional photographers alike, to take good pictures. For digital photography enthusiasts there has never been a better time for them to create work that looks professional as well as very creative. It has also had an impact on businesses, both in the real and virtual world of the internet.

One particular area that has benefited from this new technology is digital fashion photography and in an industry that relies on speed, this has been a huge benefit. This is probably one of the more challenging areas, because digital fashion photography has to recreate and capture everything on the catwalk an off.

It can improve on the mundane and make the good look perfect which is excellent for images that rely on perfection. The world of fashion is fast moving and short lived so digital fashion photography is an excellent medium to both capture and portray these images. Like fashion designers, digital fashion photographers also work in a prestigious field, filled with beauty and glamour.

If you believe digital fashion photography is going to be your vocation then there are some important steps needed to become successful. Most important is to keep focused, ensuring your camera is always with you wherever you go as you never know when an opportune moment may present itself.

Good digital fashion photographers know what it is they want to achieve and find a way by experimentation, on how to achieve the desired result. Like any artist you must place the model or models in the way that will create the image that you're looking to achieve. A digital photographer should also be aware that the results of his photos will show others the many steps and points to remember when you are taking a shot.

Knowing what you want and having the knowledge of how to obtain it are two different things and you cannot be a serious digital fashion photographer without learning this. The photographer will almost always achieve better results by using curtains and reflectors plus a tripod with lighting to either the left or right side of the object at an angle of 45 degrees. If very bright lights cannot be avoided then it may be necessary to use polarizing filters to reduce the glare and other backdrop materials to help with the composition.

Do not forget to use filters, see-thru transparencies and diffusers to neutralize colors; improvements can also be achieved quite easily by using grey and white backgrounds. For the uninitiated there work may seem quite mysterious until they publish it, a bit like an artist only working on one section of a canvas, you won't know how it is going to look until it is finished. Lastly, although generally speaking, the aim is for the attention to be on the subject, there may be a relationship with the background that is not immediately seen. - 16003

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