How to become a fashion photographer and Professional photographer
A career in fashion photography doesn't have to be an impossible dream. With its huge audience, high pay-checks and glamorous international lifestyle, fashion photography may seem like one of the world's most sought-after professions. But for every fashion photographer who makes it through the door of a top magazine, a thousand others find their niche fashion advertising, art photography, celebrity portraiture or even paparazzi work to make a living.
Sydney photographer Eva Mueller agree that breaking into the industry can be hard. But they have some tips for beginners on setting up a portfolio, submitting work to magazine picture editors, choosing the right photo agency and even getting shown in a gallery.
Setting up a portfolio
A photographer's most important tool is her portfolio, and this is particularly true for beginners who don't have an established reputation.
"Having been around, I know how hard it is to get in the door," says Allure magazine photo editor Clio McNicholl, who receives around 50 unsolicited portfolios a month. Many photographers find that websites offer an inexpensive way to showcase a relatively large quantity of images. Eva Mueller a Munich-born fashion and beauty photographer who has been living and working in Manhattan for ten years, points out that computer editing is also a method of keeping down retouching and printing costs.
Many fashion photographers find the sharp, bright imaging of 4 x 5" transparencies show off their work to best effect. Tear-sheets (literally, pages ripped from a magazine) are great if you've been published, but good quality, 8 x 10" prints are also OK. "I like to see a common thread throughout the book," says Clio McNicholl, who says she can tell within three images whether she likes a photographer's style. Once you've got your portfolio together, the next challenge is to get the picture editor to use you.
Picking your picture editor
"Most people who cold call me haven't done their research, which is the world's biggest mistake," says Clio McNicholl. When you submit work to photo editors, remember that you're "showing" rather than "selling". Editors almost never buy the specific image they see before them; they're looking for a photographer who can execute future commissions. The best way to grab an editor's attention is to show previously published work. "Because there's such an over-supply of photographers, a lot of magazines really take advantage of that fact," says Eva Mueller. McNicholl says Allure's rates start at $350 a day for unknown photographers, up to $130,000 for a fashion spread.
A photograph is a document just as much as an article or an essay, and picture editors are looking for concise images which clearly communicate an idea or an emotion. Women's magazines all over the world buy hundred of stock shots every month – typically young women having fun with their boyfriends, hanging out with friends, or maybe moping home alone with their stuffed toys – all of which express a sentiment commonly dealt with in feature articles. If your work speaks clearly, you'll stand a much better chance with picture editors than with vague or ambiguous images.
When you're submitting your work, remember:
Call the magazine ahead and get the name of the person to whose attention the submission should be marked
Label everything with your name and telephone number, Send working prints or transparencies, not originals, Include a stamped, self-addressed envelope if you want the work back
Some clients really take advantage of the fact that there are so many photographers out there: they make you pay for the whole shoot, they alter your pictures and don't tell you when they drop the story. Sometimes they're just really disrespectful toward the photographer." There is a way to avoid having to deal with photo editors, however: and that's to have a photo agency do the selling on your behalf.
Finding a photo agent
Photo agencies exist to liaise with clients and sell photographers' work on their behalf. They benefit everyone from start-out photographers, who may not have many industry contacts, to seasoned professionals, who are too busy to take care of business dealings themselves.
Usually the photographer doesn't have enough time to take care of everything."
Agencies can also re-sell your work in several different markets, acting as a mini publicist and giving career advice. "The young photographer has to understand their target, in terms of their personal goals the direction the photographer wants to take," she says. Agents recommend treating your first contact with them as seriously as if it were a job interview. A photo agency is not the only place that can sell your work. If you're more interested in concentrating on your personal vision than taking commercial work, you can also considering exhibiting in a fine art photography gallery.
Getting a gallery
While gelatin silver prints are the staple of fine art photography, you'll find a healthy interest both in contemporary photos using antique methods (such as Chuck Close's daguerreotypes), as well as modern printing methods, including Cibachromes and C-prints.
Like any artistic undertaking, art photography is unlikely to pay you a living wage for many years. Although many artists sell their work directly from the Internet, critical attention and the strongest sales come from a relationship with a Gallery. While there is now at least one photo gallery in most major cities, the center of the world art photo market is Sydney. Sydney boasts around 100 galleries dealing in photographic prints, and prices there tend to be strongest. A comprehensive list of Sydney and international galleries is available at the websites of the bimonthly listings guide Photography in Sydney , as well as the Association of International Art Photography Dealers.
Before approaching any gallery with your work, you should telephone and request details of their submissions policy. Many galleries review new work only at set times of the year, and even to get in the door of some places you will need the recommendation of somebody known to the gallery directors. (Sometimes it helps to drop the name of a well-known critic or museum director, even if your connection to them is tenuous.)
If a gallery is interested in taking you on as an artist, they'll probably want to see a representative sampling of your work. Even if you have one or two knock-out images in your portfolio, a gallery will want to know that you have a mature body of work with a consistent standard throughout. Not everyone is offered a solo show.
The most important thing to remember about working with a gallery is to maintain a proper business relationship. Industry standard is that the artist receives 50% of the retail price of a photo.
You should also discuss whether you are free to have relationships with other galleries, or if your gallery expects exclusivity. If you have a New York gallery, for example, but then arrange to have a show in Los Angeles, sometimes the New York gallery will expect a cut (typically 10%).
A. Fashion Photographer - Through The Lens Of a Career In Fashion
You may love all things having to do with fashion, from the diverse clothes that are worn and beautiful dresses, to the offbeat designers, to the celebrities as well as models that show off the clothes - lets face it, one of the most exciting and diverse industries is the fashion industry.
There are numerous other options available to you in the industry of fashion.
There is one type of career in the fashion industry that is very common choice and that is as a fashion photographer. So if your very interested in photography in addition to fashion, then you should give fashion photography a try.
What Exactly is a Fashion Photographer?
A fashion photographer conceptualizes shoots, develops and prints out photos of models wearing the attractive creations of fashion designers. One of the significant attributes that a fashion photographer should have is a creative eye and the ability to capture the models in a way that is creative that will catch the attention of various prospective buyers.
The photographs shot by a fashion photographer can be utilized in numerous fashion magazines. A fashion photographer must be at ease while working with models to capture the right quality poses and photographs.
If you end up choosing to be a fashion photographer, you should be comfortable and prepared for competition as this field is one of the most competitive in the fashion industry.
An additional benefit of being a fashion photographer is that you get to develop the opportunity of developing relationships with famous celebrities as well as models. They also have the opportunities to travel to numerous on location destinations for one site photo shoots. The median salary that a fashion photographer can get is between $25,000 and $40,000.
How to Accomplish Your Dream
You have the ability to become a fashion photographer through working your way up one step at a time. Begin by being an assistant to a photographer.
B. Purchasing Fashion Photography
Although color prints make a photograph appear more realistic, sometimes black and white photography captures an image or a scene in a way that makes it look more professional or more captivating.
One of the areas in which we see black and white photography frequently is in black and white art prints. You may also find them in Audrey Hepburn photos or Charlie Chaplin photos because during the time those photos were taken, color photography was not even developed. Movies were still shown in black and white and many television shows did not show up in color until the late 60s or early 70s. Black and white photography often has more image clarity than color because you don’t have the distractions from the light that often occur with color.
In fashion photography black and white prints are used frequently especially when a model is trying to build a portfolio. That doesn’t mean that professional photos are always black and white photography, but there are some situations that call for some black and white prints. In fact, fashion photos will sometimes have both black and white prints and color prints.
A career in fashion photography doesn't have to be an impossible dream. With its huge audience, high pay-checks and glamorous international lifestyle, fashion photography may seem like one of the world's most sought-after professions. But for every fashion photographer who makes it through the door of a top magazine, a thousand others find their niche fashion advertising, art photography, celebrity portraiture or even paparazzi work to make a living.
Sydney photographer Eva Mueller agree that breaking into the industry can be hard. But they have some tips for beginners on setting up a portfolio, submitting work to magazine picture editors, choosing the right photo agency and even getting shown in a gallery.
Setting up a portfolio
A photographer's most important tool is her portfolio, and this is particularly true for beginners who don't have an established reputation.
"Having been around, I know how hard it is to get in the door," says Allure magazine photo editor Clio McNicholl, who receives around 50 unsolicited portfolios a month. Many photographers find that websites offer an inexpensive way to showcase a relatively large quantity of images. Eva Mueller a Munich-born fashion and beauty photographer who has been living and working in Manhattan for ten years, points out that computer editing is also a method of keeping down retouching and printing costs.
Many fashion photographers find the sharp, bright imaging of 4 x 5" transparencies show off their work to best effect. Tear-sheets (literally, pages ripped from a magazine) are great if you've been published, but good quality, 8 x 10" prints are also OK. "I like to see a common thread throughout the book," says Clio McNicholl, who says she can tell within three images whether she likes a photographer's style. Once you've got your portfolio together, the next challenge is to get the picture editor to use you.
Picking your picture editor
"Most people who cold call me haven't done their research, which is the world's biggest mistake," says Clio McNicholl. When you submit work to photo editors, remember that you're "showing" rather than "selling". Editors almost never buy the specific image they see before them; they're looking for a photographer who can execute future commissions. The best way to grab an editor's attention is to show previously published work. "Because there's such an over-supply of photographers, a lot of magazines really take advantage of that fact," says Eva Mueller. McNicholl says Allure's rates start at $350 a day for unknown photographers, up to $130,000 for a fashion spread.
A photograph is a document just as much as an article or an essay, and picture editors are looking for concise images which clearly communicate an idea or an emotion. Women's magazines all over the world buy hundred of stock shots every month – typically young women having fun with their boyfriends, hanging out with friends, or maybe moping home alone with their stuffed toys – all of which express a sentiment commonly dealt with in feature articles. If your work speaks clearly, you'll stand a much better chance with picture editors than with vague or ambiguous images.
When you're submitting your work, remember:
Call the magazine ahead and get the name of the person to whose attention the submission should be marked
Label everything with your name and telephone number, Send working prints or transparencies, not originals, Include a stamped, self-addressed envelope if you want the work back
Some clients really take advantage of the fact that there are so many photographers out there: they make you pay for the whole shoot, they alter your pictures and don't tell you when they drop the story. Sometimes they're just really disrespectful toward the photographer." There is a way to avoid having to deal with photo editors, however: and that's to have a photo agency do the selling on your behalf.
Finding a photo agent
Photo agencies exist to liaise with clients and sell photographers' work on their behalf. They benefit everyone from start-out photographers, who may not have many industry contacts, to seasoned professionals, who are too busy to take care of business dealings themselves.
Usually the photographer doesn't have enough time to take care of everything."
Agencies can also re-sell your work in several different markets, acting as a mini publicist and giving career advice. "The young photographer has to understand their target, in terms of their personal goals the direction the photographer wants to take," she says. Agents recommend treating your first contact with them as seriously as if it were a job interview. A photo agency is not the only place that can sell your work. If you're more interested in concentrating on your personal vision than taking commercial work, you can also considering exhibiting in a fine art photography gallery.
Getting a gallery
While gelatin silver prints are the staple of fine art photography, you'll find a healthy interest both in contemporary photos using antique methods (such as Chuck Close's daguerreotypes), as well as modern printing methods, including Cibachromes and C-prints.
Like any artistic undertaking, art photography is unlikely to pay you a living wage for many years. Although many artists sell their work directly from the Internet, critical attention and the strongest sales come from a relationship with a Gallery. While there is now at least one photo gallery in most major cities, the center of the world art photo market is Sydney. Sydney boasts around 100 galleries dealing in photographic prints, and prices there tend to be strongest. A comprehensive list of Sydney and international galleries is available at the websites of the bimonthly listings guide Photography in Sydney , as well as the Association of International Art Photography Dealers.
Before approaching any gallery with your work, you should telephone and request details of their submissions policy. Many galleries review new work only at set times of the year, and even to get in the door of some places you will need the recommendation of somebody known to the gallery directors. (Sometimes it helps to drop the name of a well-known critic or museum director, even if your connection to them is tenuous.)
If a gallery is interested in taking you on as an artist, they'll probably want to see a representative sampling of your work. Even if you have one or two knock-out images in your portfolio, a gallery will want to know that you have a mature body of work with a consistent standard throughout. Not everyone is offered a solo show.
The most important thing to remember about working with a gallery is to maintain a proper business relationship. Industry standard is that the artist receives 50% of the retail price of a photo.
You should also discuss whether you are free to have relationships with other galleries, or if your gallery expects exclusivity. If you have a New York gallery, for example, but then arrange to have a show in Los Angeles, sometimes the New York gallery will expect a cut (typically 10%).
A. Fashion Photographer - Through The Lens Of a Career In Fashion
You may love all things having to do with fashion, from the diverse clothes that are worn and beautiful dresses, to the offbeat designers, to the celebrities as well as models that show off the clothes - lets face it, one of the most exciting and diverse industries is the fashion industry.
There are numerous other options available to you in the industry of fashion.
There is one type of career in the fashion industry that is very common choice and that is as a fashion photographer. So if your very interested in photography in addition to fashion, then you should give fashion photography a try.
What Exactly is a Fashion Photographer?
A fashion photographer conceptualizes shoots, develops and prints out photos of models wearing the attractive creations of fashion designers. One of the significant attributes that a fashion photographer should have is a creative eye and the ability to capture the models in a way that is creative that will catch the attention of various prospective buyers.
The photographs shot by a fashion photographer can be utilized in numerous fashion magazines. A fashion photographer must be at ease while working with models to capture the right quality poses and photographs.
If you end up choosing to be a fashion photographer, you should be comfortable and prepared for competition as this field is one of the most competitive in the fashion industry.
An additional benefit of being a fashion photographer is that you get to develop the opportunity of developing relationships with famous celebrities as well as models. They also have the opportunities to travel to numerous on location destinations for one site photo shoots. The median salary that a fashion photographer can get is between $25,000 and $40,000.
How to Accomplish Your Dream
You have the ability to become a fashion photographer through working your way up one step at a time. Begin by being an assistant to a photographer.
B. Purchasing Fashion Photography
Although color prints make a photograph appear more realistic, sometimes black and white photography captures an image or a scene in a way that makes it look more professional or more captivating.
One of the areas in which we see black and white photography frequently is in black and white art prints. You may also find them in Audrey Hepburn photos or Charlie Chaplin photos because during the time those photos were taken, color photography was not even developed. Movies were still shown in black and white and many television shows did not show up in color until the late 60s or early 70s. Black and white photography often has more image clarity than color because you don’t have the distractions from the light that often occur with color.
In fashion photography black and white prints are used frequently especially when a model is trying to build a portfolio. That doesn’t mean that professional photos are always black and white photography, but there are some situations that call for some black and white prints. In fact, fashion photos will sometimes have both black and white prints and color prints.
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