Guide to outdoor fashion photography in 2021

Outdoor fashion photography is one of the most challenging but fun to learn-form of photography. Because it does not require any huge investment such as owning a studio space and lights, and you can learn in a happy and relaxing time with models, even your friends. 

However, it also comes with some problems. You need to have a good-looking model and own an expensive camera and lens. And while doing fashion photography outdoors, you should keep in mind and practice some basic rules which can make your photos stand out from the rest.

Don’t worry. In order to help you learn and shoot your own outdoor fashion photography, the tips mentioned below would help you drastically improve your results during your next outdoor fashion photoshoot.

• Be familiar with the location
• Choose the right time of the day
• Attach great importance to a flashlight
• Make the model comfortable
• Shoot in RAW format
• Get the best possible exposure in camera
• Using the correct lens for outdoor fashion photography 

1. Be familiar with the location

The location is the first and important thing you should finalize when you plan an outdoor photoshoot. You’d better visit the place at least a day in advance and think about the frames you would like to shoot. Make sure there are no restrictions and you are allowed to click photos there.

Of course, you can simply browse through the environment at first and choose the right background. You need to think visualize, and then frame accordingly, making sure that the colors in the background and the colors of the model’s clothes are not getting merged.  

2. Choose the right time of the day

Once you have finalized the location for the fashion photoshoot, you need to choose the right time of the day to captured desired results. Unlike the artificial light source, controlling the intensity and direction of the natural light source is not in our hands. But we can overcome this by placing our model in such a way that we can get the desired amount and direction of light in our frame.

However, there is no fixed time of day that you should be shooting, it all depends on the weather conditions and what result you want. Try and avoid the time when the sun is at its peak as it would create hard shadows on your model’s face. The safest time to shoot outdoors is either just after sunrise or a couple of hours before sunset. 

3. Attach great importance to a flashlight

With a dark source background, you can use a flash as the key light source at that time. Try to use a small light modifier to make the light directional and avoid spilling. So, it is always a great idea to carry a flashlight or a studio light along while going for an outdoor fashion photoshoot.

What’s more, you can mix ambient and flash light. In this way, you may add some creativity to your photos and take drama photos. For example, you can use the sunlight as the rim light or the kicker and the flash as the key light source, this allows you to control the shadows on the face.

4. Make the model comfortable

Expressions and body language of the model are some of the key elements of fashion photography. It’s a way to exchange shooting ideas with each other before beginning. You can do so by constantly interacting with your model, compliment them while he/she is posing, and make them feel confident.

Moreover, you need to tell your model whether they are posing right. You can carry some reference photos for outdoor fashion photography poses and teach him/her to make full use of the elements surrounding. As a photographer, you have to make your model feel comfortable and cooperate with your shooting.

5. Shoot in RAW format

Shooting in RAW is important in fashion photography. While shooting in JPEG format, your image will get compressed and loses all the details and data, and leave you with a file that has very less editing capabilities.

But RAW format allows you to capture much more details and helps in retouching the image during post-processing. It also contains the maximum dynamic range possible from your camera and can be used to recover an overexposed or an underexposed image during the processing. More importantly, you can edit the same RAW file multiple times, without losing any details and reshooting. 

6. Get the best possible exposure in camera

You can adjust the exposure later during the post-processing stage but you might end up losing details in your photo, depending on the camera that you are using. 

To ensure that you are capturing correctly exposed photos during the shoot, you should refer to the histogram in your camera.

7. Using the correct lens for outdoor fashion photography 

Wide-angle lenses help you capture the overall perspective with everything in focus, whereas a longer focal length will help you get rid of the unwanted and distracting background. 

So, Carrying different and correct lens in your camera bag during the outdoor fashion photoshoot is really important.

Outdoor fashion photography can be physically exhausting and challenging, but if you’re well prepared and are willing to practice more, the results can be stunning. So, the next time you plan an outdoor fashion photoshoot, do keep these tips in mind to achieve the best possible results.

Share your fashion photography tips and images below.

Post in:https://me-poppy.blogspot.com