A stylist in a large and not very large city is often attracted by shops to stylize photographs. Salons can afford to pay for a stylized shooting, the stylist is often not only an ideological inspirer, but also an organizer of the process.
Clothes
Meeting with the client
It is imperative to meet with the client before shooting, oral or written agreements will not be enough. When you meet, you can understand whether you like a specialist, find a common language with a client. It is good to have a senior salesperson at the meeting who will help you collect measurements before shooting. Let the meeting take place in the store, the business owner and consultants can tell about the range, target audience, show things that need to be emphasized when drawing up images.
It is also important to take into account the time frame, if you urgently need to prepare content for social networks, and often photos were needed “yesterday”, then the photographer makes a reservation that the photos are needed during the week. For example, a men’s clothing store brought leather jackets, they are already on sale, and if you post photos in a month, then the content for buyers will no longer be relevant, including due to weather conditions.
Inventory of material assets
Trust is important during photography. If the business owner is not present at the shooting, the stylist is responsible for the safety of the clothes. By the way, it is better if there is only a model, stylist and photographer in the studio. The presence of a client can slow down the filming process and strain everyone involved.
All things for filming must be taken by appointment, even with full confidence, you need to at least accept a few (five pants, four shirts, etc.). It’s not a matter of mistrust, thefts can happen in the store, if you don’t make an inventory of the things that you take for shooting, then it will be profitable to write off the shortage on just such guest performers. Also, knowing the quantity, it will be easier to pick up things from the studio, usually shooting ends in a hurry, trousers can easily fall over the back of the sofa.
Model and photographer
A stylist can be invited to a ready-made team, or he can assemble a team himself. The second option is responsible, but in any case, before filming, you need to meet with the team. When meeting, it is important to look at the type of the model, there are generalists who will suit any clothes, but there are characteristic models. The photographer needs to show the mood board and tell about the wishes not only for posing, but also for processing photographs. By the way, let the client show at the meeting what he wants to get at the output, what clarity and dynamics of the photo.
When getting to know a model, it is important to understand the level of professionalism. Not every person with a pretty face can work in the frame. If the model is not professional, and often the business owner attracts his relatives, friends and acquaintances for filming, then you need to lay more time for shooting, because you will have to take more frames and a lot of time will be spent on explaining the poses. If you cannot immediately contact the model, then find a fallback or warn the client that the focus may not work.
Models in stock
Before taking a photo, you need to come to the store separately to photograph things with which you will need to make combinations at home. A consultant should help you navigate in the store to save time. You can choose a thing for the image, but the size you need may not be.
Speaking of sizes. Talk to the client and the consultant, as a buyer, to make the garment fit – loose or tight. The choice of size will depend on this. Also, from going to the salon for preparation to the photo session itself, it can take time, and the thing chosen for shooting may be sold, so keep a stock of alternative combinations.
Remember that clients often want to save money on everything, someone will bargain for 300 rubles, and will ask you to find a cheaper photo studio. Try to prioritize and not listen to the owner in everything. If you do a bad job, you will suffer, and no 300 rubles will help you restore your reputation.
Presentation before shooting
Usually the shooting is very hectic, therefore, if you prepare a presentation in advance with ready-made visual images and coordinate it with the client, you will prepare yourself for a complex and responsible process. The client also won’t be able to tell you “I didn’t order this.”
Number of images per day
Most clients want for the minimum time to take the maximum number of images, but you don’t need to do this, you just won’t be able to do it efficiently. It is optimal to take a studio for shooting for 4 hours and collect 10-15 images. Often, the images are multi-layered and you can photograph one outfit while sitting, standing, close, from behind, without the top layer, with accessories, etc.
Accessories
Not every clothing store has shoes and accessories such as bags. There are several ways to get out of the situation. You can cooperate for shooting with other shops. It is better if the owner of the business negotiates; colleagues in the shop have more confidence in him. Then you can leave a link to shoe and bag stores under the photo. The second option is to buy the missing items and then return them. As ugly as it sounds, but the law allows you to return things, but not all accessories.
Fitting
You can invite the model to the store an hour before shooting to try on things before shooting. It is permissible to choose clothes “by eye”, but the result can be disastrous. Yes, the stylist will take stationery clips with him, but if the thing does not fit well, then a good shot will not work. Shirts and other clothes should be steamed, it is better not to take crumpled clothes for shooting.
Water
The rescue briefcase must have a supply of water. Buy a bottle for each participant. Be sure to take scissors with you, it would be nice to sew an apron in order to put stationery clips, scissors in its pockets … Before shooting, it is better to make a tone, even to the male model. The bruises under the eyes in each photo will remove more tedious and longer.
The main thing in the frame is clothes
Often the photo session is focused on shooting new collection, but if you, as a stylist, liked a thing from the old collection, be sure to include it in the selection. An image with such a thing will cheer up the team. If the model and the photographer do not need to remember that the purpose of the selling process is not the presentation of the face and poses, then the stylist should remember this, walk and straighten clothes, look at the shot. So, if the model “shrinks”, then the clothes will not be visible.
Clothes can be removed not only on a person, but also on a mannequin, if there is such a task, it is better to alternate shots. Let the clothes be visible both on the person and on the hanger.
Timing
The photographer and the model can often get carried away with one image and shoot it for an hour, the stylist must watch for timing, because it will be he who will be responsible for the number of captured images.
Decorations for a photo shoot
To shoot jewelry you need to create a mood board. If you can’t come up with an original idea for presentation, buy jewelry stands and photograph them against a light or dark background, because the hands for photographing jewelry should be with perfect manicure.
You still need to smell good, close tactile contact between all team members obliges.
Author: stylist-image maker Elena Khmelevskaya