Photography: Laura Clark Photography
Outfit Details: Top | Jeans c/o GUESS| Wedges | Bag similar | Sunnies similar
One of the skills you must acquire as a blogger is learning how to pose like a model. Taking great outfit photos is essentially what makes or breaks an outfit post. My first outfit photos here and here, were incredibly hard to take, mainly because I felt uneasy. I had no idea what I was doing, I was feeling like a loser like “What am I doing posing when I am not a model?” I have come a long way since then, but it took time to really pin down my outfit photos and to learn what to look out for each time I was taking my ootd photos. I mean even to this day sometimes I make mistakes. Laura (my photographer) and I always laugh at some epic mistakes we make, but I feel when you are in that moment it is hard to see past some errors. Bloopers are the best way to learn what works for your outfit photos and what does not.
1 | Practice In Front of the Mirror to Learn your Angles
I know! This is as ridiculous as it sounds, but it will help you so much. If you want to know your good angles and which angles work best for you, you gotta practice in front of that full body mirror of yours. When you practice in front of the mirror then some poses will automatically become part of your regular poses. After shooting a certain amount of outfit photos you will notice that you have certain poses you always gravitate towards.
2 | Always Analyze Your Photos
Another tip for taking amazing outfit photos and a habit that I got used to doing is looking through your photos and analyzing them. Ok, I know no one has time for that. But when you are going through your photos to choose which will make the cut to your actual blog make a mental note of poses that you loved and poses that you did not. For example, after a couple of outfit posts I had gone after going through the photos and analyzing my photos I noticed a pattern that when
3 | Know Your Camera
If you shoot your own looks I cannot stress enough how important it is to learn how to use your camera so that you can optimize your time and also shoot amazing photos. When I got my camera I had no idea what I as doing so I was always shooting in automatic mode. Kam actually did some research on google and watched lots of YouTube videos to switch shooting in manual mode because it honestly gives you so many more options. The quality of your photos will drastically improve when shooting in manual mode.
4 | Find a Photographer That Understands Your Aesthetic.
For those that decide to work with a photographer, find a photographer that coincides with the aesthetic you want to project through your photos. Just because you are working with a photographer does not mean you are going to love the photos. Photographers have their own style of shooting. I have worked with some photographers on certain campaigns and even though I loved what I was wearing and I knew my angles, the photos were actually extremely disappointing because the photographer’s style was much different than my aesthetic. To ensure your photos are consistent narrow down the number of photographers you work with. If the photographer’s editing style is much different than your aesthetic always ask if they can adjust their editing to match yours or send examples of what you are aiming for. Photographers get very offended when you edit their work so ensure you figure out all these details before hand.
5 | Chase the Light
Lighting makes a huge difference when it comes to outfit photos. We always shoot outdoors when possible, and we always shoot during the day unless we want a more dramatic effect for our photos in which case we shoot loser to twilight hour. Laura and I never shoot in direct sunlight although we shot last week in direct sunlight just to try something different and they turned out pretty good. But we will not make a habit out of it. Shadows can be quite harsh when you shoot in direct sunlight and if your editing skills lack your photos can look like a horror story. If you shoot indoors especially during winter look for a spot with great natural lighting. This also makes editing photos much easier.
If you shoot indoors make sure to shoot in an area that has great natural lighting, usually go near the window where light is optimal.
6 | Avoid Busy Backgrounds
I try to shoot in areas that have as little distractions as possible. Chances are you re not going to see me shooting in the middle of the street in a busy downtown area. Even though I live in the city most of my photos have natural backgrounds like trees, landscapes etc. That is the aesthetic I wanted for my photos so it takes a lot of effort for me to pick my outfit locations depending on what I am shooting. Whatever location you choose avoid busy backgrounds or if that is the case blur the background so that the focus is your outfit. You definitely do not want the location to be the spotlight of the post. Your outfit should be the star of your post. For travel photos, you want to take photos that have a good balance where the landscape is the focus of the photo and some where the focus is your outfit.
7 | Plan The Shots You Want To Take
You obviously got your regular poses, but I think it is important to always be inspired. I am always saving interesting poses I see on Pinterest from models or other bloggers. It is important to not make your photos boring and have the same shots over and over again. Throwing in a different pose here and there makes a huge difference when it comes to outfit photos. Our regular shots include: full outfit photos, a couple close ups of clothing details and face, a detail shot from my lips to my knees, walking shots and our classic shoe shots. Then depending on what item I am featuring we throw in some poses we have never done before, this will also change depending on the location of our shoot.
8 | Be Inspired By Your Outfit
Let me tell you. If you are wearing an outfit you really don’t like it will show in your pictures. Shooting something you are not feeling comfortable in is a no-no. You have creative choices so put together an outfit you love. The best outfit photos are the ones where you wear an outfit you love. For example, I am loving these GUESS Women’s Mid-Rise Jeggings I am wearing in today’s outfit post. I felt pretty good about my body wearing the jeans even though they are skinny jeans. This pair of jeans fit perfectly, but still had a little bit of breathing room considering they are jeggings. I think it shows in my photos that I love the outfit I am wearing.
That’s it for all the generic tips I have for taking amazing outfit photos. Stay tuned the end of this month when I go into more details about actual poses and how you can position your body for certain shots. Any tips of the ones I mentioned above that you follow?
