Shooting a fashion editorial is an exciting way to build your portfolio, get published in magazines, and to create amazing collaborative art. There is nothing more rewarding than seeing your images in a magazine… except if that magazine is also in print!
In a future article I will go more in-depth on what it takes to submit to fashion magazines (rules, etiquette, considerations). But first, you must create images worthy of publication.
I’ve been shooting for more than half of my life, and I remember my first fashion editorial. While the results were far from stellar, I definitely had a lot of fun. I picked a bunch of random clothing from a random boutique, did extravagant makeup, and used a mix of creative lighting setups. Unfortunately, only later did I learn that this was really not the right way to go about it.
Pro tip: For those of you who are a little bit more advanced and eager to get published, I actually have a completely free resource guide with more than 75+ different magazines that accept submissions.
Through the years I have learned a lot, and have a much better understanding of what it takes to bring together a team and create powerful images with a visual story. I have been in countless magazines including prestigious publications like Marie Claire, Harper’s Bazaar, Numero, and Elle, and I’d like to share some essentials of what it takes to conceptualize, plan, and execute a successful editorial.
1. Determine your concept
Any successful fashion editorial starts with a concept. An editorial is a series of images joined together by a common thread. You are telling a visual story with a theme.
A “story” doesn’t have to be a narrative with a beginning, middle, and end. You can also have a theme like color blocking, knitwear, or neons. If you want these images to be published, you’ll need to keep in mind seasonal trends in fashion. For example, you probably can’t shoot a beach themed story at the end of August and hope that it will be published in an October fashion issue (for US publications).
The question for you to answer is “what’s your concept and story you want to tell?” Gather inspiration and begin to formulate your plan. As you firm up your concept, you’ll want to put together a mood board.
A mood board is a collection of images that shows the visual direction of the shoot. It’s your visual road map. Usually it will include references of other people’s photographs, sketches, or anything that communicates important visual references for hair, makeup, lighting, set design or whatever else you see in your head. I find my images in magazines, photo books, instagram, Pinterest, you name it!
In fact, you can follow me on Pinterest if you want to see some samples of the mood boards I’ve put together.
Why are mood boards important, you might ask? In a fashion shoot, you aren’t working alone. You are working with a team (which I’ll talk about in the next segment). When you are working with other creatives, a mood board is the most important way to get everyone on the same page in preparing for the shoot. For example, the makeup artist needs to see what you are thinking so they can sketch out their own ideas, research inspiration, or buy the materials they may need. If you don’t communicate your needs ahead of time, they may likely show up unprepared for your vision.
When it comes to creating a mood board, it’s fine to keep it simple. Personally I usually use free templates at canva.com or build my own grid of images in Photoshop. A single page layout will usually do the trick.
For this shoot, I decided that my concept was red on red on red. Red clothing, red makeup, red background… just rich luscious red. In other words, I was creating a color story.
When I put together this mood board, I included a photograph of the model, samples of the more creative makeup concepts I was aiming for, as well as the type of dramatic lighting I would be utilizing. I’ve shot red a million times, so many of the references were my own photographs. I then sent this mood board on to my creative team and got their thoughts and feedback.
Mood boards are just a guideline, and you will likely evolve your approach during a shoot — and that’s fine. Adapt and improve!
2. Gather your creative team
During my very first fashion shoots, I did it all. I had tried to apply some makeup on my subjects, I would have them do their own hair, and I would buy the clothing. It is very common for a photographer to start by doing many of the jobs on a shoot themselves, but the ones who usually are the most successful and create more impactful images are working with other professionals that help make them look good.
As photographers, we are often used to being a “one-man band.” We are accustomed to doing it all (and without a lot of help). But trust me, it’s worth the effort to find other creatives to work with to help elevate the quality of work. For example, my hair shots are good not just because I’m good at lighting, but because I spent the time to network with talented hair stylists.
When I refer to “creative team,” I’m usually talking about hair and makeup artists, wardrobe stylists, or anyone else to make this shoot happen. This could even include a manicurist, set designer, or florist depending on your concept.
To find these talented artists I suggest that you start networking on social platforms like Instagram. Follow other local photographers or artists to start diving into other creatives who they’ve tagged in their work. Through just a few photographers or models, you’ll be able to find a web of local models, hair stylists, makeup artists and expand your connections.
You may also want to try social networks like Model Mayhem or look for creatives at local hair salons, borrow clothing from a nearby boutique, or even collaborate with fashion students at a local university. Yes, this takes some leg work. But eventually you’ll find a team that understands and is inspired by your mood board.
For this editorial, I worked with a relatively small creative team. I worked with a wardrobe stylist and one person who did both hair and makeup.
My creative team for this shoot features:
- Stylist: Lisa Smith Craig (@lscstyling): I met her online through Model Mayhem more than a decade ago, and we have worked together ever since.
- Makeup and hair: Yvonne MacInnis (@yvonnetheartist): I connected with her through Instagram because I loved that she could do both elevated “luxury” makeup as well as super creative avant-garde styles.
- Model: Yueyao (@wawalyy) : I worked with this lovely model last year on a creative gel shoot, and she not only has a wonderful, enthusiastic personality but she also is superior at posing.
3. Create cohesion and variety
When you shoot a fashion editorial, the goal is to create a series that works together to tell a visual story. The shots shouldn’t be all over the map, but instead should feel cohesive. At the same time, you also don’t want that story to be super static or repetitive. Typically you’d want to avoid the same model, in the same pose, with the same expression, same lighting, and the same crop. It just gets boring. Your job as a photographer is to find the balance between cohesion and variety (to keep it interesting!).
Personally, my approach is to keep the lighting the same but try to change the posing and clothing. I find that especially when you are starting off, if you have multiple models and try to switch up the lighting, it ends up often feeling like several different stories mashed together. Do yourself a favor — keep it simple.
In this shoot you can see the five different styling looks captured to tell this story. While the clothing changed, it still maintained cohesion with the color red. Yes, the makeup changed three times but each time with red brought into the design. The lighting and set remained the same throughout. Fundamentally it was the pose and crop that were used to create variation.
If you hope to publish your story in a magazine, you’ll want to have at least five different changes in looks since that’s typically the minimum they usually consider a “story.” For fashion, you’ll change the clothing at least five times, and if it’s a beauty editorial you start changing the makeup, hair or jewelry. Remember, the changes shouldn’t be in dramatically different directions. The clothing still needs to tell a story or portray your model as a character.
An aside on gear:
There is no such thing as ideal fashion lighting. It is all about how the lighting helps you tell a story, direct the viewer’s eye, and communicate a mood. For this shoot I used my Canon R5 (check out my hands-on review of it here), my RF 24-105, and a three light setup using Profoto D1 and D2 strobes.
For my main light I used a grid to create a concentrated, bright, and contrasty light on the face. By using a hard light source, it really helped to bring attention to the subject’s face even when surrounded by such a strong, bold color (red). I moved this around slightly, sometimes having the light centered on the face and other times off to the side in Rembrandt lighting position.
Next, I used a large umbrella with diffusion in the front to help fill in the shadows and light the subject head-to-toe on full-length shots. Because the main light was a focused modifier (grid), this fill light was important to maintain detail. Finally, I used another grid (focused light source) to illuminate the background and create a glow of light for the subject.
This lighting and overall “vibe” stayed the same throughout the shoot.
Gear:
Canon RF 24-105mm f/4 L IS USM Lens
Canon R5
Profoto D1
Profoto D2
Savage Primary Red Background
Profoto Large Deep Umbrella with Diffusion
Profoto Grids
Conclusion:
I hope these tips have helped give you a little guidance to get you started with your first fashion editorial. Now is a great time to begin gathering your inspiration images. Get your ideas brewing, start building your mood boards, and begin networking with your potential creative team. Even if you aren’t quite ready to shoot, by the time you are, you’ll have great ideas and wonderful contacts!
Behind the scenes:
If you like the shoot featured in this article, be sure to check out this behind-the-scenes videos:
Feature photo by Lindsay Adler
