The fashion industry is constantly changing. Fashions come and go and every year the big names in the world of fashion put on huge catwalk shows to showcase their latest designs. These shows offer the world its first glimpse of the fashion vision for the next season.

The world of fashion photography, seen by many as a rather glamorous life, is fast paced and demands perfection. Whether this is catwalk photography where there are limited opportunities to capture that perfect shot or photoshoots where there is more time to get the set up just as you want it, there is no denying that this type of photography is harder than it looks.

Whilst these types of photos are usually for use in the media, photo sharing platforms like ClickASnap are a great place for people to share their own interpretations of the latest fashions. But what else is fashion photography used for?

Model portfolios

A vital part of any model’s tool kit, the portfolio is used when a model is looking for their next job. It will contain a range of different images showing the models adaptability and helps companies or fashion houses decide if the model has the look that they want or even the personality to represent their brand in the way that they want. Over the years, it is likely that a model will add images to the portfolio to showcase their work – it is essentially a CV in pictures. As well as adding photos, a model may choose to remove earlier photos if they no longer feel that they represent their look.

Fashion magazines

Glossy magazines are usually full of images of the latest fashions. This might be as part of a photoshoot where the model is pictured in their own home during an interview or an article on the latest catwalk fashion and how to recreate the style using more obtainable items from the High Street. This is a great use for fashion photography as it really helps to bring fashion down to the level that most people can afford and shows them what they can do.

Websites

With the pandemic and the closing of non-essential shops people were forced to turn to online shopping for their clothing needs. Fashion photography plays a very important role on websites as it allows people to see what clothes look like on a figure rather than just laid out for a photo. Companies that take the time to photograph items of clothing on people from different angles increase their chances of selling. This is because doing so allows individuals at home the best opportunity to examine garments before purchase, in much the same way as they would if they were in the shop.

Adding details like the height and dress size of the model can also help people to visualise the clothing properly. Fashion photography, done well, is a very powerful selling tool.

The same thing applies to paper clothing catalogues, good quality photographs of the fashions can really help to see the clothing.

News articles

Good fashion photography, not necessarily images that include actual models but rather famous people etc, are a great illustration for news articles as well. Take for example the images of the wife of the UK Prime Minister during the G7 conference in Cornwall over the summer.

These images all showed Carrie Johnson in a range of beautiful garments that had been hired, rather than purchased for the event, and perfectly illustrated her commitment to a more sustainable fashion culture where expensive garments that are often worn for just one occasion can not only be cutting edge but also rented at a reasonable price rather than purchased outright for a much larger sum.

Whatever your interest in fashion photography, there are plenty of avenues for you to go down if you intend on making it your career.