Photographing a Fashion Concept

I just finished Figure/Fashion Photography, PH435. It was most definitely the hardest class I have faced in my career at AIPOD. It was also one of the best classes for me in my career at AIPOD. Why, you ask? I am a good portrait and wedding photographer. I am great with lighting my subjects to highlight their faces and expressions, and capturing emotions and images that tell their stories. I have rarely had to create the story or concept I was photographing. I also have never been into photographing fashion. I didn’t know how to make the images about the clothing and not the model. For the first three weeks of class I kept hearing, “they look like portraits,” from my professor.

By the third week of class I was ready to throw in the towel, but my professor kept encouraging me and talking me through ideas. Then I ran into problems with models. At the end of week four I still didn’t believe I was going to be successful in this class or with my final project. Finally the beginning of week five I was able to do the shoot I wanted and needed for my project. It pushed me so far out of my comfort zone.

So to bring you into this fantasy that I was trying to create, let me describe the project. Using tulle of multiple colors I would create couture fashion that looked like lighthouses. I challenge each of your to come up with a concept totally beyond normal and try to create images that show your concept. As I was encouraged by my professor, think of things that you are really interested in or love. (I love the water and lighthouses and playing with light.) Then think of a new and different way to illustrate it. I did it through fashion, you may want to do it using a different concept. This project whet my appetite to do more creative work. My prof encouraged me to work on this for a year. I plan to. I wonder what my images will look like next year!

Here’s some of my lighthouses. Which says lighthouse fashion to you the most?