Ditty Bags! A quintessential part of every photographer’s stock, a ditty bag  holds our essential necessities for a shoot. I don’t know what you guys call it but I got used to the term years ago and always lovingly refer to mine as a ditty bag, even though I get the strange looks from my ’20 something assistants. When researching the reason for the name I found this great little article about ditty bag:  The Ditty Bag is “a small bag in which a sailor keeps small tools and equipment, also personal articles” according to John Rogers in Origins of Sea Terms: A modern Glossary of seagoing terminology. They did and still do have one main purpose: to hold a sailor’s personal possessions and some tools of the trade. They have even been referred to as a “housewife” because they held all the essentials for repairing clothing, personal belongings as well as everything that was needed on deck!

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The second half of day two of my seminars addresses the business side of fashion photography. I jump in by reminding my students that one of the biggest mistakes photographers make is forgetting that fashion photography is a business, like any other business, and the purpose of being in business is to obviously make money. That’s kind of a no-brainer, right? We are all aware that we need to generate revenue in order to survive. However, after reminding my students of the importance of remembering that this is a business, I then ask them WHY they are interested in pursuing fashion photography. I mean, why aren’t they interested in say, food photography or portraiture, weddings or cars? Aside from teaching at my seminars, I also answer a huge amount of emails. And again, I ask the people emailing me with questions about how they can make it as a fashion photographer, why are they interested in fashion photography as oppose to other avenues of photography. What baffles me is not very many people can answer that question. What IS fashion photography? I mean, the answer is right there: FASHION photography is about the fashion. It’s the business of photographing the fashion for either editorial or advertising purposes. It’s about selling the clothes! The CLOTHES!!!!

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Honest Critiques

Writer’s Block! It’s not that I don’t have anything to say, it’s just that sometimes I don’t know exactly how to say it. I wish I had it in me to break off some fabulous technical tips and insight on how to light for black clothing (use side light) or an insider secret on a great beauty shot (use a model with great skin to begin with) but I think I want to write about something else. I know that I haven’t been writing a lot lately.  The truth is: I AM BUSY!!! I’ve had a smashing great start for the new year! I’m meeting today with a client for a huge gig that will be a monthly contractual job for 12 months. Love those kinds of jobs!! Getting ready for Dubai in March and I’m so excited!! Just booked my plane ticket yesterday and have already done a couple of interviews for some of Dubai’s newspapers and magazines. Gearing up for my best photographer friend David Anthony’s move to Los Angeles…….no, seriously, Can. Not. WAIT!! Met with and am going to be working with Vincent De Vries on European seminars to commence in August (LONDON CALLING). Shooting for my book! Shooting for CHURCH, which has now become a regular client needing me to supply monthly images for their upcoming website. Prepping a shoot for MIRRIN Magazine, based out of the UK that I will shooting next Tuesday. And as if I don’t have enough on my plate, I’m organizing and downsizing my archives because aforementioned David Anthony accused me of collecting too many nic nac’s (sp.) and gave me some great advice on how to store my past editorials, which was taking up WAY too much room. Thanks, David!

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The Year of the Tiger!

I hope everyone had a safe and happy holidays! I was able to relax for a little bit, catch up on some reading that I sorely miss doing and reassess where I am and where I’m heading in my career. I also had the immense pleasure of spending the day with David Anthony down in Palm Springs. We kicked around downtown Palm Springs with our point and shoots, arguing and laughing and eating and smoking and just having a great time. I came back home totally inspired, actually. And that’s what colleagues should do for you, they should inspire and provoke! I also quit smoking as my New Years resolution. So far, I’m 4 days off cigarettes. I’ve quit before, and I’ll keep trying until I stay quit! But I’m hoping this time is the last time I have to quit and I can stay off cigarettes for good. We’ll see.

So…what does this next year look like for me? For one, a lot of travel! I’ve been asked to teach workshops at Gulf Photo Plus in Dubai! I leave at the end of February and will be in Dubai the first week of March. I will be there with the big heavy hittin’ honchos: Zack Arias, David Hobby, etc etc. But  I am especially excited to meet  Joey L. That kid really blows my mind as far as how young he is, how inspired he is and how bomb his work is. After Dubai, I am showing some photographs at the SNAP! Exhibition in Orlando, Florida from May 20th to the 23rd.  And NYC in between all the rest! That’s the first six months of the year. I can only imagine that the next six months will be just as busy. But what will I be doing when I’m in LA besides shooting? Doing more SEMINARS!!

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Visual Examples to Explain the Difference

So as you might suspect, I get a fair share of emails from my blog readers. I think one of the most frequently asked question is: what is the difference between editorial fashion and advertising/commercial fashion. Quite simply, as most of you know, editorial is what would be shown in a magazine. Advertising is selling a product or brand. Advertising tends to look cleaner, using simple lighting to really show off the clothing or make up. Editorial sells more of the mood and the situation the clothing would be worn in. There are less “rules” per se in editorial fashion photography because it’s a bit looser. “But what about advertising campaigns like Gucci or Prada?” one might ask. And, well, you are right! What about them??  The lighting is definitely not simple, nor the sets or the looks. They’re pretty “grand” ad campaigns. But look at J Crew. Simple lighting, clean backgrounds, and you really see the clothes. Gucci and Prada are labels known for their sexy, edgy and rather expensive clothing. J Crew sells to everyone. But Gucci sells to those who are privileged enough (or rich enough) to afford their clothes. So their campaigns depict that “other worldly” sensibility.

And does this apply to beauty campaigns. Yes, absolutely. MAC has a whole different branding tactic than say Maybelline or Noxema. Or Ponds. They both run ads and they’re both considered advertising beauty but the looks differ greatly. MAC shows red eye make up with a purple tinted lip liner and blue-red lipstick on a punk girl with an edgy light. Ponds? No way. Clean skin, pure light, fresh, young, vibrant. Those are words to describe their ads.

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