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Photography Tips for us Fashion and Personal Style Bloggers :)

An Dyer wearing Zara Swiss Dot Shirt, Frankie B Wide Leg Jeans, Forever 21 Suedette Belt & Gold Cuff, Jessica Simpson Dany Shoes, Jeffrey Lazaro Shell Print Clutch, Louis Vuitton Transparent Monogram Inclusion Translucide Pendant Necklace, Banana An Turquoise Ring

Zara Mint Swiss Dot Shirt | Frankie B Wide Leg Jeans | Forever 21 Suedette Belt & Gold Cuff | Jessica Simpson Dany Shoes | Jeffrey Lazaro Shell Print Clutch | Louis Vuitton Transparent Monogram Inclusion Translucide Pendant Necklace | Banana An Turquoise Ring

Finally!! The post I keep promising you guys is finally here lol 🙂 thank you so much for your patience!

As I mentioned before, I had the pleasure of enjoying a fun photo shoot with Michelle Hayes Photography when she was visiting Southern California a few weeks back (all you New Yorker’s are lucky to have her!). I’m among the many bloggers that are guilty of taking the same shots, with the same backgrounds and the same poses. It wasn’t until around the time I shot with Michelle when I finally started to get out of my comfort zone (on a regular basis) and try to change things up a bit with every outfit post. While shooting, she shared some fun tips that I wanted to share with all of you! Some of you may already practice a lot of this but hopefully others can learn from these tips, too! I know I sure have 😉

I figured it would be easiest to include the tips in the photo captions so, enjoy!

Zara Mint Swiss Dot Shirt | Frankie B Wide Leg Jeans | Forever 21 Suedette Belt & Gold Cuff | Jessica Simpson Dany Shoes | Jeffrey Lazaro Shell Print Clutch | Louis Vuitton Transparent Monogram Inclusion Translucide Pendant Necklace | Banana An Turquoise Ring

This is what I'm always guilty of; just straight forward shots. I used to always stick with one shot straight forward, one profile or side shot and then accessories. My idea of it was that as a fashion/style blogger, my job was showing the outfit. Well, although this is true and there's nothing wrong with it, the photo still looks nice.... It's, frankly, boring after a while. If we're in a rush, I still will, but trying different angles, movements and poses really makes the photos more interesting and enhances our outfits!

An Dyer wearing Zara Swiss Dot Shirt, Frankie B Wide Leg Jeans, Forever 21 Suedette Belt & Gold Cuff, Jessica Simpson Dany Shoes, Jeffrey Lazaro Shell Print Clutch, Louis Vuitton Transparent Monogram Inclusion Translucide Pendant Necklace, Banana An Turquoise Ring

Try different angles and don't be afraid of not showing every piece of clothing and accessory you're wearing in each photo, you'll show it in a different shot! Here, Michelle stood slightly above me shooting down instead of at the same eye level. A minor change but makes it a little more interesting.

An Dyer wearing Zara Swiss Dot Shirt, Frankie B Wide Leg Jeans, Forever 21 Suedette Belt & Gold Cuff, Jessica Simpson Dany Shoes, Jeffrey Lazaro Shell Print Clutch, Louis Vuitton Transparent Monogram Inclusion Translucide Pendant Necklace, Banana An Turquoise Ring

Now this shot, I'm posed pretty much the same as that previous one but Michelle is now shooting up towards me instead of down. A slight change in angle like this makes for a different look and feel. Using stairs as a background not only looks interesting and fun but makes shooting at different angles easier, too! Also, see how she had me pose with one leg higher than the other? It's something you might do naturally anyway but if you're aware of it when posing, it makes the photo more engaging.

An Dyer wearing Zara Swiss Dot Shirt, Frankie B Wide Leg Jeans, Forever 21 Suedette Belt & Gold Cuff, Jessica Simpson Dany Shoes, Jeffrey Lazaro Shell Print Clutch, Louis Vuitton Transparent Monogram Inclusion Translucide Pendant Necklace, Banana An Turquoise Ring

Don't be (too) afraid of busy backgrounds. I would always look for a flat wall for photos because it was comfortable - ahh, white wall, perfect! Yeah, no. I had to get that out of my head asap. Look for fun settings like this house we found. Though, I don't always suggest taking photos in front of a stranger's house lol 😛 This one was in a fairly busy downtown neighborhood and we worked quickly. I love how Michelle shot me off-center in front of such a cool doorway. Backgrounds like this can make your photos so much more appealing and still shows the outfit well.

An Dyer wearing Zara Swiss Dot Shirt, Frankie B Wide Leg Jeans, Forever 21 Suedette Belt & Gold Cuff, Jessica Simpson Dany Shoes, Jeffrey Lazaro Shell Print Clutch, Louis Vuitton Transparent Monogram Inclusion Translucide Pendant Necklace, Banana An Turquoise Ring

Use those hands! This shot was among a bunch where I had my back towards Michelle and would turn, moving my waist, sort of twisting. I instinctively used my hand to move my hair from my face but it adds a cool, subtle, natural movement to the photo.

An Dyer wearing Zara Swiss Dot Shirt, Frankie B Wide Leg Jeans, Forever 21 Suedette Belt & Gold Cuff, Jessica Simpson Dany Shoes, Jeffrey Lazaro Shell Print Clutch, Louis Vuitton Transparent Monogram Inclusion Translucide Pendant Necklace, Banana An Turquoise Ring

Get creative with detail shots and again, use your hands. We've all seen cool arm party shots with hands in different angles, do the same with all accessories. Play around a bit!

An Dyer wearing Zara Swiss Dot Shirt, Frankie B Wide Leg Jeans, Forever 21 Suedette Belt & Gold Cuff, Jessica Simpson Dany Shoes, Jeffrey Lazaro Shell Print Clutch, Louis Vuitton Transparent Monogram Inclusion Translucide Pendant Necklace, Banana An Turquoise Ring

The same goes for shoe shots - try different angles,and poses.

An Dyer wearing Zara Swiss Dot Shirt, Frankie B Wide Leg Jeans, Forever 21 Suedette Belt & Gold Cuff, Jessica Simpson Dany Shoes, Jeffrey Lazaro Shell Print Clutch, Louis Vuitton Transparent Monogram Inclusion Translucide Pendant Necklace, Banana An Turquoise Ring

And last but certainly not least, don't be afraid of movement. It's definitely frustrating at first. Between changing your camera settings and shutter speed to accommodate the movement, getting the right angle at the right time can drive a girl crazy. Just keep doing it, take lots of shots, try walking/moving and looking in different angles. This is definitely something I still have a hard time with but it makes for such fascinating photos, I'll continue to try until I get it right! Walking and movement shots in general are my favorites when I'm reading through other bloggers posts.

A couple more tips for those of us that use dSLR cameras (if you’re an amateur like me!):

  • Ideal lighting is usually early in the morning, late afternoon before sunset or when it’s overcast out. Direct sunlight when it’s bright out looks great to the naked eye but with photos, especially if you’re a newbie like me, can be a nightmare casting shadows everywhere (around you and on you – there’s nothing more annoying than a dreaded dark shadow under your eyes, nose and neck). Those aforementioned ideal lighting situations create for a great glow in your photos, showing better outfit details and color.
  • Aperture – When shooting outfit looks, having your f-stop at 3.5 is probably ideal so that it focuses on your entire outfit, not just a part of it, but still leaves the background out of focused or blurred for better depth of field. For detail shots and accessories, lower the f-stop to 2.5 or 1.8 if your lens allows you to (or as low as it will allow you to). This will focus on your accessory, like just your ring and the background will be completely blurred.
  • Shutter Speed – If you’re going to do a shot while moving (walking or jumping) bump your shutter speed to a faster setting like 1/500
  • ISO – is my best friend, the darker/shadier it is, the higher I set it to. So when it’s really grey/gloomy or getting dark, my ISO is usually set to 3200 or 6400. Brighter out? Lower your ISO – if we’re at the beach in the middle of the day, my ISO is set to like 100.

Special thanks to Michelle Hayes Photography for such a fun day out, awesome tips and all these great photos!

Hope these tips helped some of you as much as they helped me! Any tips you’d like to share? Leave them below in the comments for us all to read 🙂

Thank you so much for visiting, reading and leaving comments 😀 hope to see you back here again soon.

Xox,
An

Shop:

  • Zara Mint Green Dotted Swiss Blouse (sold out online, check in store! Similar gorgeous Equipment version here and ALC via Intermix blouse here)
  • Frankie B. Wide Leg Jeans (similar here and here)
  • Forever 21 Suedette Belt & Gold Cuff
  • Jessica Simpson Dany Shoes (by far one of my favorite styles but they’re sold out everywhere, Jeffrey Campbell Foxy is a great alternative and still constantly being produced)
  • Jeffrey Lazaro Shell Print Clutch (by special order at Hauskrft)
  • Louis Vuitton Transparent Monogram Inclusion Translucide Pendant Necklace (SS’10, visit Louis Vuitton stores or see new necklaces online here)
  • Banana An Turquoise Ring (sold out, similar here or here or, if you have eight big ones, here)
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56 Comments

  • Reply Always Maylee

    These are great, thanks!

    xo, Yi-chia
    Always Maylee

    April 25, 2012 at 10:53 am
  • Reply Sharon

    Very handy tips!

    //style-chameleon.blogspot.com/

    FIRST DUTCH VOGUE GIVEAWAY!

    April 25, 2012 at 11:19 am
  • Reply WithLoveShmon

    Such a pretty blouse and you look gorgeous in it!

    withloveshmon.wordpress.com

    April 25, 2012 at 11:28 am
  • Reply lucia

    wow!! perfect shirt!!

    http://www.aroundlucia.com
    http://www.aroundlucia.com

    April 25, 2012 at 11:30 am
  • Reply Ashley

    Great tips thanks for posting this! I’m really shy but I’ve been thinking about throwing up a few outfit posts on my blog here and there. I really love the movement photos she got of you they make the whole outfit look alive and my god do I love how your shoes look with those jeans!

    April 25, 2012 at 11:42 am
  • Reply Giovanna

    Great post! Definitely bookmarking these tips!

    xx
    Giovanna
    http://www.oliveandanarrow.com

    April 25, 2012 at 12:15 pm
  • Reply Juneli

    Wow, those are some amazing tips!! Thanks for sharing!

    April 25, 2012 at 12:22 pm
  • Reply Sandhya

    such great tips! thanks for sharing. i’m a new follower!

    April 25, 2012 at 12:40 pm
  • Reply andreadavo

    Thank you so much for your comment on my blog. 😉
    this post is great ! thank you once again to share ths handy tips with all of us !!
    Sure im gana try them !!! 😉

    http://www.andreadavo.es

    April 25, 2012 at 12:41 pm
  • Reply andreadavo

    thank you so much for your comments on my blog !
    This post is great so handy tips!! thank you once again to share them with us! 😉

    http://www.andreadavo.es

    April 25, 2012 at 12:43 pm
  • Reply poziomka

    Amazing pics and amazing outfit!!
    xoxo

    April 25, 2012 at 1:25 pm
  • Reply Sam

    Hi darling, this is a great and informative post…i’ve picked up so many new tips and techniques from it, thanks! I have to say that your skin is absolutely flawless, what is the secret? Those stunning heels just elevate the classiness of this outfit

    April 25, 2012 at 1:42 pm
  • Reply Tiffany

    Thanks for the tips! I have a simple point and shoot, but I can still use some of your posing tips! =)

    April 25, 2012 at 1:58 pm
  • Reply teddi

    you look fantastic! i like your flair pants, & the mint dotted blouse. what fun photos she took. thanks for the tips. 🙂

    April 25, 2012 at 2:52 pm
  • Reply gracefully50

    Great tips and gorgeous photos!! I’ll be sure to tell my personal photog, i.e. hubs! 🙂

    April 25, 2012 at 4:24 pm
  • Reply An

    Can’t believe you’re named An too! I think I only met 1 other person with the name An. Thank you for the blog visit 🙂 This post is so helpful and I love your shirt.

    April 25, 2012 at 4:48 pm
  • Reply Linda

    These tips are fantastic! I know, I need to take different angles and close-ups more.
    Great photos too, you’re so pretty 🙂

    Trendy Teal

    April 25, 2012 at 5:15 pm
  • Reply Jaclyn

    Great tips! I’m always looking for new ways to switch up my photos. I love the shots you have here.

    Stay in the Lines

    April 25, 2012 at 6:08 pm
  • Reply Jupe

    These photos are beautiful of you…I seriously don’t think they could be better! Wish I had some that nice…I get tired of using my handheld camera–no tripod or fancy settings or anything! Those jeans are fab, the wide legs are so flattering 🙂

    <3 Cambria
    jupefashion.blogspot.com

    April 25, 2012 at 6:25 pm
  • Reply Menachérie

    Great tips, and stunning photos!

    //www.menacherieblog.com/

    April 25, 2012 at 6:35 pm
  • Reply Taliah

    Great post and tips! Those Frankie B jeans are the bizness! I use to own a pair a few years ago and they were very low waisted but the flares were super cute and fab!

    //fashionwashere.net

    April 25, 2012 at 6:53 pm
  • Reply Head to Toe Chic

    Love your top! Gorgeous outfit!

    xo,
    Angela
    headtotoechic.blogspot.com

    April 25, 2012 at 7:09 pm
  • Reply T.

    Nice outfit and nice tips!

    April 25, 2012 at 10:47 pm
  • Reply FashionBloggerRevealed

    great tips !

    April 25, 2012 at 11:30 pm
  • Reply Beauty Follower

    Great look, the pants suits you so well!

    http://www.beautyfollower.blogapot.com

    April 26, 2012 at 12:56 am
  • Reply Lilli

    Great look! I really love it:) Also your make up is amazing!:) Kisses!

    April 26, 2012 at 2:07 am
  • Reply Couture Carrie

    Amazing look and pics, darling!
    Thanks for the fab tips!

    xoxox,
    CC

    April 26, 2012 at 2:54 am
  • Reply Alessandra Carlomagno

    you look beautiful!! 🙂
    kiss kiss

    //thepinkillusion.blogspot.it/

    April 26, 2012 at 4:05 am
  • Reply Ilka von Torok

    Hi dear! Love your outfit!
    xx Ilka
    //ilkavontorok.blogspot.com/

    April 26, 2012 at 4:47 am
  • Reply Fashion Pad

    LOVE your outfit! Great tips pretty lady. But there’s only so much a tripod can do, lol.

    April 26, 2012 at 5:31 am
  • Reply Sveva

    really love this look!

    //rueoh.blogspot.it/

    April 26, 2012 at 5:53 am
  • Reply Thecityofclothes

    So nice outfit !

    April 26, 2012 at 7:30 am
  • Reply Annie

    These are awesome tips, and you look gorgeous! Love that blouse – the color looks great on you 🙂

    Annie
    The Other Side of Gray

    April 26, 2012 at 8:12 am
  • Reply Lexi Minty (@leximinty)

    you have some really good tips, like using different angles and movement

    April 26, 2012 at 9:23 am
  • Reply Paulina

    So awesome shoes! 🙂

    April 26, 2012 at 9:25 am
  • Reply Oriane

    Great outfit and beautiful photos !

    April 26, 2012 at 10:43 am
  • Reply Punctuation Mark

    great post!

    April 26, 2012 at 11:32 am
  • Reply Brittany

    I love the scenery to go along with the outfit! These photos are great. The tips seem reasonable too!

    April 26, 2012 at 11:54 am
  • Reply Sara Jane

    Wonderful advice, I loved the whole post! If only I could get a professional photographer to shoot me for my fashion posts, haha! these all turned out awesome not to mention your amazing outfit! totally up my alley wih the pretty blue button up with your flares and incredible shoes.

    The House of Shoes

    April 26, 2012 at 11:59 am
  • Reply Sophie

    Such a great post – so many great tips!

    xo

    //girlonbroughtonstreet.blogspot.co.uk

    April 26, 2012 at 12:14 pm
  • Reply Ada

    Wow i really needed tips like this! Thanks a lot!!!!

    Can’t Afford Chanel Blog

    April 26, 2012 at 12:40 pm
  • Reply Ine

    Gorgeous pictures! I adore the shoes!!

    //i-queenb.blogspot.com/

    April 26, 2012 at 1:04 pm
  • Reply Hannah

    Those were really good tips for a beginner like me!

    I had a little trouble to translate all of it but I think I got it! =D

    Thanks! Amazing outfit!

    H&H

    April 26, 2012 at 1:20 pm
  • Reply Izzy

    thanks for the tips! direct sunlight and shadows are definitely problems I always encounter, and the sun over here is so harsh! and yes, I actually love candids and “moving” shots too! 🙂

    April 26, 2012 at 1:55 pm
  • Reply The Foolish Aesthete

    This is a California look, with the bo ho flared trousers. Love it!

    April 26, 2012 at 6:25 pm
  • Reply Audrey

    Great tips! I love when it’s over cast out….it makes for the best photos! I too leave my ISO at 100 most of the time and I never shoot in direct sun light. Practice and patience is definitely needed when you’re first starting out with an SLR camera. I love leaving my aperture low (like 1.8) but you have be careful not to over expose the background, so I sometimes put it to 2.5 or 3. Your photos came out amazing! x

    April 26, 2012 at 7:30 pm
  • Reply Jade

    Beautiful outfit!! Love the wide leg jeans!!

    April 26, 2012 at 8:47 pm
  • Reply Elle Sees

    i will be saving this post, tyvm!! lifesaver

    April 26, 2012 at 9:54 pm
  • Reply Casa de Caisa

    I am soo loving your flared jeans!! 😉

    April 27, 2012 at 7:27 am
  • Reply Dee {Strings and Buttons}

    This is one of the most useful posts I’ve read in a while! I’ve always wondered about the basics, even though I take some ok/decent photos. These are super helpful and make me want to go out and start experimenting using your tips. Have a lovely weekend! x

    April 27, 2012 at 9:34 am
  • Reply indie by heart

    Such an amazing post 🙂 Now all I need is someone to take my photos, hehe.

    x Satu
    Indie by heart

    April 27, 2012 at 10:13 am
  • Reply Oh to Be a Muse

    Awesome, informative post. I definitely agree with the tips. I do detailed shots and busy backgrounds. I’m working on being better at angles and movement.

    Giveaway on my blog to win your own customized blog shirt!
    //www.ohtobeamuse.com/2012/04/just-jen-custom-shirt-giveaway.html

    April 27, 2012 at 10:22 am
  • Reply katattack2000

    I love these tips 🙂 Your photographer did a great job!! You look really pretty too and I love the one where you are walking down the street 🙂

    April 27, 2012 at 2:55 pm
  • Reply styleonthecouch

    This is great advice. I learned like you that sunlight isn’t always your friend (shadows!) and that movement can be really interesting. Also, the details are often what people love to see. Fabulous writing.

    http://www.styleonthecouch.com

    April 29, 2012 at 4:08 pm
  • Reply Aubrey

    I absolutely adore that minty green blouse! And I’m such a camera dunce, these tips are fantastic, thanks!

    Don’t forget to hop over and enter the Perricone MD $150 Giveaway!!!

    April 29, 2012 at 4:22 pm
  • Reply Niko

    thanks for these tips! this was really helpful!

    May 5, 2012 at 4:23 am
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