Fashion Lifestyle Photography

Lifestyle photography is somewhere in between portrait photography and documentary. Lifestyle is more about capturing a moment. It’s about photographing emotions and connection. But the photographer doesn’t just leave it up to the family to know exactly what to do, they will provide gentile direction.

Sometimes we may give a prompt and leave it open to interpretation so the family can make it their own. Other times we may set a family up into a pose, but then tell them to do something sweet or silly to get everyone interacting. Or we will have games for them to play to get everyone having fun together.

Movement plays a big part in lifestyle photography. A lot of times the prompts we use incorporate a lot of movement, because it looks beautiful on camera and provides something a bit different. Another benefit to keeping our subjects moving is that it gives them something to do and helps them to feel more comfortable.

Lifestyle is shot in a very “real life” lighting feel. Images visually feel like everyday life. Commercial. Models are smiling or acting in typical life situations, action is taking place that one would do everyday day (or any day) the light is bright or depicts a realistic light feel determined by the mood of the shoot. Think senior photos, family photos, blogger/Instagram feeling, local brands such as cell phones, toothpaste, grocery store, clinics, even clothing fashion but more applicable to online shopping made for you to see exactly what colors and styles look like in real life.

Fashion photography lighting (and use of shadows) is more dramatic as is the entire mood of final shots. The models are more serious in nature, poses are more deliberate or abstract. Editing of images can be more extreme in terms of the colors/tones seen in the final images. Sometimes it’s a matter of Lifestyle feeling like real life and Fashion feeling otherworldly, perfect world, sometimes anything but realistic.

Fashion photography can still be commercial as is evident in perfume advertising, watch brand advertising…high end models/celebs are being used, high end fashion is being used, but again it goes back to lighting. It’s bright and “attainable” feeling to the average eye.

Enter Commercial Fashion and Editorial Fashion. Commercial fashion and lifestyle fashion sometimes overlap in this category.

Lifestyle photography promotes a lifestyle – outdoors, yoga, healthy etc. It shows people engaged in a lifestyle. The product is the lifestyle and selling the dream of that lifestyle customers. I.e. buy these products and you can be like these people.

Lifestyle photography is you hanging out at the park with friends wearing cool stuff. Fashion photography is just you in an outfit against a wall, with no precluding premises.