How to Slay your Next Festival Fashion Photoshoot By Photographer Lxviews

My name is Alexa Dearing (instagram @Lxviews), I am a festival fashion photographer from Phoenix, Arizona. I have been in the industry for about 5 years- and in that time I have gained much knowledge about both photographing, and modeling festival fashion. Modeling festival fashion is the most unique experience, and anyone can be a festival fashion model. To be comfortable as a festival fashion model, there are a few key factors that you need to think about- being confident, knowing your poses, and knowing who you will be working with during your photoshoot.

Model: Haley Photographer: Lxviews

What does it take to model festival fashion? One word- Confidence! If you have confidence in who you are, it will shine through on camera. The biggest thing to remember when you are in front of the camera is your confidence. There are many things that you can do at home to practice modeling in order to boost your confidence, so that when it comes time to be in front of the  camera, you are a natural. One of the things you can do at home is to practice your angles. The best way to practice your angles is by posing in front of a full length mirror- do this wearing tight or minimal clothing- so that you can see how the slightest movement of your body in different angles affects the curvature of your muscles. Since everyone has different body types- different poses work best for them. Practice in front of the mirror ten to fifteen minutes a day, or every  other day so that your muscle memory kicks in, and you will be rocking the best poses when it comes time for the spotlight. 

Posing is a huge part of modeling - poses can make or break a photo, so it is of utter most importance that you have some kind of idea of what poses work best for your body type. This being said- you don’t have to be an expert, rather know what works for you. This will ensure that the photos come back with more value to you- rather than you not liking the photos. So, how do you find out what poses work better for you? First, know your body type- different poses work best for different body types. Second, you must always think tall. Thinking tall is a term used in the photography community to describe posture- having good posture is a key factor to making your body appear longer, and slimmer than it actually may be. You can achieve this by always making sure your shoulders are back, you are standing or sitting up straight, and by keeping your weight to one side of your body when posing. Below are some example images. By keeping your weight shifted back to one foot, the body appears elongated, and you will appear elongated in images. By keeping the chin slightly tilted up, and the head pushed out the neck appears elongated, and this is a much more flattering angle on camera.

Besides knowing your angles, and practicing posing, another helpful tool in feeling as confident as can be in front of the camera- is get to know everyone involved with the project. You will always look and feel you best when you are comfortable with not only the person behind the camera, but also the other models you may be working with, the brand itself, and the makeup and hair artists who might be on set during the shoot. If you don't know the people involved with the shoot (photographer and models especially) your poses may appear fake, staged, and you may feel awkward. If you feel awkward while taking photos, it will shine through on camera. How do you get comfortable with everyone involved on a project? It's very simple- start with finding out who will be involved on a project, and then reach out to them via social media. Chances are- especially within the festival fashion world- if a model or photographer is involved with a brand’s photo shoot- they will be all about PLUR, and in turn very nice. Get to know the basics, and sparking up conversation via social media first before meeting them in person will vanquish the initial awkwardness of meeting someone for the  first time, and will ultimately have you feeling total comfort with them in front of and off of camera. Unsure how to spark up conversation? Add everyone in the project to a group chat, and introduce yourself, that alone will spark conversation, and also gives everyone the chance to talk amongst themselves before everyone meets in person. As a photographer, I always do this prior to photoshoots, that way everyone not only has a place to get to know each other, but i also have a place where i can drop all of the details models, and artists need to know prior to the day the photoshoot is scheduled.

By following these basics, and practicing you will be rocking your festival fashion photoshoots in no time at all. Get out there and show everyone what you're made of!

Do you have any tips? Share them with us in the comments. 

Written by Lxviews