What I've Learnt After Photographing Limkokwing Fashion Thursday for One Semester
Monologue: Months of hiatus proved me right: when you're stuck in the sense called "responsibility", the work load will only increase, seldom decrease, even if you're productive. Well, I'm not sure about the productive part actually.
Months of photographing for Fashion Thursday had made me thought a lot about it's branding and advertising, as well as why video is the modern dominant storytelling medium. Don't get me wrong, I'm not the nerd that thought about design all day all night, I still poop.
For the next few weeks (or even months) I'll spend my time writing the works I've did for the last two quarter of the year. Head to my portfolio main site if you wish to visit my work.
My partner's work
Firstly, I have to admit I reminisced the moment where I get to shoot along with @y4yaa who've produced quite amount of quality works through her photography vision. Our cameras were not high end, many photos were technically unacceptable by professional standard especially for prints.
We've maxed our ISO constantly to ISO6400, we've tried to kept it under ISO3200 for sometimes. The light condition and white balance is just so wrong in both makeup and styling room. Amazing @y4yaa sometimes shoot at ISO2500/3200 with shutter speed lower than 1/60 with her supersonic stabiliser hands, and things worked out well despite a little shakiness.
I have no EXIF data about this photo, her artistic approach on documenting the backstage is something I admire.
Tell a photographer that setting, we've could be expelled right away. Admit-ably, we both hate using flash, because it's heavy and bulky. The only thing I lift is food.
We thought, after all, it's just for social media, who really cares. Till now we're not sure do people actually care.
I weight the style of an artist heavier than the importance of gear. The moment really matters, good portraits of model can make you famous among fashion community, but the moment of friendship between stylist and model, the skin-ship of makeup artist and it's client, it just happen once...every week.
The look that promises a style
And this led me thinking, the branding of @lkwfashionthursday isn't simply done by putting up good shows every week, or having the the best model to walk the show. Photographing for Limkokwing Fashion Thursday let me understand why there's such saying as "oh, this shot looks so much like Vogue".
First fashion show of the new semester, a snap-an-go photograph before rushing for videography set up.
What's Vogue? How to define Vogue? Classic? Editorial? Ageless? We all have our own answer. It became a symbol, a role model, beloved. It has a style that we can't describe, hence Vogue became an adjective. However, when will photography in Limkokwing Fashion Thursday settle down with a style? Recently, we both had resigned as photographer, replaced by someone else. Style will change, and people will need time to digest new style.
But do you see any consistency / correlation of Vogue photos from the 50/60s until now? Almost never, and it's unnecessary to do so. But how do they get so famous and influential?
Vogue has (had) a sense of vision/mission, we have none. Even if we have, we have no budget for advocacy campaign. Without the sense of mission, photographers do what they think is right.
Another reason of what makes Vogue it is today is due to its content revolving around the ever-changing social issues, which people find it so pleasing to read. I'm sure if we do a Trump inspired fashion show, things will get pretty big ... and messy. But does fashion has to be like that? I don't know, it all depends the way designer approach it.
Some things are better with video
Model and designers' interview, post-runway celebration footage, audience reaction...a strip of photos could tell a story, but the impact of combining audio and moving visual adds to the storytelling experience. The ability to engage fans and audience in a more immersive way is always preferred.
Dan Chung, the famous photojournalist who've covered the Olympic 2012 with just iPhone and Snapseed (editing application) said:
" Initially I was shooting a lot of web video for The Guardian which I still do, but now I’m shooting more and more for TV, news, plus the odd advert here and there. I took the decision to stay basically within documentary and news shooting rather than go off and try and be a Hollywood filmmaker just yet! I don’t really see a future in photojournalism, if I’m completely honest, as a way to earn a living. "
Full article: 'No Future in Photojournalism' Interview: Dan Chung
This is especially true in the world of documentary (closely related to photojournalism). The competition between photojournalists are simply too strong. Ironically, people still employ both photographer and videographer for documentary style wedding, because photos can be printed, while videos are meant to be viewed on screen.
It would be ridiculous to stream 4k wedding video everyday on your 8k plasma television aight? Photo album is still a better way for memory keeping.
In a Nutty Shell
The ability to contribute made me felt empowered, although I'm no longer photographing for fashion community, there are many thoughts sparked throughout the process, and certainly worth keeping.
