How to be Boujee on a Budget
I love the idea of shooting high-fashion photography: beautiful clothes, elegant models and gorgeous studio lighting. Unfortunately, I don’t have that kind of budget, which I’m totally fine with! But when you don’t have 6 figures and want to evoke that kind of energy through imagery, you adapt.
Here are my 3 tips on how to style models, and a set, that look expensive, but cost next to nothing.
1. Colour
Anyone who knows me knows that I’m greatly inspired by Lindsay Adler: a New York fashion photographer. After poring over her portfolio and educational YouTube videos, I experimented with gels. Gels are essentially special sheets of cellophane that go inside a snoot (a cone that attaches to a strobe) or on top of another modifier, such as a reflector, to create coloured light. When I used a red gel, I found my photos to look and feel more luxurious. Further, the red light and shadows worked perfectly with my subject’s lipstick; the makeup now felt more couture because of the red light.
My friend Alexis modelled for me! She’s wearing a red wide-brimmed hat with a gold chain. She is lit red from my gel and her eyes are thinly veiled in shadow. She is wearing a black dress.
2. Simple Business Casual
Believe it or not, my friend Alexis (my subject) has had that dress for a while! I’m not sure where she bought it, but I know she’s thrifty and always manages to find great deals. The dress is a simple black long-sleeved, crew neck, bodycon dress. I find that any article of clothing, or full outfit, that one would wear to a formal outing always makes a photo look more high-end. A minimalistic set, as well as outfit, emphasize the colours used (such as coloured gels) and the model’s makeup. In my case, Alexis’ red lipstick was definitely the star of the show, along with the red hat. The black dress allowed for other distinct, but bold, elements to take centre stage, while not being too distracting.
3. Thrifting
I’ve actually thrifted quite a few pieces for photoshoots! The secret to thrifting “properly” is being flexible. Thrift stores only sell what people choose to donate, so you need to keep in mind that you likely won’t find exactly what you need. Instead, go in with a general concept. For example: “I need a black dress and a red hat”. If you find a white hat in a style you love, Rit Dye/Dyemore is always an option (just check your synthetic percentage content first!)! I actually purchased this red hat off of Amazon, which is another great option if you’re willing to spend a little bit more money; this piece is in my “accessories” studio kit, so it’ll definitely be featured again!
Alexis is wearing a black dress and the same red, wide-brimmed hat. There is much more light on her face, but there is still red light on the lower half of her face. The brim of the hat covers her right eye.
See? Flaunting what you’ve got, when it’s not that much, isn’t so hard! Also, it allows you to be creative and have more fun styling your shoot, which I always find exciting. Hopefully these tips helped you in some way and inspired your next shoot.
If you have any other ideas to contribute, I’d love to read them in the comments!
Keep Shooting,
