best films for fashion model photography

Hi everyone

I am a fledgling photographer, past 8 months-- used to be a model--

and wondering what 35 mm films people recommend for both studio and

outdoor daylight model photography. I've been using Agfa 160 because

it gives a smooth skintone, but the colors are a bit muted. Is there

anything that keeps that smooth skin look and has a bit more color pop?

Kodak Gold 100/200 are too yellow for the studio lights( studio being

a third bedroom with Speedetron unit, 1 sofbox, 1 silver umbrella and

three rolls of seamless:).

Can someone break down the film types for fashion work, or direct me

to the right area?

Cheers

Leslie<div></div>

Helmut Newton once said: good fashion photography doesn't look like fashion photography.

I don't think there is any best film for fashion.

You have to have your own style, maybe Polapan is the best for you becouse it has this grainy look, maybe Velvia with its deep shadows, maybe Reala becouse of softness. You have to try everything and deceide what you want to do. That is my attidude.

I also think that printing is very important. You can shoot with Ektachrome, then put it into your enlarger and print it on a big polaroid, then copy it on a plain paper and it is not going to look like Ektachrome anymore.

Photography means 'painting with the light'. That means that you have to be creative!

 

Best fashion photographers are recognizable becouse of style not the film. Look at photography of Newton, Testino, Lindbergh, Meisel.

Fashion photography ranges from very straight beauty shots to wild special effects, as you have no doubt already observed. Some of the effects are achieved by using unusual films - cross processing E6 into C41, high contrast black and white, etc etc. On the other extreme, portrait photographers often want low-contrast films that are all about skin tone. Depending on the effect you are trying to create and whether you want to shoot slides, here are some ideas:

 

Low-contrast with great skin tone: Kodak 160NC

Good skin tone but more punch in the colors: Kodak 160VC, Fuji NPH, Kodak EPP

 

I've had great luck with EPP for shooting models with makeup; it's a bit tough on skin for those with less perfect complexions and without a good makeup job, but has worked out very well for me in doing fashion shots. I like 160NC for portrait work a great deal - it is forgiving, can hold a wide tonal range from lights to darks, and works well under strobes. NPH is a great all-around film and is fast without being grainy.

 

You can also use the more extreme color saturated films like Velvia, but in my experience you cannot use it without very careful makeup and excellent skin - it can make a normal person look absolutely horrible because it emphasizes red aggressively.

 

Tastes vary, so you may find that you don't like any of these films, but I hope you find these suggestions useful. It seems that just about every film has been used successfully to take some kind of fashion shot ..

 

Cheers.

Given how much fashion work has been done with cross-processing over the last ten or twenty years, it should be obvious that there is no way to answer this question. Ellen von Unwerth used to shoot for Vogue with Agfachrome 1000, a high grain, pastel-colored film that is no longer available. Newton is interesting - his work is often hyper-saturated. Some interesting examples of how different color can be in fashion shots can be found at <a href="http://www.sordido.com/fashion/fa_page1.html">this web site</a> by a friend of mine (wait for both images to load on each page.)

<p>

Pick a film and see what kind of looks you can get from it, or pick a look and figure out what films will give it.

thanks for the responses...I need all the help I can get because I am approaching this with no technical knowledge, really, just the modeling experience. That I'm getting paid anything surprises me so I'm trying to learn as I go.

Question about cross proccessing-- is there an article/page that explains "how to", both the process and how to light/shoot for it, that you guys could direct me to?

I'm sure I sound like a dork but you don't learn if you don't ask...

Cheers

Leslie<div></div>

As others have noted, "fashion" covers so much varied ground that just about any film out there has probably been used at some point or in some way. My usual choices for "normal looking" model photography are E100S (EI 80) and E200 (EI 160 or 125). EPN and EPP are popular for catalog work because of the color accuracy and relatively tame contrast.<P>

Here's a <a href="http://www.duroi.com/fashionforum/messages/27508.html">link</a> to a thread on the Fashion Only Forum that discusses cross processing. You might find many of the other threads on that site of interest. [My only experiment with cross processing was with E100S exposed at EI 25--next time, I'll probably expose it at 32 or 40.]

Leslie,

 

i would follow Mike's advice to the film on a lower speed, e.g. a 100 film at 64, a 400 at 320 and then develop normally. this should increase color saturation.

 

namaste,

After shooting Kodak 100S for years, I've been using Kodak 160VC quite a bit lately. It scans well and is very forgiving. I love the warmth and smooth complexsions I see on the contact sheets and my Epson prints. I have a few examples on my page, just click on my name.<div></div>

Leslie, I like your photographs.

 

You have a natural talent...