Fashion vs War

Photography

Fashion Photography Fashion photography is a genre of photography which is used to advertise/display clothes and other fashion items. It is often conducted for advertisement or fashion magazines such as vogue, Elle or vanity.

Fashion photography has come a long way and is now enhanced by using exotic settings and background too to help boost the likeability. Fashion photography is commerce and is used to sell products. Even though it is used for commercial use it is still seen as a type of art just like every other type of photography. It is the photographers job to create this ‘art’ and make the clothes as desirable and glamorous as possible.

A photographer most important tool is their portfolio as this gives a true insight into the photographers abilities. He/she must also have very good technical skills as well as communication skill which is vital for making models feel comfortable.

The best way to become a fashion photographer is starting from the bottom. This means trying to get as much experience you can and always update your portfolio.

Fashion Photography – Annie Leibovitz

Annie Leibovitz was born in Connecticut in 1949 and is very well known for fashion photography. Her great grandparent were Jewish immigrants and her grandparents had emigrated from Romania. Her father was in the U.S air force and her mother was a modern dance instructor.

Her career in photography first began when she moved back to the united states in 1970 where she stated working as a staff photographer for the ‘Rolling Stone’ magazine. She slowly worked her way up by then being named chief photographer of the rolling stones.

One of Annie Leibovitz’s most famous pictures was one with John Lennon and Yoko. Leibovitz’s main aim was to be able to represent through this photograph. They both look so emotionally attached even though the photo is so simple. The fact that Lennon is naked and crawled up hugging Yoko almost represents how devoted he is to her and it is almost as if she owns him. Yoko also looks at peace and lost in his love. This photograph also became very famous as a couple of hours after the photo-shoot John Lennon was shot dead.

Series of images

IncomeMajority of fashion photographers are freelance workers. Their income can vary completely depending on how long they have been working, their experiences and skills. The income fashion photographers can stat from something as low as £15,000 although the average is £65,000 but can rise massively especially if you photograph for famous people and brands. Fashion photographers can do different jobs for magazines, catalogues and designers.

Annie Liebovitz is claimed one of the most famous fashion photographers and was know to b paid $3 million annually by vanity fair whilst also being paid tens of thousands annually by designer brands such as Louis Vuitton. Although Annie Liebovitz had such a high salary she is currently in dept as she was always very adventurous with the money she received.

Pros and cons

Pros: -you are able to choose most of the hours you work for -professional photographers get to travel the world -it is a fun job especially when you are passionate about it -always different and interesting jobs an different people to work with-you have the potential to become famous -usually it will be your hobby, and is relatively active job therefore you will not have to sit behind a desk all day

Cons:-It can be hard to find people who want pictures taken of them-Photography is highly competitive because there are few jobs and many people who want those jobs-Traveling can actually be a problem if you don't like traveling or have a family etc-It can be hard starting out because you first need to build up your career=The average photographer does not make that much money per year and the chances of becoming famous and therefore earning more money is relatively low

War photography War photography captures moments of armed conflict and war-torn areas. It is meant to portray the tragedy and triumph of war in all its aspects. These images are used for informative reasons. They allow the rest of the world to see things that they would not normally have the chance to see. Some of the photographs can be very explicit to the point where they can not even be broadcasted on TV as they can be very disturbing.

The images can be used for leaflets, websites and charities etc. Although they are mainly used to inform the public of what is going on in the rest of the world, they can also be used to convince people to help them out. The more expressive and disturbing the pictures are, the better as this will make other people in the public take action and want to help.

The impact of war photography usually tends to be more emotional throughout nations and can be quite difficult to cope with. It opens the eyes to those who don’t understand how serious war is and how terrible it truly is. One photograph can speak a lot of words and cause protests which could possibly make countries and their people realise the wrong they are doing.

It is also quite difficult to make a lot of money through war photography as you have to go out, produce images and then try sell them to an agencies. There may even be a chance of no one buying the photographs.

ZoriahZoriah Miller was born in January 27th of 1976 and is mainly known by just his first name ‘Zoriah’. He is an American photojournalist and war photographer. Besides his photography to help raise awareness and create change he has also worked for international aid organizations.

Zoriah is an award-winning photographer who's work has been featured in some of the world’s most prestigious galleries, museums and publications. He has worked for people such as Newsweek, The New York Times, BBC News, The United Nations, The Wall Street Journal, Fortune, Democracy Now and many more. His work has also been used for the press lecture and exhibitions. Zoriah remains independent as he produces his photo stories on a freelance basis like most other war photographers.

Zoriah began photography at the age of 15 and only one year later won a national award for his work.

Zoriah’s Photography

Income War photographers try to convey the reality of war through the medium of photographic images. Therefore depending on the quality and ability the pictures have to show reality the company's will decide how much they will buy them for. War photography salaries can vary just like any other types of photography. The average salaries per year for a war photographer is £30,000 a year yet again this can vary depending on the quality of the pictures and reputation of the companies. Freelance photographer can either sell images to publications or accept one off assignments.

Zoriah began by selling his photographs to different agencies, editors and publications but of course like every other freelancer his income varies depending on the amount of projects he does and the importance of those projects. Zoriah soon got tired of dealing with different companies and wanted to become even more independent and therefore set out to be the first independent photojournalist. The first year went well for Zoriah and made quite a good living from his blog. He offered paid subscriptions to the blog and also asked for donations to help him continue his work where he was taken by surprise by the amount of people willing to help. Zoriah soon started struggling as the economy got worse and was finding it difficult making a living from just the blog. He then began to offer one-on-one, in field photojournalism workshops and also did some fashion and corporate contracts so that he is now able to continue his hobby of war photography but also other genres of photography too.

Pros and cons Pros:-chance to travel to different places around the world -get to see and experience things most others will never be able to -satisfaction of knowing you are doing something to help those in danger -you are getting paid for something that is your passion/hobby -chance to make a lot of money -chance to become famous

Cons: -It is very dangerous -your life could be at risk -not stable -you could spend a lot of time and effort and have the risk of no one buying your photographs-travelling to other countries could be difficult for those who have families -difficult finding accommodation and other life essentials

Comparison There is a huge difference between fashion and war photography as they both have complete different purposes. I personally think war photography is very important as it opens up our eyes and could even prevent or at least help those suffering in the world. Although I do believe that war photography is used for a much more important cause I do think it is very dangerous and do not believe someone should have to put their lives at risk.

Fashion photography is more stable as although even in fashion photography there may be times where there is no work there is always new trends and fashions and therefore you are more likely to have a more secure income. Also you have a bigger chance of becoming famous within in the fashion industry and making much more money then war photographers.

Within fashion photography you get the opportunities to travel to beautiful and exotic places whereas with war photography you have to travel but to conflicted zones. Although even though some of the war zones are very dangerous they do give you some great life changing experiences and make you appreciate things that you take for granted.