A Winter Fashion Photo Shoot in the Studio

Bodysuit with Fur Boots

The first look that Kate, the gorgeous and talented model who was the focus of our photo shoot, wore was a bodysuit with fur boots. It was a perfect winter look, especially with the snow machine’s flakes adding their own cozy vibe to the scene.

Kate, who lives in Miami as well after being originally from New Jersey, was also excited at being able to experience at least some type of snow during our winter here in South Florida!

Glamour with a Red Bow

Next, we wanted to do a glamorous look that incorporated a giant red bow, again with the snow falling all around Kate.

Those images came out really well.

But keep in mind that it’s important to know how to pose with an accessory like this in order for the photos to turn out as stunning as these ended up being.

One important thing to be careful with is how the model’s situated. Generally, they shouldn’t turn towards the camera with their entire body as that’ll create a square pose and not feature the body’s form as well as it should be featured. Instead, elongate it. This can be partially done through a lowering of the shoulders and the model breathing more deeply.

Framing the bow through touching or playing with it can really enhance the quality of these images as well.

Another option is to have the model lie down, propped up by an elbow and looking up at the falling snow, off to the side or at the camera. Sitting on the surface instead of lying on it could work well too. As this is being done, consider placing the bow on the legs and the floor. The photos that result from this placement can be stunning.

Red-and-White Styling

Our third look had a distinct red-and-white tone as Kate wore a playful red-and-white outfit while in front of a red backdrop and on a red surface with white snowflakes falling around her. She also had bright red lipstick on.

Also note that each of these looks can work well with many of the Christmas photo shoot ideas that you may be considering.

More About our Snow

You can make snow in different ways, including with paper or through using a type of confetti. We took advantage of a snow machine and fluid.

If you decide to use a machine like we did, it’s important to only utilize it in spurts, not continuously, and keep in mind that it might take some patience and time to perfect the snow that comes out of it so that it looks real in the images and ends up really bringing your snow photo shoot ideas to life.

Also make sure to use a dark background. It doesn’t necessarily need to be bright red, deep blue or black although those are perfect options. Dark gray could work really well too. Just make sure that, in the end, there’s a good color contrast with the white snow.

The Lighting

When doing a photo shoot in the snow, the lighting that you use is so important.

During our winter-themed photo shoot, we used a rim light, which acted as a spotlight, lighting the snowy scene from behind. What resulted was every snowflake looking like a highlight, which is essential for creating high-quality wintry images.

At times during our shoot, we utilized an octabox with a grid, and it was mounted on a C-stand. We also sometimes used two V-flats to provide negative fill from the sides.

With our first setup, we had our key light be on a stand that was 45 degrees from Kate. Doing this made the background look a bit lighter and provided more fill light, exactly what I was looking to achieve.

I also used a white reflector board during the photo shoot to bounce the light and fill a harsh shadow that had been on her neck.

Will Our Backdrop Survive?

Before we started our snowy photo shoot, we covered our backdrop with a plastic bag to protect it. However, I then realized that it’s going to reflect the light, and I wanted a matte surface that wouldn’t do that. But I had a leftover backdrop that I could use on top of the plastic bag, which could just be thrown out afterwards, so I added that layer. It all sounded like this was going to be the perfect solution. But would it?

As we were transitioning from our second to third looks, I noticed that the backdrop on top was completely ruined, and the red backdrop that we used later also ruined really fast. All of that made me worried that our main backdrop at the bottom might have been ruined too.

However, it ended up being well-protected. Once we took off the other backdrop and the plastic bag and looked at it, we saw that it was still perfect. It was like we’d never done a photo shoot on this day.

Mission complete.

Nitty-Gritty Photo Details

Many of the photos that I took at this shoot were at ISO 640 and 1250 while some were at 1000 instead. Additionally, the shutter speeds that I used were mostly 1/320s and 1/400s with 1/500s more selectively utilized. All of these photos were taken at F 2.2. As for the focal lengths of the images, they tended to range from 28mm-70mm.

Kate’s Reaction

Kate was as excited about these photos as I was, saying that “they’re amazing” and that she’d “never taken photos like this before.”

Snow Photo Shoot Ideas

There are so many snow photo shoot ideas that you could consider in addition to the ones that we did on this day. Here are a few other options, which can be used with both real and fake snow:

• Pose next to a Christmas tree with snow coming down
• Wear a cozy scarf with snow falling all around
• Toss snow up in the air

Miami Photographer

This shoot was all about creating winter magic but doing so in the studio with temperatures quite comfortable both inside and outside. And through the use of the (fake) snow that we brought, the poses that Kate did and the lighting decisions that were made, we ended up with a fascinating holiday fashion story told through high-quality images.

If you’re looking to refine your photography, I offer Workshops, 1-on-1 Mentorships and Portfolio Reviews.