If you follow me on Instagram and Snapchat (find me @atelierofstyle), then you’ll know that last Wednesday I went to the Karen Millen x Olympus Pen event, that was hosted by In The Frow. As soon as I heard about the event, I knew that I had to attend! I always end up going to these events on my own as it’s a great way to get chatting with fellow bloggers and within the industry and I’m such a big fan of Victoria and her constant pursuit to create innovative imagery in the fashion blogosphere.
I also got a chance to test out the new Olympus EPL-8 at the event, and honestly, I fell head over heels in love for it! I really didn’t want to hand it back at the end as it’s the perfect camera for me at the moment. I have been toying with getting the Canon 80D or similar, but the Olympus pen can produce the exact same quality of imagery but in a more compact size.
As I usually shoot all my outfit images with a professional photographer, I don’t necessarily need a big camera myself. If I can get a smaller camera that produces the same quality of images that can fit in my day bag for days out, then it’s a no brainer!
Perks:
- It has built in wifi – perfect for uploading high quality images to Instagram on the go!
- Small and compact, still takes amazing images
- Flip screen – great for good selfies and the possibility of more Youtube videos…
- Touch screen to focus image – great for ensuring I’m in focus when asking friends to take my photo, as they just have to touch me
Cons:
- Adobe doesn’t currently support RAW format –
Although I’m sure it won’t be long til’ it does support RAW images, this is my preferred image format for blog posts. However, shooting in JPEG doesn’t matter for Instagram posts and other social media as the file size gets reduced anyway!
Anyhoo, the reason why I’m sure most of us were in attendance to the event was to hear Victoria speak! She was interviewed by photographer Jay McLaughlin and both of them shared their tips on how they shoot fashion images and how to best use the Olympus Camera. Victoria also gave us a few blogging tips for how she shoots her images. If you didn’t catch it on Snapchat, then I’ll share some of her top tips here:
Make sure your expressions fit the overall mood.
You can change the whole mood of a blog post just by your expressions and poses. If you’re shooting a more edgy look in London you might have a moodier look, but you wouldn’t want that same expression when you’re shooting travel images. You’d have more lighter, colorful and happier images, a smiling face.
Make choosing the final image selections a collaborative process between you and the photographer.
No one will choose picture as good as you will. The photographer is looking at light, composition and what’s in the background whereas you’re focused on your expression, whether there’s any stray hairs and body language. In this case, it’s always best to go through the images together with your photographer to decide on the main ones you like that you can then whittle down.
Investing in a camera for good quality image sets you apart from the rest.
Good quality is necessary. Although you really don’t need a good/big camera (some photos can look great just on the iphone) if you are serious, it really is worth the investment because high quality images really elevate your blog.
Practice getting comfortable in front of the camera as early as you can.
Get comfortable and be yourself in front of the camera, it may take a bit of time, but the faster you get more comfortable infront of the lense the better. Practice, practice, practice. The more you do the sooner you’ll feel more at ease, and the images will begin to reflect this as well.
Engage with your audience and other influencers for growth.
Engagement and chatting with others is essential to growing your audience, so make sure you’re responding to comments and leaving other people comments as well.
SELF PROMOTE!
You have to self promote. Put yourself out there and get attention from others, it really is all down to you to get yourself and your work noticed by other people.
So there we have it! Have any of you guys checked out the new Olympus pen, what do you think?