FASHIONXT | HOW TO COVER A FASHION SHOW LIKE A PRO

Last weekend I had the opportunity to attend FashioNXT as a member of the photography team on behalf of my client, P:FINE. It was my first time attending the event and I must admit, it was definitely worth the hype! But as a one-woman-team, covering one show for three brands (P:FINE, Brittany Siierra and Arreis), things got a little interesting.

When Snapchat first surfaced, I was hesitant to make an account. It seemed really complicated and I had no idea how to use it. Truthfully I just wanted it to go away. But, after getting made fun of by my friends (they're so mean-ha) I finally made an account (@brittanysierra8), just in time for NYFW. Right around that time Fashionista also released an article on the top fashion editors, models and bloggers to follow during NYFW so naturally, I followed them all.

Somewhere between the end of New York Fashion Week and the middle of fashion month, I stopped paying attention to the designer clothes and started noticing the strategy for how some of the top bloggers covered fashion week for their blogs. 

One thing I learned from watching their snaps was that they have a team (don't judge me for just now realizing this-ha)! It all makes sense now.  Many of the top bloggers bring their photographer with them to take outfit and street-style shots between shows and then, during the show the photographer covers the runway from the press pit while the blogger enjoys first row seating to snap, Instagram, tweet and of course, be seen. These bloggers also have an assistant that organizes their schedule, grabs coffee, sorts the many, many, many outfits looks and keeps them sane.

So, what do you do if you don't have a team to help you cover a fashion event? 

Over the past few years I've attended many shows some as part of the production team, some as a blogger and now, as a member of the photog team. I've learned through trial and error a few tips that make covering a fashion event solo a whole lot easier. 


PLAN AHEAD. 
This may seem a bit obvious but I  somehow always find myself up late the night before trying to figure out what to wear and how I'm going to get from the office to show. Ideally, I like to take the day off on the day of an event but, if you have to work, planning your outfit, travel bag and where you're going to get dressed ahead of time is a life saver. Trust me, there's nothing worse then having 30-minutes to get dressed and realizing that you forgot to grab your shoes. Smh.

FONT ROW SEATING....ALWAYS. 
If you're covering an event as a blogger you always want to sit front row. Always. There's nothing worse than a million heads in the middle of your shot. The better the seats, the better your pictures will be. The better your pictures are, the more exposure you'll get when you post pictures to your blog and social media and the more likely brands will notice you. Plus, the better your pictures are the better content you are able to provide to your readers which ultimately is the goal as a fashion and style blogger.

The first night I attended FashioNXT I was in the press pit which was pretty cool for pictures. I'd say the press pit or front row are the best places to be if you're covering a show solo.


ARRIVE EARLY TO TEST LIGHTING.  
THIS IS HUGE! As a blogger I've learned skills in photography but, in no way am I a full-blown photographer. I know a little bit about settings and IOS but I'm no expert.

Unfortunately, during the show my shutter speed was on the wrong setting. Luckily the first night I was in the press pit so I was able to get some good shots but the second night they moved me to cover the side shots of the runway. The lighting on the sides was insanely different and consequently I ended up missing a whole designer collection because all my pictures turned out blurry. SO LAME! Luckily they had a quick intermission and I was able to have someone help me fix my shutter speed however, I still missed a ton of potential content. Learn from my mistake and test the lighting ahead of time to make sure you get quality non-blurry photos. 


BRING EXTRA MEMORY CARDS & PORTABLE CHARGER. 
There's nothing worse than running out of space on your memory card half way through a show or having you phone die 3/4 of the way through an event. Trust me, both have happened to me before. Prepare ahead of time and bring extra memory cards and a portable charger just in case.


LEARN THE ART OF MULTITASKING. 
Without a team, covering a fashion show or event can get a little tricky. There were times when I was shooting with my Nikon in one hand and using my phone for Shapchat in the other. Before the show, practice your method for juggling your phone and your camera. It helps, trust me.

SHOOT OUTFIT LOOKS BEFORE EVENT. 

If you want to do an outfit post along with your coverage of the event, I'd recommend planning a shoot either a few hours before the event or even a day or two prior. It makes it a lot easier because you don't have to try to find someone to take quality pictures of you at the event and, you can focus solely on covering the show and networking knowing that your outfit has already been photographed.


RELAX & ADJUST.
This has been the biggest and most important lesson I've learned during my time as a blogger. I used to stress myself out worrying about getting the perfect shot and covering events perfectly on social media that I didn't take the time to actually enjoy the event. I'd run around like a chicken with my head cut off trying to capture everything and half the time I wouldn't even post the pictures that I'd taken because "they weren't good enough." (I can be pretty hard on myself.)The biggest piece of advice I can give you is simply to relax. 

Even though I've gone to a lot of events I'm still not a pro, trust me. I intended on doing a full show recap of FashioNXT however, when they moved me from the press pit to covering the sides on the second night I don't think they realized A) that there were wires hanging around that messed up the shot and B) that I'm not a pro in Photoshop and don't know how to edit that 'ish out. LOL. Needless to say, there are few pictures from the second night that I actually like. But, instead of freaking out, I adjusted the topic for my blog so that maybe I can help someone else in the future and also remind myself of my own game plan for the next event.

There are many of career and monetary opportunities in fashion blogging that sometimes makes blogging a bit stressful. But, it helps to remember that at the end of the day, we all started blogging because it was fun and because we liked sharing our opinion. When you start stressing out about things that you can't change, that's when blogging starts to feel like a job and is no longer fun.

My biggest piece of advice. CALM DOWN! :)

Check out my recap of Michelle Lesniak's runway show on my other blog.

Also, my fashion friends Candace and Maranda were also at the shows. Check out their pics from FashioNXT too!

Outfit Photography: Candace Moltore

Fashion Photography: Brittany Sierra