What I shoot
Fashion photography covers several jobs that look similar and are priced differently. They don’t fill the same day.
Lookbooks and e-commerce
Seamless paper background, flash bounced off a white ceiling for even light, one model working through a rail. A full day produces twenty to thirty-five looks for product pages and catalogues, the fastest, usually cheapest work per image.
Ghost mannequin and flat lay
No model at all. Garments are shot on an invisible mannequin or laid flat, then cropped for a clean cut-out. Twenty-five to forty pieces a day is typical for stores needing a uniform catalogue look.
Editorial, campaign and UGC-style content
Fewer images, more thought: eight to twelve styled set-ups a day, built around a concept rather than a rail of stock. Influencer-style content sits at the other end, shot to look unposed and handheld, cheaper than it looks because the point is that it shouldn’t look expensive. See fashion work shot in London for examples across that range.
Fashion photography prices
A half day starts at £450 for up to four hours. A full day runs £800 to £1,200 for eight hours, depending on the number of looks and whether I bring a second shooter. See full pricing across every service for how fashion compares with everything else I shoot.
| Booking | What it covers | Output | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Half day | Up to 4 hours, one location or studio set-up | A capsule collection or top-up shoot | From £450 |
| Full day | Up to 8 hours | 20–35 looks (e-commerce) or 8–12 set-ups (editorial) | £800–£1,200 |
| E-commerce, per look | Priced above the half-day minimum | Per look | Roughly £30–40 |
| Editorial set-up | One concept, one lighting or location change | 1 set-up | Roughly £85–150 |
| Adding a model | Day rate paid to the model or agency | – | Typically £150–£400 |
| Adding hair and makeup | One artist for the day | – | Typically £150–£300 |
| Studio hire | East London studio space, hourly | – | From £45/hr |
| Extended usage licence | Campaign, paid media or out-of-home use | – | Quoted per job |
The day rates, per-look and set-up pricing, and studio hire are mine, quoted on the spot. Model rates, hair and makeup and any extended licence are set by whoever provides them, confirmed before you book.
Production: who books what
This is the section most fashion briefs skip, and it causes the most awkward invoices. A production day is my day rate plus everyone else on set.
I arrange the studio, lighting, and, if you want it, the model, stylist and hair and makeup, through people I’ve worked with before or through an agency. If you’re already bringing a stylist and model, I slot in as the photographer instead.
- Model: agency day rates run higher but the release is already sorted; freelance models are cheaper, and the release is on me.
- Stylist: worth it for editorial, often unnecessary for e-commerce where garments arrive pressed and tagged.
- Hair and makeup: one artist usually covers a full day unless the look changes completely.
- Studio hire in Shoreditch or Hackney runs from £45 an hour.
Add it up: an £800 day with a model, stylist, hair and makeup and a rented studio lands close to £2,200 — most of that isn’t my fee. I’d rather say so upfront than leave it for the invoice.
E-commerce and on-figure work
This is the volume job: one model, one background, the same light for hours. Twenty to thirty-five looks a day is realistic once everyone’s warmed up, though it drops fast if garments need work first.
Two things slow an e-commerce day more than anything else:
- Garments straight from the rail with creases in them: steam them before the shoot, not during it.
- A changing area on a different floor, which turns every outfit change into a walk, not a step behind a screen.
I shoot against plain backgrounds for a consistent crop, and can hand over flat lay or ghost mannequin images the same day. See e-commerce photography in London for how I structure a full day, and product photography from £300 for studio shots without a model.
Editorial and campaign
Editorial moves slower: eight to twelve set-ups a day, each a small production with a new location, backdrop or lighting set-up. Approvals take longer too, a sign-off on the day, not a quick nod between looks.
Location scouting matters more here than anywhere in fashion work. A rooftop in Shoreditch looks completely different at 8am than at 6pm in October, when the light is gone by half five. Street shooting in much of central London, and in most royal parks, commonly needs permission arranged in advance, and the rules vary by spot, so confirm it in writing before you lock a location. See where you need a permit to shoot in London.
Campaign work usually needs a longer usage licence than editorial, since it sits behind paid media rather than a magazine spread. If a shoot crosses into wider commercial photography territory, say so early, and read building a fashion photography brief before you brief me in.
Model portfolios and test shoots
Different client, different price. A model building a portfolio isn’t buying a lookbook or a campaign: they need images that show range, a beauty close-up, a full-length shot, something with movement, something plain.
Eight to ten strong looks is a realistic target, shot over three to four hours rather than a full day. I’d rather shoot fewer looks well than rush through fifteen that all look the same in a book. A test shoot with a new stylist or artist works the same way: smaller scale, lower stakes, still worth doing properly.
See what a model portfolio shoot should produce for a fuller breakdown of what goes into a usable set.
Releases and usage
A model release covers what you’re allowed to do with the images and for how long. It’s the part most likely to get skipped under deadline pressure.
Common practice is a release covering a lookbook or website, which doesn’t automatically extend to a paid campaign or out-of-home advertising. That needs a separate, usually paid, extended licence agreed with the model or agency before the shoot. I’ll flag when you need a model release at booking, but the wording of anything contractual should be checked by a solicitor, not by me.
When you need a specialist instead
I’d rather say this than take a booking that’s wrong for both of us. High-end beauty photography, built around a full retouching team, needs someone who does only that, every day. The same goes for a campaign with serious money behind it: seven figures of media spend expects agency-level credits and a team already in place.
For most lookbooks, e-commerce, editorial and smaller campaign work in London, one experienced photographer with the right team does the job well, for a fraction of the cost. If you’re not sure which side of that line you’re on, ask me directly.
Tell me how many looks you need and whether you’re bringing a model, stylist and hair and makeup, or want me to arrange them. Send me the look count and whether you have a team and I’ll reply within one working day with a price and a shot list.