What is a Photo Stylist?

Let's talk about what a photo stylist is (interiors) and what they do.

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So, have you ever wondered about the word Stylist as it relates to interiors and photography? What exactly is a photo stylist? What do they do? I’m asked this often. A photo stylist usually works with a team, but many online content creators act as both photographer and photo stylist - perhaps that’s what you have seen (or done yourself).

I’ve done both the hiring of stylists and I’ve been the stylist for hire. I’ve done my own work as a content creator but also paid, professional work for clients.

Way back in the beginning when I worked for magazines as a journalist, we often hired stylists to work on our teams to assist the photographer for the creation of a story that would appear in print. I was sorta trained as a stylist this way, through my own careful observation on shoots. At least one part of my training was through that means.

When I decided to become a photo stylist, I assisted photographers, trained under stylists, read books, studied images that I loved, and often tried to mimic some of the arrangements that I saw in photos to train myself at home - none of that became a photo others ever saw, but training in that way certainly helped me enormously.

A photo stylist works with a photographer to help them create a scene that the client desires. The client could be a book author, a magazine art director, a brand manager, a campaign manager, etc. If you’re working on an interiors story, it could be just a photographer, their assistant, and you - the stylist - who goes to a home to shoot it. This is usually how I’ve worked on all 4 of my books because I was the client (as the book author) and knew what I wanted to appear in my book and where. A team of three can easily shoot home stories if there is a strict budget, though having more hands to help is certainly wonderful if the budget allows.

After over a decade of working in this capacity, I am now skilled as an art director, stylist and photographer. I also am a journalist since 2006. I can do a lot of things, though I wouldn’t call myself a master of any of them - I’m just curious, love to learn, and really enjoy coming up with concepts and seeing them through. If only I knew how to use InDesign I could basically run a magazine alone though honestly, what a nightmare that would be in practice - but in theory, I can’t say I’ve not toyed with the idea a lot.

I guess I somehow wanted to reach this point of being able to do it all because I like all of the pieces of magazine creation equally and love the art of pulling together a beautiful publication. Plus, as a blogger for over 16 years creating content online, you learn to do it all in ways you just wouldn’t have if you’d been classically trained in one thing.

I’ve traveled to people’s homes alone (I knew them, they were friends) or with my assistant (if I didn’t know the homeowner but also if I suspected that I would need help if the property was larger than 100m2 or so) to style and photograph the space. It’s not a problem for me to also spend an hour to interview the homeowner and take their portrait in addition to doing all of the styling and photography - yes, in a single day. I work quickly on producing home stories because I don’t like to putter around and move many things. I like the person’s home to be as authentic as possible so the story doesn’t lose integrity.

When a team is assigned to shoot a home for a magazine or book, usually the photographer, their assistant, and the stylist show up at a home to shoot it, with careful instructions from the author/publisher. Many photo stylists and photographers aren’t just joined by a photo assistant but often an art director as well - the “client” - to ensure the photography and styling is both accurate for the story they are trying to capture.

In a nutshell, the photo assistant helps the photographer set up the tech and the photo stylist starts to arrange a room in a way that would work for the client and the story being told. The photographer naturally does the photography but also gives the stylist frequent feedback.

A photo stylist’s job is to accentuate the positive and to remove or detract from the negative aspects in a space which could mean moving a piece of furniture in or out, swapping out soft furnishings such as pillows and throws, rearranging books on a shelf more neatly, etc. This is challenging in the home of someone else, because you need to maintain the integrity of a homeowner you may have just met that day while also ensuring the photo looks amazing.

Their job is essential in making the photographer’s work shine. The photographer will direct the stylist and together, they review the photo “live” on a laptop to see how it looks and what tweaks to the arrangement need to be made. Perhaps a chair needs to be further into the frame or flowers or plants need to be added to bring in some vibrant color or life. Oftentimes, you may even call in the homeowner to walk through the space so you can shoot them walking, which creates movement and interest as shown below.

It’s important to note that when you show enough of a person for them to be identified, it definitely needs to be of a person living in the space or their actual pet, etc. You cannot bring in props like pets or pretend to be the home owner in shoots of their spaces.

The stylist may also be in the shot from time to time, holding something or doing something, without showing anything more than hands or legs. You can see an example of this below - most likely this is the photo stylist pouring the coffee.

Before the actual shoot, they’ll research ideas and props since they will often need to loan out or purchase props (vases, sheets for the bed, throw pillows, etc.) to bring to the shoot. This requires either visiting the space first or asking for recent snap shots (a homeowner can provide these) so you know what colors and textures already exist in the space. A stylist may need to visit a plant or flower shop the night before the shoot to pick out greenery or flowers. It’s best to pick out flowers with buds that are closed, then put them in warm water so by morning, they are open and beautiful!

A photo stylist may also need to do a quick run to the bakery to pick up cakes or bread to use as a prop if shooting a kitchen or table setting - along with some fruits and veggies.

When it comes to food, it’s best to keep it simple and to select things with interesting shapes and to use colors that work well in the room. Also, to use multiples of one thing. For instance, a bowl of bright yellow lemons looks better in a blue and white kitchen than a bowl of mixed fruits.

Styling for fashion, food, etc. can be much more elaborate as it involves recipe creators, cooks, models, several assistants, a kitchen, professional lighting, and so much more. Often, food and fashion are shot in a professional shooting space - for instance a light studio or in a special space in-house at a publishing or media company, for instance. Martha Stewart Living has a dedicated space for photo shoots in their New York offices where teams of editors, photographers, cooks, assistants, stylists, and many others are responsible for producing the near-perfect stories that you see in her magazines, books, and on her website.

A photo stylist needs to have an excellent well-trained eye which is usually a combination of natural talent and years of training so their visual language becomes very clear and they can work quickly and often be able to improvise as styling calls for a lot of improvisation.

I also may be oversimplifying the job of a Photo Stylist a bit — it can be much more involved than working in spaces that are already furnished and lived in. Styling a home that already looks amazing for a magazine or book is one thing but their are also photo stylists who build an entire scene from nothing. I’ll go into that next.

An Interiors Stylist goes a step beyond but this gets a little tricky because an interior stylist may or may not work in conjunction with a photographer. They may work more as a interior decorator and go to a client home to make it look and function better. We see interior stylists in popular home shows more and more - they are styling spaces but not for photography, for better living.

An Interiors Stylist may also work with a team and very closely with a photographer and art director. This job means increased responsibility when working on stories that involve calling in props and building sets from the ground up. In these cases, an interiors stylist has their own assistant who will help them to handle ordering, logistics, packing and unpacking objects and furniture, installation and more. This is much more challenging and often takes months to prepare for a shoot which can take a day or a week or more. A location needs to be rented and an entire set built. It’s a huge undertaking. And they still work with a photographer on the shoot days, so they are both interior stylist + photo stylist too.

How do you became a stylist? Often an education in interior design, theater set design, decorating, photography, or general art education can help you. You can also learn on your own through books, training under a stylist as their assistant, or by taking online classes taught by actual working stylists who have experience on professional photo shoots and can really give you a full education. You really need years of experience in all types of settings and situations to be able to teach photo styling to others.

I hope this has helped you to learn more about what an interior photo stylist is and what they do. Happy Monday everyone!

Love,

Holly