This is prob'ly the most personally important thing I've posted. I'm taking all of this to heart, starting with Try the designer thing. Meet them and see the clothes and go from there - this is the way real fashion shoots are done. And for that matter, this is how real fashion photographers get work! .(posted 8837 days ago)Continuing with Richard Avedon says "Sell the dream" when it comes to fashion photography. so maybe 'pulling it off' means making a viewer think 'I want to look like that. I want to live the life she lives. What else does she do (given the context of the picture and the fantasy built around it)'.
And ending (appropriately) with "i really do think that fashion is still portraiture. As a result, the model and his/her clothing can stand alone. This is why Avedon could do some of his fashion work on pure white backgrounds. This makes your job as a photographer harder - but this is also why there are "glamour shots" shops in every mall in the US, but not a single "high fashion shots" shop anywhere".
Thanks guy. I'm gonna start searching out designers. Ryerson Polytechnic, which has a fashion design program, is probably the best place to start, and maybe some small, less-snobish agencies who themselves are starting out?
shawn