Invisible mannequin technique in fashion photography

Currently, there are many ways to photograph fashion products for a catalog or ecommerce, but today we want to talk to you a bit more about a special technique for photographing garments for online stores; the invisible mannequin technique or ghost mannequin. We’ve previously talked about flat-lay photography or flat-lay but, unlike this or model photography, ghost mannequin photography allows you to visualize garments with volume without distractions. This type of photography also helps to visualize the garment on a body and get an idea of some details of how it might look when worn or the type of cut, or if it has any differential details like the fold of a pant. Additionally, at an economic level, this technique allows us to save some costs, such as that of the model. The quickest way to take this type of photographs is by using a special mannequin for this technique. These are constructed in modules and allow us to remove the body parts that we’re not going to use. Moreover, they’re painted in a special white color that the software of some automated product photography machines identify and eliminate in seconds, even if the garments are white. It’s also important that the mannequin is matte. When placing the clothing on the mannequin, you can adjust it to the size with some elements like tapes or clips, and you can also finish creating volume in some areas such as hoods, filling them with paper or tissue. Another very important thing is lighting. LED lighting is the most suitable for fashion photography as it’s softer, usually more diffuse, and maintains more realistic colors. Fortunately, there are currently studios already prepared for this type of photo sessions so that we don’t have to make large investments that might be impossible for us. At AVisual STUDIOS, we have special invisible mannequins for automated product photography solutions that already include LED lighting, as well as motorized bases that allow for 360-degree product photography, photo, and video. If you didn’t know about this technique or these machines, we offer a free demo of both to photographers and brands. Don’t hesitate to contact us!