presents
INTRO TO FLAT LAY STYLING
QUOTE:
“I NEVER READ, I JUST LOOK AT PICTURES.” ANDY WARHOL
Flat Lay Styling: Agenda Introductions Definition of Flat Lay Styling Finding Inspiration Flat Lay Prep & Lighting Common Flat Lay Layouts Mobile Editing Apps Wrap Up
Allow Me to Introduce Myself
Began Wardrobe Styling in 2009
That’s Me! Attended Howard University as a Fashion Merchandising Major.
Founded Darden Creative in 2015.
DARDEN CREATIVE CLIENTS
Womenuer, LLC
Harlem Soap
Discover Treluxe
Wanted to take it a step further… & teach.
What is Flat Lay Styling?
Flat Lay Styling is the act of styling various object (props) along a flat surface. The creator using photography principles including balance & proportions, with the intention to convey an emotional response from the intended audience.
Why Flat Lay Styling?
visual content is an important component in brand strategy
67% consumers who say image quality is “very important� for choosing a product in e-commerce, compared to product info, long description, or rates & reviews. *linkedin.com
87% interaction rate on Facebook, photos are the most engaging type of content * inc.com
84% communication that will be visual content by 2018. *inc.com
Flat Lay Styling: Inspiration Editorial Calendar: a document to organize & plan your content across various platforms. Mood Board: a collage of images, that helps to to convey a theme & direction. Can be digital or physical.
Flat Lay Styling: Inspiration Example of a Mood Board (for existing client)
Flat Lay Styling: Prep & Lighting
Negative Space
White Balance
(Different from white balance) refers to the space around the props in a frame (or image).
refers to adjusting the light source to get the true intensity of colors in images
There are different types of light. The optimal type of light is natural or daylight. If you don’t have a direct source of light, you can opt to purchase a soft light. A soft light is an artificial source of light.
Flat Lay Styling: Prep & Lighting Rule of Thirds the alignment of objects across a frame (image) with guide lines & interaction points.
Flat Lay Styling: Prep & Lighting
A simple flat lay set-up: Soft Light directly above objects. Bright White Background and white boards on both sides of light, to bounce light back onto layout.
Flat Lay Styling:Color Color is an important element with flat lays. Emotions are associated with color
Flat Lay Styling: Color Simplicity is Key! Researchers suggest the use of 2-3 colors to maintain balance.
Audiences favor palettes with high contrasting color. Contrast is how one color stands apart from another.
Flat Lay Styling:Color Complimentary & Split Complimentary Colors
Complimentary: sit opposite each other Example: Blue & Orange Red & Green Yellow & Purple
Flat Lay Styling: Color Complimentary Consider 70:30 rule use primary color as base; complement as the accent.
Split Complimentary
Flat Lay Styling: Color Things to Consider
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Blue is one of the most preferred colors, with the most positive connotation (men 53%, women 35%)
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Bright colors promote physical activity while cooler/ softer colors are better for mental activity
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Women prefer tints while men prefer pure or shaded colors *
Flat Lay Styling: Props Pencils Pens Laptop Notebooks Paper Weight Calendar Calculator Ruler Reading Glasses
Office Flat Lay
Flat Lay Styling: Props Great Places Michaels Home Goods Marshalls Flying Tiger Local Markets (food & flowers) Trader Joes TJ Maxx Crate & Barrel
Flat Lay Styling: Layouts 3 common layouts 1.Grid 2.Random (Free Movement) 3. Main Attraction
Random:
Props are styled in a random or free form layout. It allows reader to move from one object to the next in the frame
Grid:
props are aligned along a vertical & horizontal plane. Items will have equal visual weight.
Flat Lay Styling: Layouts 3 common layouts
Main Attraction: Features several props with one item as the focus while the others serve as complementary props. The viewer will focus on the bigger prop, pan out to see the entire frame and the eye will naturally go back to the other prop.
Flat Lay Styling:Creation
Now It’s Your Turn!
Flat Lay Styling: Editing Apps Diptic VSCO * Snapseed * A Color Story Touch ReTouch Afterlight Canva
Flat Lay Styling: VSCO
Before Editing
After:
Used VSCO to edit filter by copying an existing filter.
Flat Lay Styling: Snapseed
Before Editing
After:
Used Snapseed to Brighten background using Selective Tool
Thank You!!! @darden_creative dardencreative