A Different Approach

There are so many styles of photography that are especially intended for commercial use. One of my favorite approaches to editorial work is a more casual approach where the pictures seem to emerge from the natural motions of the model and where the photographer is capturing a very real moment instead of the model actually hitting or striking poses. I think this editorial, photographed by Dan Martensen, really demonstrates an important dynamic between the model and the photographer where they can hang out (or appear to) and create beautiful images that aren't trying too hard. There is so much spontaneous control in these images (with the specific styling, command of the light, locations) that they appear casual in a way. Instead of projecting such an unattainable ideal for physical beauty in these images, they chose a model (Karmen Pedaru) who appears very natural with her minimal makeup, "regular" hairstyling and partially dyed hair. She could be one of your friends, you could have been hanging out with her, you could have taken these images.

Everything was meticulously considered but it comes out looking like she was just hanging out with the photographer for the afternoon and having fun and in the meantime he just took shots of her. There isn't an invisible boundary in these images separating us from the high-profile world of fashion photography and supermodels. These images seem like a flashback to a memory that we could have all had in our lives and I always love when I see that in an editorial.

Images taken from fashiongonerogue.com 

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Fall Neutrals

Images taken from tumblr.com. Let me know if you have any picture credits.

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25 Magazine & Art Fashion

I really like how 25 Magazine has incorporated art into their most recent fashion editorials. The first one, photographed by Marcin Tyszka, incorporates photo-collage into the shoot. The close up images of the models that are their collaged faces obviously aren't specifically promoting clothing in the images and aren't accessory shots because there is nothing in the image. Instead, these simple portrait collages help the design aesthetic and theme of the shoot. To me, collages are about putting things together and creating something new out of fragmented pieces or incomplete parts. Fashion is one big collage. The shirt might be Balmain, the pants might be Givenchy and the earrings might be Cartier. Each of those pieces of clothing were a part of a collection, a part of a line. When you style clothes you are creating one outfit from pieces of other collections. I think the shoot is interesting and original and I wish we saw more things like this coming out of publications that are more accessible to the masses. Maybe it would make consumers start thinking differently about fashion and the art that it is.

Defragmentation of Beauty:

models: abbey lee kershaw, karmen pedaru,

shu pei, constance jablonski

photographer: marcin tyszka

illustrator: tomek sadurski

fashion editor: barbara matelo

source: helligirl at the fashion spot

This next shoot was also in 25 Magazine. Klimt is one of my favorite painters and was associated with the art nouveau movement, which is my favorite art movement of all time. Again, I like how they are combining mediums and while projection art is used from time to time and isn't anything new, I like how the light emulates paint on the models' skin and how the beautiful shapes and patterns correlate with the shape of the models body and poses.

Ghosts of Gustav Klimt:

model: eniko mihalik

photographer: derek kettela

styled by polina aronova

body-art: jenai chin

source: helligirl at the fashion spot

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