Seriously, stop what you're doing and find a decent monitor. French born David Bellemere has an amazing style and anybody who loves the work of Guy Aroch is going to fall in love with it too. David Bellemere is pretty darn big in the industry so theres not a huge amount on the guys bio suffice to say that French magazines were commissioning him whilst he was still at Uni (no I'm not making that up, I swear, magazines really did used to commission photographers I promise). Head on over and check out his incredibly dreamy/retro style (although to be fair the guy probably invented it so it might not be that retro to him). The website is very image heavy so give it time but be sure to check out the 'Body' section of his gallery before you leave. This is his agencies site by the way.
To me this is as good as fashion photography gets. Its not everybody's taste but Spanish born Txema Yeste just seems to capture so much with every single one of his shots and really get the impression that no inch of his frame is wasted. Born in 1972, Txema has been shooting for many years and throughout his career he has adapted and pushed his style but it has still maintained its overarching saturation, contrast, vividness and almost electric quality.
In an interview he did for PULL&BEAR in 2011 he was asked, what do you find most interesting about your job?
'The most interesting work in fashion is it´s constant change and above all, that it allows you to experiment and explore new techniques.'
Head on over to his site and take in this exceptional work that personifies what fashion photography should be.
I can't find too much out about Tiago Prisco I'm afraid so I will save you from my 'tog droll' this week. Suffice to say that Tiago loves a lot of colour in shots and shiny models occupying them so what more do you need?
Check out his site for yourselves but especially make a visit to these editorials from his main page:
In the Deep (colour and shine at its best),
A Dreamy Garden (strong colour theory throughout, especially the last image),
Used to Love Her Skin (actually good latex photography),
Its A Flair (interesting range of techniques for one editorial),
The Black Widow (some of the finest coloured shadows Ive seen in ages),
Golden Future (awesome beauty lighting, the nerds among you should check the catchlights for more info )
So this is a funny one and some of you may have already seen a lot of his work considering he has more UK front covers than my ego cares to count, but I first thought this guy was based in LA. It turns out that Jay Mawson is actually based in the photographic polar opposite of LA, Manchester England. First off, nothing untoward is meant by that, I know Manchester is a beautiful city but unfortunately like the rest of us here in the UK we are tormented by less than Californian weather but in my opinion somehow Jay has managed to portray that classic LA look to his work. The soft natural glowing light that hangs in his images really is something that I love but upon reading some of his blog posts it appears he actually achieves that with studio flash, and its that mastery of controlling light that gives his images the ethereal look that so many of his gorgeous photographs have. If even half his images are actually shot with studio strobes then that really is an enviable skill indeed because that quality of light really is highly coveted here in the UK. Head on over and be your own judge and for the slightly stronger of heart also be sure to swing by his blog posts. He's certainly not shy in airing his opinions but frankly with that portfolio more power to him.
Based on previous post 'engagement' I tend to avoid sharing work of the big names, instead I usually try and find the 'diamond in the rough' to showcase a different perspective on the industry. But today I felt that even though New York based Francesco Carrozzini is as big as they come his work is still unique in few ways. Francesco's career actually started back in 2001 when he was 19 as a director and made his debut shooting promo videos for Italian MTV. The reason I mention that is because usually the career path is the opposite, you start with stills and move into cinema and for me its this difference that gives Francesco his unique take on photography.
His site has a huge amount of content but the link I have given you here actually takes you to his archive of past editorials, its here where I feel you can really see his style shine with incredibly unique and dramatic portraits of the biggest A-list stars. Although he has more front covers on the big name glossies than most take the time to see how his cinematic style captures the rich and famous in a more personal and intimate way than Ive seen achieved previously. Plus, don't forget that he was 19 in 2001, that makes this body of work even more impressive for somebody in that industry seeing as most of these legends were considerably older than him when these were taken, it can't of been easy to get these portraits with that generation gap looming over you.
I'm always fascinated when I see outstanding photographers who are also masters of another craft within the creative process and how it effects their final images. Thai born Katherine Lyndia is no exception to this and upon closer inspection of some of finer editorials you will also see that she's also an outstanding makeup artist as well. The reason I mention this is because on the shoots where you can see thats she's been both MUA and photographer the finished images look like they've been fully conceived from the start of the project to work together. Whether the makeup inspiration comes first and influences the photography or vice versa is unclear but either way its certainly apparent with colours and tones in her beauty work that they both work synonymously to create gorgeous images.
I will start this weeks introduction by saying that I have very little affinity for conceptual or surrealist photography, that is not to say that I don't respect it as an expression of the discipline but that I very rarely see it done to a level that stops me in my tracks anymore. So with that being said I find it hard to believe there is any better example of arresting surrealist photography than from Miss Aniela. The work she produces is to an outstandingly high level and in this era of the 'throw away' image I defy anybody to not stop and stare at her incredibly detailed imagery. Even at the most basic form of appreciation you have to be in awe of her compositing skills in Photoshop as she perfectly blends paintings that were created hundreds of years prior with her modern masterpieces with seamless masking and colour matching.
I was tirelessly retouching images myself last week and I was fortunate enough to catch her on Creative Live, her insights and artistic knowledge of how she pre-visualises her imagery beforehand is incredible and she is clearly a rare breed of photographer in this day and age who is certainly not 'winging' it as she genuinely knows what she's talking about.
If you get the chance to catch her Creative Live workshop I strongly recommend it, in the mean time though check out her sensational works of art on her website.
If Jean-Baptiste Fort was 150 years old I'd think he'd taken a phenomenal about outstanding images in his time, it would seem though that somehow he is indeed a lot younger. Jean started out at the age of 19 photographing the stars of 'Friends' on set and since then it would seem he has been developing a serious mastery of the craft which includes not only a definitive understanding of lighting and colour theory but also an ability to showcase the more surreal and abstract side to his vision. Definitely worth the click.
'Alright Squiz you've had your fun, give the rest of us a chance. Back in your box now please!' London based fashion photographer Squiz Hamilton knocks 'em out the park every time and although his website is a pain in the ass (no thumbnails) it's definitely worth going through the shots one-by-one as some of his location work is phenomenal to say the least. I also love his use of colour toning throughout a story of images as this can be a great way to unify a series of shots. Head on over and see for yourself.
I quite like how varied Singaporean Sazeli's photographic style is, he appears to cover a very wide gamut of genres and although not immediately apparent from his portfolio, upon closer inspection of his 'Press' page (or image search) you can see a far wider range of imagery. Also I noticed on his 'About' page he quotes himself as 'a self taught photographer'. I'm curious has education become so disagreeable now that it's seen as a positive to potential clients that you taught yourself? Or is it just that it's a sign of the times that most people aren't actually earning from what they studied at university? Just curious.
Earlier today somebody left a comment on one of my shots that just said 'very Oleg Ti'. As usual I hadn't heard of them so I thought I had better Google it to check I wasn't being compared to some ten'a'penny 'blurry bum' shooter but it turns out I couldn't of been more flattered. Oleg Ti's work is freaking awesome, I love his use of colours and it looks like he really pushes experimentation and camera tricks with everything he does. Check out his 'Personal' work to see some fantastic long exposure fashion shots. Frankly if you don't like this guys work then… you're doing it wrong.
Looks like I'm late to the party once again. Somehow I've managed to miss Julian M Kilsby's work up until recently but as I was enjoying his extensive portfolio I noticed that half of you lucky people have already been photographed by him (you know who you are ). So this portfolio link is really for the other half and if like my sheltered self you have somehow missed him too then definitely head on over and check out his outstanding lighting skills. Julian uses his technical knowledge to always bring the best out of the shot as he has a very bold and vivid style.
One for the beauty and makeup gurus among you today, Russian based Mikhail Malyugin is an outstanding beauty photographer but is probably better known for his very high-end beauty retouching. He was one of the first guys I saw a while back playing with now increasingly popular CGI liquid skin look, he showcases some of that and also on his site there are some interesting 'before and afters' of his glamour work. Whether you agree with that level of 'adjustment' or not its still interesting to see the difference, especially as you may not immediately notice the changes. Mikhail also has some sped up videos of his entire retouch workflow which can offer a brief insight into the incredible detail he goes into to achieve his look. If nothing else you could always link his videos to your clients if they're hassling you to hurry up and get their images retouched. If you'd like to find out more then head to his about page where he links to a very interesting and in-depth interview he did with the Retouching Academy. Failing that you could always save up your pennies and commission him to retouch a few of your shots, I'd personally love to see that CGI lacquer on some of my shots.
I'll come clean straight away here and say Ive found out sod all about this guy, and to be fair I wasn't even sure it was a guy for a while. But to be fair Kay Smith's photography needs very little introduction from me as his work is frankly outstanding, so much so that you wouldn't care if he was man, woman or martian with this level of skill. Kay's addiction to incredibly vibrant and contrasty imagery mixed with tightly cropped head-shots certainly creates some very arresting imagery but pay close attention to his colour work too as he is not choosing those colours at random, with his level of saturation its all too easy to make imagery painful to look at but his colour theory is impeccable.
Personally I love this work but head on over and see for yourselves (Oh and he's based in Paris, thats literally all I found out, the guys even more elusive than I am).
So I thought I'd have a quick look online for this evenings inspiration and before I knew it hours had gone by, most of that spent on the site of the very talented Benjo Arwas. Israeli born and LA based his 'bread and butter' work is solid commercial fashion but I was specifically drawn to the 'personal work' on his site. Here you will find some very striking portraits, some of which are shot on a gorgeous 1920's 4x5 Crown Graphic camera, surely a level of quality that will never truly be digitally realised or replicated. If you like what you see there then it might be worth checking some of his videos out too, here you will see a guy who is not afraid to take just one shot. That is surely the sign of a photographer who knows exactly what he's after, and that can be attributed partly Im sure to his pre shoot prep with his subjects. Before each shoot Benjo speaks with his models saying “just be yourself, everybody else is already taken,”.
Its been a very long time indeed since I've seen any really good 'nude' photography, I personally find the genre to be saturated with photographers that rely solely on the beauty of the model and shows little input from the photographer who is simply there to record the moment.
This all changed however when I saw Russian Photographer Dan Hecho's work, and although he is a great wedding and portrait shooter his nude work blows the genre wide open in my opinion. Granted the models are nothing short of stunning but his mastery of natural light and composition is something to behold, add to this a very strong sense of style through post production and you have an incredibly good nude photographer.
I am sharing the link to his site out of respect for the artist but if you like what you see here then definitely check out his other links on his websites 'info' section. Oh and whatever lens this guy is using, I NEED it.
I love this young ladies style, and although its not my personal overall penchant, Amanda Diaz's dreamy and romantic images cannot help but impress. Its clear that she only surrounds herself with the best team but her post production toning and polish really makes her images shine and although she herself confesses to not pride herself on her technical ability her creativity is second to none.
You are bound to of seen at least one of Miles Aldridge shots by now, his style is certainly memorable. His is a post-modern world where his subjects are draped in vibrant couture and photographed in playgrounds, supermarkets, showers or fast cars and his models expressions always leaving questions to the images he takes. As Aldridge himself puts it "I am the very best person to take my pictures".
Head on over to his website, a site that gives an experience and best viewed on a desktop. If you'd like to know more about him though, check out his pretty cool biography page too.
Tonight I wanted to share some work from the ex French model Laurence Laborie. Her work has been around for a while now and although she started out in France shooting location and natural light shots, she's probably more renowned for her more recent outstanding beauty work which is incredibly vibrant and meticulously lit. I mentioned ex-model earlier as I always find it interesting to view model-turned-photographers work, I like to see how they draw out their subject, seeing as they were previously on the other side of the camera it would make sense that they would naturally be good at guiding another model. Head on over and see for yourself.
Robert John Kley photography seems to be one of the rare and fortunate togs that seems to be pretty darn good at most genres. Love his expressive fashion work along with some great post pro toning, awesome B/W portraits and also seems pretty adept at making cool vids. Check his 'flickering' section on his site for those, some of the latter ones showcase some some sweet music vids too. Enjoy
I don't know why you guys do it to yourselves but here's 'just another industry shaping legend' for you. Born in Vietnam and raised in Iran, Paris and Southern California Sebastian Kim has seen more success than most. He started out assisting the likes of photographic giants Richard Avedon and Steven Meisel but it wasn't until he was 32 that he struck out on his own. Last year 'The Ground' magazine interviewed him and asked what he felt the secret to his success was. Kim's answer was simply “It takes a lot of hard work, dedication, and perseverance. There is no shortcut, no secret path to success; you just need to focus on what you like and keep moving forward,” he advised. “Do not let discouragement eat up your dream.” Ground magazine continually reference Sebastian's laid back attitude and I felt that his parting words summed it up, "Don’t worry or be too anxious about your career. You just have to enjoy the process." So there you have it guys, just chill out and take it easy and your photographic career will take care of itself. You heard it here first.
Israeli born Yossi Michaeli is renowned for his bold, innovative, strong and graphic style of photography. This is prominent throughout his portfolio and he seems equally happy shooting fashion spreads for the likes of Vogue and Harper's Bazaar in the studio as he does on location. The thing that strikes me is his bold use of colours which is easy to be seen as overpowering to the viewer, especially with head shots but his beauty shots are far from the norm and this section of his website is definitely worth checking out as well to see how he leads the viewer through a potentially eclectic image.
Belgian fashion photographer Serge Leblon describes his style as 'evanescent and colourful'. His style certainly is both those things but more than that I feel his fashion photography is very playful and romantic as his work steers well clear of harsh unforgiving lighting and raw sexiness that populates the current mainstream. As well as this intriguing style one of the main things that attracted me to his work was his consistent ability to produce cohesive series of images. Looking at the fashion-editorial section of his site you will notice the unmistakable sets of images that leave you in no doubt that they belong together. Whether it be a dramatic vignette, overarching colour schemes or simply consistent camera techniques his images tie together at a glance without the simplistic cliche of relying on trying to tell a story with images. Head on over to see a refreshing take on some mainstream fashion.
An Le is a Vietnamese born US based photographer who has a huge amount of content on his site. His style although editorial in presentation is firmly based in the conceptual realm and in an Interview with MODA mag last year, the 23 year old describes the influences that have shaped his work (thats right, I said 23 year old!).
Swedish born Camilla Akrans has a phenomenal body of work spanning many different photographic styles. Here she is showcased by one of Sweden's foremost agencies, LundLund. To really appreciate her work though I thoroughly recommend downloading the PDF portfolio link at the top of her page.
London based Jenny Brough has some outstanding fashion and beauty shots over on her port. She has a super crisp style and also takes a mean flower shot!
Head on over and don't forget to check her Facebook page which has some more recent conceptual work.
Love this guys style, pretty eclectic, just the way I like it! Aaron Feaver is like any self respecting fashion photographer who likes flare in their shots he's based in LA and like Aaron's style his port is a jumble of campaigns, looks and eras and is actually quite refreshing to see somebodies work laid out like this. Head on over to his site and check out his work.
If we were playing 'Photographer Top Trumps' and I had the Elizaveta Porodina card, you would loose!
Prepare to be demoralised and inspired by this outstanding fashion photographer from Russia.
Some fascinating inspiration this evening, possibly even a glimpse at the future of editorial campaigns. Santiago & Mauricio are brothers from Mexico city currently working out of New York, they seem to specialise in the blending of stills and motion so seamlessly that I could see this being the norm for displaying future campaigns as more and more of us leave the dead trees behind and view are magazines online.
To see what I mean make sure to view 'The Society New York' page for fashion in motion, the 'NOWNESS: STARSHIFT' page for more interactive beauty shots and the 'Nowness: She’s Electric' page for some gorgeous motion graphics and video campaign.
Pretty interesting stuff, I'd love to hear whether you think 'photographic stills' will ever die in editorials or is this fashion in motion just the natural progression of whats to be the norm?
I've been a big fan of Glenn Norwood's photography for a while, especially his fantastic colour work and the guy has won one more prestigious photographic awards in his career than I can count and definitely knows what he's talking about. By all means go check his work on his website.
Kristian Schuller, born in Romania, originally started out being taught fashion design by none other than Vivian Westwood and from his stunning fashion photography its plain to see her strong influence on his passion for fashion and design. He now currently spends most of time in London shooting for the likes of Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar. Head on over and check out his grandiose sets and rich use of colour.
Chinese born Shxpir (pronounced Shakespeare.......I know right) certainly loves his colour and it would seem that his fine art background has served his colour theory well, I love his colour combinations. At first you think that they shouldn't go together but they're so over the top they just work.
Norwegian born but currently London UK based Sølve Sundsbø has a fantastically clean style and has shot for all the major campaigns like Chanel, Cartier, Dolce & Gabbana, plus the the Alexander McQueen retrospective in New York.
I'd be surprised if you hadn't perviously seen at least one of his images before and considering his breadth of skill base, he's not afraid to push all manner of techniques like shutter drags, gels and even underwater shoots. Head on over and check out his 'Current' and 'Fashion' portfolios on his agencies site. Unfortunately his agency is stingy fearful of large images so if anybody finds a site of his work with larger images let me know.
I'd be interested to hear what you guys think of his work though.
I wanted to show you NY based photographer Martin Schoeller and his famous series called 'Close up'. Martin has photographed the biggest of the big names in this series but what draws me into the shots is his photography techniques. No posing no fancy styling just bold crops and impeccable lighting, whats worth noting is the shaping and structure these portraits have by the actual absence of light around the edges, love it. The link here takes you straight to his agencies page and the project but while you're there check his 'Twins' series shot in the same style, very freaky though.
So this week we just have some insanely good retouching skills from Christian Girotto. I'm tempted to think this guy is using a different version of Photoshop than me, that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!
Check out the albums 'Vanessa Cruz' along with 'In the Edge' and start making your excuses.
This weeks inspiration does not come any more 'high end' than this, and chances are you may of already seen his work without realising it in the recent fashion magazines.
In my opinion Greg Kadels photography epitomises the current vivid editorial look with his flawless eye for composition and fantastic use of colour.
Go check out his work now (also, clicking on the thumbnails opens up the entire campaign of shots).
Unfortunately I don't think his site is mobile responsive so do him a favour and enjoy his work in front of a proper screen.
Wow! A lot of outstanding work in here from a very high end editorial 'tog, check it out!
Paco Peregrín was born in Almeria, Spain. He resides in Madrid but he works worldwide. He has won many grants and awards including a Gold Lux 2008 award (first place in the National Professional Photography Awards in Spain) in the 'Fashion and Beauty' category. His work is part of important art collections and it has appeared in numerous books such as NEW FASHION PHOTOGRAPHY
Here is a truly outstanding portfolio of work with some very polished post production!