Photography, in the 1900s, influenced not only fashion but also created a new photographic genre, fashion photography. Fashion Photography began when a culture fascinated by fashion collided with the camera and with an urge to showcase fashion to others.
Photographers became interested in female figures and they documented the most breath-taking haute couture masterpieces. Let us navigate through the works of three of the most famous fashion photographers from around the world!
1. Richard Avedon
THE BEEKEEPER
Image source: publicdelivery.org
“All photographs are accurate. None of them is the truth.”
Richard Avedon, born on 15 May, 1923, was one of the most influential fashion photographers of the post-war era, and his enduring images
helped define America’s image of style, beauty, and culture for the second the black and white, “The Beekeeper”.
2. Helmut Newton
LE SMOKING
Image source: thecodemag.com
“I think that the older a photograph is, the more interesting it gets.”
Born on 31 October, 1920, Helmut Newton was a German-Australian photographer in the high-end 1980s glamour world. The New York Times described him as a “prolific, widely imitated fashion photographer whose provocative, erotically charged black and white photos were a mainstay of Vogue and other publications.” He gave the clichéd masculine Tuxedo a new vision when he photographed it for YSL' fall collection, Le Smoking, the photograph, was a controversial statement of femininity and one of his best pieces.
3. Irving Penn
VOGUE, OCTOBER 1943
Image source: latimes.com
“I always thought we were selling dreams, not clothes.”
Irving Penn, born on 16th June, 1917, was one of the first photographers to blur the lines between commercial photography and high art. An American photographer, Penn was known for his fashion photography, portraits, and still life photos. His first attempt at fashion photography resulted in the first-ever still life on the cover of Vogue and depicted an unorthodox composition of a scarf, gloves, lemons, oranges, a leather bag, and a topaz. Penn’s career included work at Vogue magazine and independent advertising work for clients including Estee Lauder and Clinique.
Today, fashion photography has evolved with dazzling fashion images rich with gorgeous colours, big-budget sets, fashion stylists, makeup artists, etc. to create fascinating fashion covers. Fashion Photography, as they say, has been evolving, but one thing that hasn’t changed would be the art of photographing fashion which tends to create trends in fashion. Not only that, but it also proves to be a medium through which we can connect to fashion itself. Let us know your favourite photoset among these!
Authored By: Varunavi Bhatnagar
Edited By: Pranamika Phukan