History
Fashion photography is the use of a photograph to display clothing or accessories. Typically, fashion photography has a marketable intent as it is used in documenting or selling the particular fashion in the photo. Fashion photography has the ability to expose attitudes, ambitions, sense of taste of time, visions, desires, values, sexuality and self-image. The photographer hopes to give the viewer something to believe in. Baron Adolf de Meyer was the first American fashion photography to have impact on the fashion photography industry with the use of form, and light. Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue were the first fashion magazines accessible to the public. The photograph of models, actresses and aristocrats were the first to be used in Vogue’s fashion editorials. Magazines gained popularity in the twentieth century as fashion designers began to establish trends of fashion on an international level. Paris was the first center of the fashion industry even prior to World War II. As the 1950’s and 60’s approached, fashion was transformed into a” fluid, spontaneous and energetic “aesthetic . Photographers sought to show motion in their shots and the outdoors began to be used as a backdrop. As society continued to change, the 70’s and 80’s brought fashion into an international industry and photo shots back into the studio. Consumerism revamped the success of advertising campaigns and television commercials. As fashion photography developed through the 1990’s, classic advertising became popular with the photographers and models both seeking to display natural beauty. In the 2000’s, sexuality and sex appeal became the focus of fashion photography. The presentation of sexuality in fashion photography aimed at glamourizing and leaned toward shocking. And today, it appears as though fashion photography is returning to the allure of the black and white photographs. Celebrities have become key assets to fashion designers and photographers. Modern technology has also changed fashion photography today. Instead of magazines predominant portrayal of fashion designer ads, social media has become the new outlet. This shift from printed page to image may have a significant impact on the fashion photographer who had always been considered proud artists. Julia Margaret Cameron, Helmut Newton, Sally Mann, Guy Bourbin, Nick Knight and Victor Skrebneski are all fashion photographers that took on their own unique styles. Each photographer developed their works through the use of fashion. Each were daring and brave and presented fashion to the world in the times in which they worked.
Julia Margaret Cameron (1815-1879)
Julia Margaret Cameron, a British fashion artist, crafted many portraits of heroes in the arts during her time. She lived from 1815 to 1879. Her models included Longfellow, Tennyson, Carlyle, and Darwin. Photography had been an adventure for her and she aimed to capture the soul and inside greatness of the men she photographed. Her photos portrayed life as she understood it. They were often closely cropped as she made her models into heroes and heroines, cherubs and princes and maidens and masters. She also produced photographs representing allegories of religious and literary work presenting looks from the models that were far away as well as poses that appeared limp. Her career in photography only last eleven years as she did not take up the art until age 48.
The focus of her photographs were soft and she often used the collodion wet plate process in developing. This required a darkroom wherein the photographs could be coated, sensitized, exposed and developed. This process that often resulted in blurring from over exposure, and Cameron’s use of the soft focus did not bring her much popularity during her time.
Two of Cameron’s photographic portraits are portrayed below. In each of these photographs, she used a soft focus and cropped the photo in the area of the face of the subject. As can be seen, Cameron actually captures the personality of the subjects. Also below, are two of Cameron’s allegoric illustrations. She used religion and literary themes in each of these photographs. She allowed the background to be clear as in the actual oil paintings that the art represented. These four works are from the Art Institute of Chicago.
Helmet Newton (Helmut Neustadter) (1920-2004)
Helmut Newton, a German Australian fashion photographer, spent his life taking photos in many major cities throughout the world including Paris, London, Melbourne and Los Angeles. He was born on Halloween in 1920 and in 2004 died in an automobile accident . As a Jew, Newton fled from Germany and soon after changed his name from Neustadter to Newton. He pursued photography most of his life but did not become recognized until his photos were displayed in Vogue magazine. Shortly thereafter, he worked for Vogue where he showcased his fashion photography. Later, his work was often featured in a variety of French and German magazines
Newton’s photographs most often portrayed provocative shots of women. Some of the titles of his works included White Women and Big Nudes. His attention to aesthetics and technical detail made his photographs unique and bold. Having his models pose outside and on the streets gave more uniqueness to his style as well. The photograph below Yves Saint Laurent, Paris, 1991 is an example of the provocative nature of women that he aimed to portray in his pictures.
Sally Mann (1951 - )
Sally Mann, of Lexington, Virginia, has had a long career in photography. After receiving college degrees, Mann initially pursued photographs of her own familys. Although he sometimes shot photographs in color, most were in black and white. With old fashioned techniques, she would use a bellows camera and the wet plate collodion process. Her photos often appeared as though they were taken in the nineteenth century for this reason as the photos looked like they had scratches with focus shifts and leaking of light.
Mann’s most famous work has been that of portraits and landscape. She became famous for her Southern landscape pictures and pictures of her family. Her work entitled Immediate family showed her own children carrying out normal daily activities. Her photographs were candid and touching as the scenes often addressed death and sexuality as well as innocence and complexity. Another famous series included the at Twelve: Portraits of Young Women which were more photographs of her children often in the nude. Mann received much criticism for these works because they were sexual in nature. Mann has had many exhibits presented in Art Galleries across the United States. Two works of Mann’s at the Art Institute of Chicago are pictured below and represent the sexuality and innocence she commonly portrayed in her pictures.
Guy Bourbin (1928 – 1991)
Guy Bourdon, a French fashion photographer, obtained his first photography job in the French Air Force. He later trained under the famous photographer, Man Ray. He soon after displayed exhibits of his photographs in a Paris Gallery under the pen name of Edwin Hallin. His famous fashion photography began when he worked for Vogue in Paris, which he continued to do for over thirty years.
Bourdon’s fashion photography was courageous and bold. He relied on imagery in a sexual nature and presented the female body very erotically. His photographs took on many descriptions such as astonishing, unusual, disturbing, shocking, stimulating, and sensual. He often presented women in a subservient manner but the way in which he used imagery captivated the viewer. He often presented narrative in his photographs which attained him more notoriety and distinction. He worked for many famous fashion designers and magazines before his death including Gianni Versace, Chanel and Harper’s Magazine. Although he often refused to present his work in exhibits, his photographs would appear in a few which brought him fame. Following his death, many publications were made of his works. The photographs of Bourbins pictured below show his presentation of subservience of women as well as his use unusualness.
Nick Knight (1958 - )
Nick Knight, a British fashion photographer, was born in 1958. His photographs often presented controversial issues as he confronted conservative ideals of fashion and beauty. He became famous in the 1990’s for the use of ring-flash photography which was presented in photographs on magazine covers. He worked on many famous ad campaigns including ones for Calvin Klein, Saint Laurent and Christian Dior . He also made photographs of famous people including David Bowie and George Michael. The photograph below is an interesting display of the African American male.
Victor Skrebneski (1929 - )
Victor Skrebneski, an American trained fashion photographer, received his education in Chicago at the School of Art Institute. His photographs have been displayed in famous advertising campaigns including Estee Lauder. He also took photographs of famous people including Oprah Winfrey, Cindy Crawford and Diana Ross. He is also famous for photographs of nude models that were taken in black and white. Skrbneski’s photographs below show how he also used the image of a woman to portray sexuality with his bold styles.
Conclusion
Julia Margaret Cameron, Helmut Newton, Sally Mann, Guy Bourbin, Nick Knight and Victor Skrebneski are all fashion photographers that took on their own unique styles. Yet, a preview of their photographs reveals the commonality often depicted in fashion: sensuality, boldness and truth. Julia Margaret Cameron was not famous
during her time but her photos have withstood the test of time. Helmut Newton’s portrayal of nude women in the outside brought him controversy as well as fame. Sally Mann preferred the old styles that had been used by Cameron, yet presented in her own sensual way. Guy Bourbin was bold and courageous in his displays of fashion while Nick Knight and Victor Skrebneski still today place their prints upon the fashion photography industry.
Photographs
Julia Margaret Cameron
Charles Darwin. 1868
Alfred, Lord Tennyson, 1865
Julia Jackson, 1864.65
Woman, Ceylon, 1875/79
Helmet Newton
Yves Saint Laurent, Paris, 1991
Sally Mann
Works from Art Institute of Chicago
Rodney Plogger at 6:01. 1989
Dog Scratches, 1991
Guy Bourbin
Nick Knight
Victor Skrebneski
References
Britannica, Encyclopedia. Wet-Collodion Process. 2016. <https://www.britannica.com/technology/wet-collodion-process>.
Craven, Jo. Nick Knight. 21 April 2008. <http://www.vogue.co.uk/article/nick-knight-biography>.
Guy Bourdin. 2016. <http://www.famousphotographers.net/guy-bourdin>.
Hall-Duncan, Nancy. Fashion Photography. n.d. <http://fashion-history.lovetoknow.com/fashion-clothing-industry/fashion-photography>.
Haywood, Charlie. A Complete Guide to the History of Fashion Photography. 23 September 2015. <http://www.highsnobiety.com/2015/09/23/fashion-photography-history/>.
Helmut Newton. 2011. <http://famous-photographers.com/helmut-newton/>.
Helmut Newton Biography. n.d. <http://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/helmut-newton-4290.php>.
Parker, Caitlin. A Brief History of Fashion Photography. 7 February 2014. <https://news.artnet.com//a-brief-history-of-fashion-photography-32620>.
Sally Mann. 2011. <http://sallymann.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Extended-Bio.pdf>.
Victor Skrebneski. 2016. <http://skrebneskiphotographs.com/chronology.html>.
Weiss, Marta. Julia Margaret Cameron: Biography. 2016. <http://www.vam.ac.uk/content/exhibitions/julia-margaret-cameron/julia-margaret-cameron-biography/>.
