Task 3
- 2. MARIO TESTINO Mario Testino (was born on October 30, 1954) and he is a Peruvian fashion photographer. His work has been featured in magazines such as Vogue and Vanity Fair making his work well known and this also helped him to gain more high profile clients. His career highpoint came when he was chosen by Diana, Princess of Wales, for her Vanity Fair photoshoot in 1997, this has resulted in Testino to be regularly employed by the British royal family ever since. His contribution to fashion photography really shows as he has taken pictures of many celebrities and worked his way up in the fashion world. He came to London in 1976, took a flat in an abandoned hospital near Trafalgar Square, and began selling portfolios (for £25, including hair and make-up) to wannabe models. He worked his way up from there and now at the top of his profession, Testino has shot Madonna for Versace as well as photographing the late Diana, Princess of Wales for her famous Vanity Fair cover in 1997. He has built up an amazing reputation for himself and massively increased his popularity over the years with designers and fashion editors, this is largely due to his professionalism, good nature and his ability to take beautiful pictures that seem to sell clothes with ease.
- 3. This image was taken in March 2013 for British Vogue, this has clearly been taken for advertising purposes and has been done to show the clothes as it has been featured in a fashion magazines and needs to be taken in a way that will make the readers purchase the clothes. The subject of the photograph is the model as they are trying to advertise the clothing she is wearing, there isn’t really anything else that could be spotted and seen as a main focus. This is due to the backdrop being in a studio instead of outside where things could be seen as a distraction from the image. The other focus of this image is the items around the model which purposely haven't been made very clear for the viewer as they could distract from the clothes. This has a really ‘fun’ theme as they have used really bright colours , along with the use of vibrant yellow on the backdrop which adds to the vivid use of colour and draws attention to the image. We can also see that this image is definitely posed as they have taken it in order to advertise the clothes, we can see this from the fact that it is being featured in a fashion magazine. We can also see that this is posed as the model is in a posed position and is directly facing the camera. The whole image is in focus which makes it a lot sharper and eye catching as if it all wasn’t in focus the colour use may not look as bright and eye catching. The only use of shadow and darkening in this image is the models shadow which doesn’t cover a large portion of the image. However the corners of the image are also slightly darkened, but this is definitely a less obvious use of shading and can’t be seen immediately. The lighting is fairly harsh as they have used artificial lighting in a studio and really focused in on the model making her appear very bright and the highlight of the image. There are also quite a lot of shapes that we can see on this image from what the model is wearing and the objects around her, they aren’t a key thing in the image but when you really analyse the image they can be found. Some of these shapes along with the clothing and use of colour gives the image a ‘retro’ look which could be the theme they were looking to get across to their readers with this particular outfit or article. This is also quite a busy image as there is a lot to look at as you can see the model, the clothing, accessories and the objects around her. Fashion images tend to have a lot going on in them as it means the reader will by the magazines purely for the photography as they are usually very intricate and tell a story. This photograph has been taken at a very direct angle which really shows the posed nature of the image and the shoot, it allows the readers of Vogue to see the clothing in more detail as are many other fashion photographs as they need to advertise and show the clothes.
- 4. This image was taken in March 2012 for US Vogue, this has been taken for advertising purposes and also for an article as they have used a famous model/actress that people can relate to and many people will also want to wear what the model is wearing as they look up to her. The main focus and subject of this image is the female model, they have highlighted this and ensured that this is clear as they have dressed her in bright colour which really contrasts with the dark suits that the men around her are wearing. The only other people wearing colour are in the background and are clearly not as bright or eye catching as the main model in the centre of the image. This image could possibly be trying to represent female empowerment as the only people in the image that are wearing colour are the women. This image shows the natural environment that you may find in some cities in America as it appears there is a show in the background with the women and the photographer Mario Testino has almost tried to ensure that the model looks as though she is just watching and walking through the street whilst still having her in a posed position. This photograph could possibly be seen as expressive as it could be showing empowerment as it’s a strong woman in the city and she is showing she is bold and confident by the clothes she is wearing. There are some geometric shapes involved with this image, however the shapes are largely used in the clothing the model is wearing. The model is wearing stripes on her skirt and there is also the lines on the road she is walking on. The use of line in the image is shown in the environment the model is in as there are road markings on the ground, there is also a use of line on the models clothing, this highlights and links these areas and makes the model look very bold and shows confidence. This is a definite posed image as the model has been put in a specific position, we can also see that the image is posed as there are a number of other people that have been placed around her acting as ‘bodyguards’. The camera is fairly focused on the whole photograph, however the people in the background do slightly fade out and definitely aren't as sharp or defined as the model in the centre. Even though the image has been taken outside the lighting is quite harsh and bright as it really highlights the model and draws attention to her and the clothing she is wearing. This photo is quite busy and crowded as they have involved a lot of people in the photograph, even though the image is fairly crowded the model is still the main focus as they have ensured that the readers won’t be too distracted by anything else going on in the image. The angle for this image is very head on meaning the model is the first thing you see, this also shows it’s really posed as they purposely did this to show the clothes.
- 5. This image was taken of the well known model Catherine McNeil, this has been taken for advertising purposes as it will have most likely been used in a fashion magazine or website. The main subject for this image is the model as she is the only person there leaving the viewer with nothing else to look at. This makes the model the main focus which also draws a lot more attention to the clothes which is the purpose of the image. This looks almost like a portrait as it has been taken of just her top half and really focused and zoomed in on her, this shows the photographer Mario Testino has tried lots of varied methods to draw attention to the clothes. This image is not at all observational as it has been posed in a way that is very obvious to anyone that sees it. They have made it obvious by having the model in a posed position and using lighting to control the focus for the image. All of this photograph appear to be focused completely as this is the only thing to focus on, the colour ensures that the clothes are seen as the main focus. This has definitely been taken in a studio which gives it more of a posed look and they have used extremely harsh and bright lighting that washes out the models colouring completely. The harsh lighting has resulted in the contouring being less defined as the outline of her arm and the side of her face become hard to see as the lighting has made them almost blend in to the backdrop. We can see that Mario Testino has wanted the image to be very bland and washed out looking, therefore he has used lots of white make up on the model and also added a white background and harsh bright lighting, this has helped the colour of the clothes to make more of a statement and really shows the brightness of the clothing which also highlights them a lot more than if the rest of the image was in lots of colour also. This image can be seen as both busy and passive in my opinion as the background and the lighting make the image appear fairly passive as it is hard to see the models body outline in some areas. However the colour, shapes and patterns on the models clothes brighten the image and this is the only area that could be seen as ‘busy’. The angle of this image is head on and straight at the model, this is very common in fashion photography as they need to ensure that the clothes are very visible, different unusual angles can stop this from happening. The only different angling of this image is how the model is stood as this adds contrast and makes it slightly more interesting. The only background for this image is the washed out brightly lit backdrop which adds to the effect of the colour popping from the clothing. There is a lot of contrast with the colour use on this image as they have used a lot of white and the only colour is the clothing which shows what they are trying to advertise.
- 6. BERT STERN Bert stern was born on October 3, 1929 in Brooklyn, New York and died on June 26 th 2013. He started off with an internship at Look magazine, then on to Mayfair as an art director and finally to the army where he started taking photographs in Japan. His first professional assignment was a campaign for Smirnoff Vodka, this began his lifelong and extremely successful career in fashion photography as from there every major magazine and clothing line wanted him as their photographer. Stern has worked for many high profile clients, some of which include; Marilyn Monroe, Audrey Hepburn, Twiggy and Bridget Bardot. Arguably his best and most famous work was working for Vogue magazine and taking a collection of 2,500 photographs of Marilyn Monroe named ‘the last sitting’ over three days, six weeks before her death.
- 7. This image is clearly a posed image that has probably been taken as a way to advertise the clothes that she is wearing, this may have been used in magazines to advertise a specific brand or label. As they have used a well known model this will attract many more customers and will boost sales in the clothes, this is how many photographers take fashion images as it shows the clothes in an interesting way that can get people to buy the clothes. The main subject of this image is the model and the clothes that she is advertising, this can be seen as they have only put the model and one other object in the shot which ensures that nothing else can be seen as a distraction. The only other thing in the image is a TV screen and this shows another image of the model drawing more attention back to her. This is a very clever method that the photographer has thought out and done on purpose in order to achieve the most attention on the model and the clothing. As this has been shot in a studio there aren’t any landscaping around the model and there also aren’t any geometric shapes, the only shapes that are visible are the patterns and shapes on the dress again circling back to the attention on the model. This image is different and more interesting to others as they have included a portrait in this fashion photograph as they have included the image of the model in the TV screen along with the actual model. We can see that this is a posed shot as they have put the model in a posed position and also this has been shot purposely for advertising purposes. You could also see that this is a staged and posed shot as they have used artificial lighting to highlight and shadow certain parts, this wouldn’t be done in an observational image as they are mostly spontaneous shoots. All of this image is in focus, this could be due to them not using anything else but the model and the TV screen as you wouldn’t really be able to see if the backdrop was in or out of focus. They also haven’t adjusted the focus as it is such a small space that they have covered in the image and wouldn’t need to change focus. The image is very lightened and we can see this even though they have used a monochrome effect over the image, the only areas I can see that have darkened slightly are the top right hand corner which highlights the model more as we see the contrast between light. The monochrome effect has been used on all of Bert Stern’s images, this could be due to the time the images were taken as they are very old however they do give the images a very classic and elegant look as bright and bold colours may make it look too overpowering and could distract. This image is fairly passive as there isn’t much to look at as there is just the model and the TV screen, we can also see that this is a passive shoot as the backdrop is very neutral and completely plain. The angle of this image is head on which shows the fashion side of the image very well.
- 8. This image has clearly been taken for similar reasons as the others as it has most likely been taken for advertising purposes for the fashion industry. This may have been used for magazines as this is a good way to show the fashion and advertise the labels and brands. The main subject and focus of this image is the model and the fashion items she is wearing, this is clear by the way she is stood as she is very open and head on in the camera so the clothes are clear to see. The image is all in focus as there isn’t much else in the photograph, this means that putting the other things in the image out of focus may not give the right effect as the image is fairly small and there wouldn’t be much to put out of focus. This is a definite posed and staged shot as it has been done for advertising of the fashion she is wearing, this is clear as she is in a posed position and is allowing the viewers to see the clothes in detail. This hasn’t been taken in a studio meaning that it is harder to get a really bright lighting effect on the image as they have to use the natural background, however some lighting has been used as the model has been highlighted with the light making her stand out. I am actually not certain if they have used natural light as she appears to be looking out of a window and this light is shining on her, this is very possible as the light is patchy which makes it look like the image has been taken with natural light. There are quite a few shadows in the image as they have possibly used natural light which shows all the lighting difference in the room and also highlights the darker areas and the shadows. The shadows in this image really highlight the main focus of the model as she has the most light just focused on her. This along with the others is a monochrome effect which gives a really sophisticated look to the image, it also helps to highlight the different lighting that is on the photograph. This is also a passive image as there isn’t much else going on in the image apart from the chair and the window in the background. The image not being busy enables the viewers to see the main focus of the image instead of everything in the background. The only contouring and shape in the image apart from the model is the chair, the window and the tiled floor. This lack of different shape makes the image a lot more passive and means that the image is simple and not too confusing whilst still being interesting in it’s own way.
- 9. This image is a very obviously posed and staged image as they have most likely taken the image to advertise the clothing the model is wearing. It has probably been taken for a magazine as it is for advertising of a certain brand/label. We can see that the main subject and focus of the image is the model and the fashion, this has been made very clear as she is very close to the camera and is the only thing in the image. This shows the passive look of the image as the model is the only thing in the image, this is clearly the most passive of the three as the others include at least one other thing. Another thing that could signify that the image has been posed or staged is that they have used some sort of lighting, this is clear as they have highlighted the outfit as the main focus and shaded some of the face. This image is very simple in the sense that they haven’t included lots of shape or other objects, this makes the image easy to see and not too confusing or abstract as many other fashion photographs can be. This could possibly be seen as a type of portraiture as they haven’t done a full body shot and have focused heavily on her upper half and face. This image is focused entirely on the whole image, this has been done as they want to clearly show the clothing of the image. There has been artificial lighting on this image as they have purposely highlighted the clothing and shaded some of the face and also the upper half of the backdrop. This shading is a way of the photographer showing what areas they want the viewers to focus on. This has most likely been taken in a studio as they have used a backdrop and not used a natural more observational look for the background. They have used a monochrome effect on this image and I feel that this helps the lighting to show through and also shows where the shading is. This lighting also shows the darkness of the outfit as it is black in comparison to the background.