Fashion Photography

Richard Avedon

B. 6-15-23---D. 10-1-04

Born and raised in New York City Avedon began taking pictures as a teen, using a Kodak Box Brownie camera, to help him retreat from reality. His sister and muse, Louise, suffered from schizophrenia. It has been said that her mental decline aided in developing Avedon's keen eye for the tragic beauty he is so well known for. His fashion photography career began with pictures in Jr. Bazaar followed by a long term partnership with Harper's Bazaar magazine. He soon opened his own studio and began selling photos to Vogue and Life magazines as well. He spent several years as Chief Photographer for Bazaar leaving in 1962 to work for Vogue and stayed there until Anna Wintour took over as Editor and Chief. Following his death in 2004 the New York Times wrote, "his fashion and portrait photographs helped define America's image of style, beauty and culture for the last half-century."

  

 

 

Steven Meisel

Steven Meisel is well known as one of the most successful photographers in the fashion industry, shooting regularly for W magazine American Vogue and Vogue Italia.  Anna Wintour formed a mentor-like relationship with Meisel which led to her hiring him shoot every single Vogue cover for almost 2 decades.  No other photographer has ever has such a long term commitment from any other fashion magazine.  Because of his place at Vogue he was able to further the careers of several Supermodels that we are quite familiar with, like Linda Evangelista, Christy Turlington, Kristen McMenamy, Amber Valletta, Lara Stone, Coco Rocha and Karen Elson along with many more.  Meisel is credited with being the one who convinced British model Karen Elson to shave her eyebrows off, earning her the nickname Le Freak.  He helped propel these women to fame by featuring them in in his fashion shoots for Vogue.  He has used his fame to help many others find their own fame including hair stylists, make-up artists and he even helped kickstart the career of fashion designer Ross Van Der Heide by showing Ross' art to his close friend, designer Anna Sui.  Meisels most famous work to date are probably the photos shot for Madonna's 1992 book titled, SEX.  Anna Wintour made a bold and brilliant move by giving Meisel such a secured position in an industry that is constantly changing and he has never let her down.

Mario Testino

 

By anyone's standards, Mario Testino is the most influential living portrait photographer in the world, having enjoyed over 30 years in the business. His work has been featured around the world in magazines such as Vogue, Vanity Fair and Bazaar to name a few. Testino has been commissioned to photograph portraits of many famous people including Hollywood celebrities, Presidents around the world and royalty also. He is most well known for a series of provocative photos shot of Princess Diana soon before her tragic death. He has also taken portraits of Prince Charles, Prince Harry, Queen Rania of Jordan as well as taking the official engagement photo of Prince William and Kate Middleton. He has published 12 books of his work and was finally granted his first American museum showing in October of 2012 at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts. Having hailed from Lima, Peru, Testino gives back to his community by funding education for the arts in public Peruvian schools.

 

Ellen von Unwerth

 

Ellen von Unwerth was born in Frankfort, Germany in 1954. She started her fashion career as a model and continued on that path for 10 years before realizing her talent on the other side of the camera. She started doing editorials and ad photos where she became known for her specialty in erotic femininity and achieved notoriety after shooting photos of Claudia Schiffer. Ellen's photos are frequently published in Vogue, Vanity Fair, Interview, The Face, Arena and Twill. She has also published several books of photos, done the album art for many famous musicians, directed short films for designers, and has also directed a number of music videos as well as commercials for Revlon, Clinique and Equinox.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tim Walker

Tim Walker’s photographs have entranced the readers of Vogue, month by month, for over a decade. Extravagant staging and romantic motifs characterize his unmistakable style. After concentrating on photographic stills for 15 years, Walker is now also making moving film.
On graduation in 1994, Walker worked as a freelance photographic assistant in London before moving to New York City as a full time assistant to Richard Avedon. On returning to England he initially concentrated on portrait and documentary work for UK newspapers. At the age of 25 he shot his first fashion story for Vogue, and has continued to work to much acclaim ever since.
The Victoria & Albert Museum and the National Portrait Gallery in London include Walker’s photographs in their permanent collections.
Walker staged his first major exhibition at the Design Museum, London in 2008. This coincided with the publication of his book ‘PICTURES’ published by teNeues.
In 2008 Walker received the ‘Isabella Blow Award for Fashion Creator’ from The British Fashion Council. In 2009 he received an Infinity Award from The International Center of Photography in New York. In 2012 Walker received an Honorary Fellowship from the Royal Photographic Society.
In 2010 Walker’s first short film, ‘The Lost Explorer’ was premiered at Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland and went on to win best short film at the Chicago United Film Festival, 2011.
2012 saw the opening of Walker’s ‘STORY TELLER’ photographic exhibition at Somerset House. The exhibition coincides with the publication of his new book, ‘STORY TELLER’ published by Thames and Hudson.

 

Fox Harvard 

A native Floridian having been born in Tampa, raised in Sarosota and currently residing in the Tampa Bay Area, Fox Harvard is a name you should become familiar with. He studied Fine Art and Painting at the University of Southern Florida and his artistic background transfers beautifully into his fashion photographs. He has had multiple exhibitions overseas and will soon be releasing his first book, Editions du LIC. Harvard has a gift for shooting emotionally dramatic pictures, and is considered uninhibited by those who work with him. He has found the key to creating a visually interesting photo while never taking away from the elegance and beauty of the clothes themselves as displayed by his spreads in Vogue, Vanity Fair and Creem magazines among others. I predict that Fox Harvard will be a force to be reckoned with in the very near future. 

Alex Lim

Alex Lim is a Seattle based, 29 year old photographer who is sure to find success if he continues in this "fashion". The ethereal quality of his style is almost dreamlike and although this form of photography is highly associated with post production, Lim makes it all seem naturally possible. It has been said that he believes that passion is the lifeblood of success, and the proof is in his work.