I know next to nothing about fashion, but I do so enjoy looking at folks who are well dressed – I think they exude an air of self confidence and individuality that is both sexy and charming at the same time. Photographer Scott Schuman’s book “The Sartorialist” is all about people who are well dressed, but these aren’t fashion models or celebrities, but mundane folks like you and me that he snapped on the streets of NY, Stockholm, Paris and more.
I love the anecdote behind the picture shown above – When the photographer saw the hip young man above he thought for sure he was a model who was wearing an expensive Prada or Jil Sander coat. As it turned out he wasn’t a model and the coat he was wearing he got for 5 bucks in a flea market, but nonetheless the young man looked amazingly stylish.
In this respect fashion I think is very much similar to photography – sure, money can get you nice clothes, but just as you don’t need a 5000 dollar coat to look fashionable, you don’t need an expensive, state of the art camera to take great pictures. All it takes is a person with a great eye for composition and he/she will almost always produce stunning images, like Henri Cartier-Bresson, who shot most of his masterpieces with nary but a trusty 35mm film camera on a 50mm lens.
The Sartorialist – Scott Schuman details :
– Dimensions – 7.4 x 5.1 x 1.7 inches
– Softcover with jacket, 512 pages
– Full Color
Buy From Amazon CA | Buy From Amazon UK | Buy From Amazon Japan
Also be sure to check out Scott’s blog at The Sartorialist.
You might also be interested in these items :
Ridley Scott: A Retrospective Book Review
Hair : Fashion And Fantasy Book Review
Peter Lindbergh – Fashion Photography Book Review
Heaven – Leah Dizon Pictorial Book Review
Visiting Photographer Saul Leiter : A Retrospective Exhibition
December 21st, 2010 at 4:37 am
very interesting thanks for share
December 21st, 2010 at 11:37 am
I check his blog as much as yours. His photos are excellent, he captures the his subject so well and there just snap shots.
December 21st, 2010 at 1:48 pm
I love the backgrounds and how he picks ANYONE for his photographs. It’s very unique and he makes everyone look like a model!
December 21st, 2010 at 5:40 pm
i still don’t really know how i feel about fashion photography. i like looking at it, but mostly because i just want to draw it. it turns out that i have quite a bit of fashion related magazines and books, but i have them almost exclusively as drawing references when i need to make clothes or i am having a hard time with a figure or something. that said, i did just bookmark his blog and i am seriously contemplating whether or not to buy this book.
December 22nd, 2010 at 9:45 am
I know people who dress nice with just a few bucks, even some friends that dress clothes from old relatives and find very creative ways to use it. Like in art and other disciplines, finding your style must be rejoice.
Nice turn with this post; very glad to know yo appreciate this!
December 23rd, 2010 at 1:02 pm
thank you for sharing!
I agree to your opinion concerning and feelings you have about the people dressing nicely. and I am also an appreciator of Bresson 🙂
very inspirational post.
December 25th, 2010 at 6:06 pm
Glad you guys liked it. I can’t stop checking our his blog now, there’s just so much going on there. :]
December 28th, 2010 at 6:32 am
I check his blog for references for sketches and concepts
anyway merry christmas yonghow!
December 28th, 2010 at 7:10 am
Just wanted to let you know there’s a typo in your title and article, you forgot an ‘r’, it’s Sartorialist. 🙂
Didn’t know he had a book out, I like his blog, although sometimes his picks are a bit over the top for my taste.
December 29th, 2010 at 1:39 pm
neshoi – Merry Christmas and a happy new year ! :]
Renze – I’m so sorry, thanks for letting me know ! Happy new year !
May 6th, 2012 at 7:14 am
I am sorry to disappoint you, but…
“these ARE fashion models or celebrities, NOT mundane folks like you and me.”