In terms of fashion photography, there are four different areas: catalogue fashion, high fashion, street fashion, and editorial fashion. The purpose of catalogue fashion is purely to sell clothing. High fashion appears in magazines and helps sell the magazine as much as the clothing. Street fashion differs from high fashion in that it is the opposite. Rather than relate to mainstream fashion it is the urban alternative. Examples of it include grunge or hip-hop style. Editorial fashion will appear in newspapers and magazines and will accompany a story on fashion. So, that explains the many different situations in which fashions are photographed. This article will look at some of the most famous designs ever photographed, whether appearing as moving images in movies initially or as still images in print.
Marilyn Monroe’s ‘Flying Dress’
The dress that Marilyn Monroe wore in the 1955 movie The Seven Year Itch was iconic. This image has since reached iconic status the world over and inspired many a Hollywood star or fashion designer to achieve great things. The white dress is a simple design in terms of creating an elegant and chic look for a lady. What made the dress famous is that its skirt was seen to lift as Marilyn famously stood over an air vent during the movie. It could have been any dress but the combination of Marilyn and the ingenuity of the scene made it famous. So, it can sometimes be more about who wears a dress and how it is portrayed that makes someone want to buy it. Also, how it is photographed or filmed.
Julia Roberts’s ‘Red Dress and White Gloves’
In the 1990 movie, Pretty Woman Julia Roberts’s character Vivan Ward wears a stylish red evening gown along with long white gloves. It is not clear whether the red dress or the white gloves made the whole look one every female wanted to replicate in the 90s but it certainly gave the ladies something else to look at other than Richard Gere, who played Edward Lewis in the movie. As with the first image, there will have been lots of publicity shots taken that have appeared in countless newspapers and magazines around the world, as well as the fact that it was seen in the movie, and continues to be seen with every repeat. The only thing is that fashions change.
Mary Quant’s Mini-Skirt
It was Mary Quant who is credited with inventing the mini-skirt. She was an opinionated, innovative, and commercial mind that contributed to the creation of the “Swinging Sixties” scene. Rising hemlines could be seen as a kind of liberation among young women.
In her trademark stretch dresses of the mini variety, Mary would use ”synthetics” as well as “acetate-backed wool jersey”. Mary was also famed for her bold looks featuring solid blocks of bright colours. Her PVC products were waterproof, so both fashionable and functional.
In terms of what length constitutes a mini-skirt, most will sit mid-thigh, and so well above the knee. They vary in length from between 10 and 20 inches long. They create the effect of slim legs looking longer.
The plaid mini skater and preppy are still very much in vogue.
The shorter length is practical in that it allows for more freedom of movement. It is for this reason that it is seen in nightclubs, where there is dancing into the early hours.
A new survey has suggested that women should stop wearing mini-skirts by the age of 35 but that is for the wearer to decide.
In summary, some iconic images in fashion exist that were consistently photographed by fashion photographers in the name of selling their photographs, the magazines, and the clothes. Historically, any item of clothing appearing in a movie or glossy magazine being worn by someone famous would immediately be desired by members of the public, who would want to know where they could purchase it. These days, anything worn by a young member of the royal family is considered stylish.
