Through our relationship with the team at Canon, Gather.ly curated a group of eager young photography students from around the UK, teamed them up with some of Gather.ly's own Photography Collective and gave them an unconventional brief.
The brief was to Ignore the Catwalk, interpret the Movement, Details and Themes. It didn't stop there though, the images were then forwarded onto members of our Illustration Collective to see how they would interpret the same theme.
Before the show's in the lavish One Aldwych lobby, Fashion & Beauty Photographer Tina Eisen shared her own personal experiences with the team of photographers, offered a pinch of encouragement and sent them on their way (all the way across the road).
Inspired, everyone descended upon Somerset House and frantically vied for prime position in the press pit; where just days before some of the industries elite had captured the Official London Fashion Week catwalk shows. Assistance and advice was readily available from the Canon team as well as Gather.ly Collective.
We then asked them to challenge convention - we could’ve suggested they take advice onboard and just shoot an industry standard catwalk. Sure, that might be interesting for them, but not necessarily for you. We’ve all seen photos of models walking down catwalks, am I right?
This is where our brief came into play…
Capture the moment. Forget the catwalk. Interpret the movement, detail & themes. Shoot with collaboration in-mind
The team captured two catwalk shows; a Trend Show styled by the Outnet.com and a Fahri by Nicole Fahri Designer show offering subtle contrast and the opportunity to explore the brief without restriction.
Not having the illustrators at the show might seem strange but the idea of them not knowing what to expect to work with is the most exciting part. After the Students and our Collective Photographers had chosen their favourite images from the days shoot they were sent over. The conversation went something along the lines of…
If we send you some of our photos from London Fashion Weekend, can you do your thing with them?
Okay, we may have said a bit more than that; regardless, the results speak for themselves…
This project shows collaboration at its finest. Working alongside Gather.ly's Photography Collective members Phoebe Cheong & Holly Smith, some of the U.K's best student photographers got their work turned upside down by our Illustrators. Some images got a complete re-visualisation, some where used as a canvas and worked directly on top of. Having a group of Illustrators on board with this project with such diverse styles has resulted into a very unique collection of work. No butting heads with your client was involved in this experience, just a group of insanely talented people working together to create something special with no boundaries.
Oh and if that wasn't enough check out this lovely little video put together by Jose Otero from Verso Films from the event below.
