It was such a thrill to shoot Romeo Gigli recently for British GQ Style.
For those too young to remember, it's hard to explain the incredible, exotic, romantic world he created on the runway and in his shops during his height in the late 80's and early 90's.
A huge amount of my appreciation of color combinations, proportion, genre mixing and pattern play came from studying any photos I could find of his runway shows (remember, this was pre-Style.com). In a fashion world of huge shouldered alpha women his women were quiet, artistic, gentle and seemed to have a strength of wisdom.
For a kid growing up in Indiana, his world seemed unimaginable to me. Actually it seemed more like another planet.
When people ask me if street style blogs will replace fashion magazines and big runway shows I always say "of course not." Designers like Romeo Gigli or photographers like Paolo Roversi create dream worlds that challenge us to make our real lives even more beautiful.
For me, the reality-based pictures I take are a way to supplement the fantasy world of my magazines and photo books.
Somewhere in-between fantasy and reality can be a pretty great place to live.
