This month marks 50 years in which David Bailey has worked with Vogue.
He is a real rags to riches story, and went from living in East End London as a child where he was born in 1938 during World War 2 where he says during the winter his family "would take bread-and-jam sandwiches and go to the cinema every night because in those days it was cheaper to go to the cinema than to put on the gas fire. I'll bet I saw seven or eight movies a week" to becoming the photographer whose images defined the Swinging Sixties.
He is a real rags to riches story, and went from living in East End London as a child where he was born in 1938 during World War 2 where he says during the winter his family "would take bread-and-jam sandwiches and go to the cinema every night because in those days it was cheaper to go to the cinema than to put on the gas fire. I'll bet I saw seven or eight movies a week" to becoming the photographer whose images defined the Swinging Sixties.
He left school, enrolled in the RAF and then determined to become a photographer, bought a Canon- he said "I was smitten, and gradually the prospect of becoming a photographer became less remote, perhaps even attainable"- and worked his way up from a photographers assistant, to freelance work and then finally owning his own studio.
His images, my favourites the fashion photographs he made whilst working at Vogue, just ooze simplicity and his story shows how talent and ambition can pay off.
These photos speak for themselves but the man behind them is equally inspirational.
His images, my favourites the fashion photographs he made whilst working at Vogue, just ooze simplicity and his story shows how talent and ambition can pay off.
These photos speak for themselves but the man behind them is equally inspirational.
Photos 1+2- the truly beautiful Jean Shrimpton
3+4- Catherine Deneuve and who he later married. Lucky man, as shown in the wonderful 4th photo.
Bailey's word of advice to budding photographers:
"The first and most obvious thing to do is to ooze awareness - and really look and act as if you know what you are doing. That means knowing your camera backwards: never fiddle with it during a shooting session - load it, focus it, fire it, but never fiddle. And get your background sorted out well before its time to press the shutter. Choose where you're going to do your portrait shooting, and place your subject there without dithering."
Beth Ruby xoxo
ps) I would love to stay and reply to all your lovely comments on my previous posts but I have to go and revise for my English Language paper tomorrow. But I promise as soon as this hellish week is over (I have 10 exams left now...) I will get back to you all individually. Or follow me on twitter here @bethrubytweets and say hello, now I have a Blackberry I am addicted haha :)
Hope you are all having a good start to the week and good luck to everyone else who is doing exams!
Hope you are all having a good start to the week and good luck to everyone else who is doing exams!