Modern fashion photography was born when three brothers, Parisian postcard photographers, shifted their lenses to the upper echelon of French society in the early twentieth century. As impromptu portraits of beautiful women in inimitable finery at racecourses, resorts, and cafes began to appear in magazines, courant designers such as Chanel, Hermes, and Madeleine Vionnet rushed to send their models to posh watering holes to be photographed with the beau monde.
so says an excerpt from Elegance: The Seeberger Brothers and the birth of fashion photography. i was on my usual google image searching misadventures when i came upon the first pic in this post, and i instantly started scouring around for more. i vaguely remember the sartorialist talking about this book once upon a time and the pic of that wonderful lady in the menswear perched on top of that fence has been saved to my computer for years… this book seems like a must have. how’s that sofia coppola doppelganger in the second pic? can’t believe this was the thirties.
matching your outfit to your dog? magic.
Style is truly ageless and these pictures prove it.
Those are amazing. The pleated bell bottoms is my fav. Loved that!
I love vintage photos like these!
I love the spots + spot! And the pet cheetah, um wut.
I am totally in love with these photos! Thx for sharing.
I love these photos. What a great coffee table book this would be. The timelessness of style is amazing. Hopefully my kids will think I looked super stylish when they look back on photographs.
My head just exploded!!!!!!!
Thanks for linking to my blog! I took the pictures when attending an exhibition of the Seeberger brothers in Deauville on the beach – perfect setting for such elegant images. Glad you like them!
thank you for taking & sharing them! finding these was the highlight of my day :)
those clothes are amazing. especially in the first photo and 3-5. i’ve never seen pants like that in the third photo!
Sweet old fashioned photos. Love this!
She totally is Sofia’s doppelganger. All amazing!
These are insanely perfect! Fantastic post. Love it.
ps… just bought the book. Thanks for the link!
Ahh, I remember the third photo from a Sartorialist post – so lovely.
The word that comes to mind is esprit (as in, the quality of the photos, not the label)! Doesn’t it just make you want to exclaim: ‘Such esprit!’ The polka dotted dame in particular – she of such esprit!
x
Josephine Baker is the woman with the cheetah.
My goodness, I didn’t know about them. Thank you.
here cheetah cheetah, goo’ boy!
yu always find the greatest stuff!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
These photos are so fabulous. All the clothes are amazing, but that last picture is priceless. :)