Boys of Summer by Nicole Wilson

The award-winning and internationally published fashion and portrait photographer and creative director currently based in New York City Nicole Wilson @NicoleWilsonPhoto presents Boys of Summer, a very beautiful fashion editorial exclusively created for Vanity Teen online inspired by urban youth, city kids and the fashion trends that have emerged from that culture with the models Alpha Cisse @Only_alpha and Logan Cloud @PristineLogan.

“The idea I had in mind when creating this shoot was to capture the essence of what it is to be a true City Kid,” says the photographer. “I grew up in New York City’s Hell’s Kitchen in the ’80s and 90’s when the City was still the wild west. I had close friends of every different color and cultural background, it was diverse and inclusive. Those kids I knew then are etched into my mind and heart forever. There was a great deal of freedom involved in my upbringing as a City Kid. We were the ultimate latch-key city kids. We would play all day in the city playgrounds until they turned off the lights, which, if memory serves me, was at 10 pm. In the summer, as kids, we would go to the public or private pools or even get occasional camp trips to the local beaches to cool off. City Kids make do, they have both a savviness and a worldliness to them due to growing up in a cultural and economic melting pot, but they also possess a great sense of fun to enjoy those summer months. That was my inspiration but I also revisited films that evoked for me the essence of being a City Kid. So, of course, Larry Clark’s film “Kids” came to mind with all its self-actualized characters.  I spent some time re-watching that film as well as plucking images from it that I found compelling for Mood Board inspiration.”

This shoot was set along the banks of the Hudson River along with the underpass of the FDR, not far from Hell’s Kitchen, and the equipment used was a Canon R5, RF 28-70mm, and RF 15-35 lenses.

“As an artist and a photographer, my style is constantly evolving as stagnation is a kind of death to the creative process, but the essence of my style remains the same throughout my body of work and I’ve been told it’s recognizable. I love to capture both urban as well as natural backdrops (whenever I can find some), rich moody tones, and the beauty of those sensitive, unguarded moments when you catch a glimpse of someone’s soul. That’s why I like to shoot with a relatively stripped-down team because it’s easier to get the models or subjects to reveal themselves to me and my lens.”

“I wanted people to feel what it was to be young, to be of the City, and to feel those hot summer days in New York City which are thick as pea soup.”

The models are wearing a combination of brands, with pieces from ZARA men and Ralph Lauren.

“Both Logan and Alpha are two wonderful young models who have bright futures and careers ahead of them. They are both charismatic in their own way. Logan is extremely personable and open to playing in front of the lens, and Alpha has this low-key mystique and the camera loves him. They were easy to work with and I’m so glad I selected them for the shoot. The day we were shooting was especially hot so both of the guys were really great sports about the weather and they got along so well, making the shoot a very fluid one. I’m so happy to have worked with them both, they killed the shoot and brought my vision to life!”

Model Alpha Cisse @Only_alpha represented by Marilyn Agency NY @MarilynAgencyNY, and 1st Look Models @1stlookmodels and Logan Cloud @PristineLogan represented by Marilyn Agency NY @MarilynAgencyNY, and DMM Management @dmm.management, photography and creative direction by Nicole Wilson @NicoleWilsonPhoto, exclusive for Vanity Teen online!