Photographer and retoucher for this shoot Olya Petukhoney @petukhoney.jpg presents this fashion editorial exclusively created for Vanity Teen online with the model Michel Baranov @michelbaranov represented by Modus Vivendis @modus_vivendis.
“I wanted to create a series of male portraits with the main emphasis on the personality of the model, his presentation of himself mainly through his gaze,” says the photographer. “I detailed the style, hairstyle, accents, and lighting schemes in the reference set. I wanted with every step in pre-production to enhance the muscularity and charming look of the model: I imagined hard and soft light, shaving foam, a dangerous razor, an unbuttoned shirt in my head. Then the story was completed with red lipstick, a toothpick, a more formal and relaxed look. It is a story about a man’s monologue, his routine, his style, his feelings. Michel matched my idea like no one else.”
For this shoot Petukhoney used Canon 80d with 50mm, putting the model in a cyclorama, using a pulsed light with gridded octabox and blocking panels, and it was shot at Studio Blank Studios in Moscow.
“I look for sensuality where it is natural. I don’t want to create sexy photographs, to take out of the model what is not there. Michel has that sensuality in him, which without additional sexuality will give the emotions that I feel when I look through the viewfinder. This is the true nature of the personality in the frame – the look, the movements, the appearance, all I have to do is enhance it with style and makeup.”
I wanted to put a classic magazine portrait in a 20-year-old guy and see how it worked.
All the clothes that the model is wearing are the property of the stylist and they are vintage. “That’s why I work with Rita, her vintage spirit is compatible with my vision of the frame.”
“Michel knows his worth. I always try to start an easy conversation about creative and professional plans and Michel struck a chord with me. He’s only 20, but he has a crystal clear vision of his future, development in modeling, countries to work in, his priorities are solid and I’m amazed at how much this guy knows what he wants. I feel lucky to have worked with him.”
Model Michel Baranov @michelbaranov represented by Modus Vivendis @modus_vivendis photographed by Olya Petukhoney @petukhoney.jpg styled by Rita Mukhtarova @_ritma makeup and hair by Irina Buldina @irenmakeuper, exclusive for Vanity Teen online!