Meet Cédric, New Look’s very own camera magician. Discover his greatest inspirations, the crucial features he chooses to showcase in frames and lens shots and how he brings to life New Look’s vision while still keeping his signature style. Read on to get a behind-the-scenes look at the world of eyewear photography.
What do you do and what is your role at New Look?
Cédric: I’ve been working with New Look for about 10 years now. I first worked in-store selling glasses, then managing a store, and now I produce various forms of content for marketing purposes, both photos and videos for our various platforms.
You have a specific signature in the work that you do as part of the New Look team, how would you describe it?
Cédric: My photos are 90% representative of the New Look brand and 10% of my personal style. I think this 10% encompasses what I like in conceptual photography where the only goal is to illustrate a concept, usually by creating interesting and unique effects in post-production. I enjoy when I get to make glasses appear as though they’re flying for example or when I can play with shadows to create abstract backgrounds.
How do you come up with a photo/video idea?
Cédric: Our whole creative team is involved in conceiving ideas. Sometimes we’re inspired by things we saw in ads, movies, on Pinterest, or other media platforms. With everyone’s participation we often end up with new and original ideas. Personally, I come up with compelling photo ideas when watching mountain bike videos.
What is one thing a photo/video should always have?
Cédric: Meaning. It can be really simple, for example if you shoot a frame and you want to show the quality of the acetate, that's the purpose of that shot. Then everything you do with artistic direction and lighting should be oriented towards showing off the acetate quality. You could highlight the acetate quality under nice soft lighting which will bounce off the plastic and create a subtle glare, for example. If you’re unclear about the meaning you’re trying to get across then the shot will be flat and boring.
What does a good day on set or in your studio look like to you?
Cédric: A good coffee, no emails, lots of shooting, lots of nice pictures, not a lot of touch-ups to be done in post-production and a good beer at the end of the day.
How do you adapt to the product you’re shooting?
Cédric: In product photography, with or without a model, the product is the star and we want to bring out its best features. Photography is all about catching a moment, so sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t. The most important thing to know is when it doesn't work so you can make changes.
What makes glasses unique or challenging to shoot?
Cédric: Glasses are challenging to shoot because they usually have a lot of glares and curves that reflect light easily. Reflecting the quality of New Look lenses is also challenging. New Look is the expert at making high quality lenses, so we want that to come across! We're also experts in anti-glare features, so we want to see the lenses without ‘’seeing’’ them... that's a challenge.
What frames are your favourite to shoot?
Cédric: The big black plastic frames, they’re the most challenging to shoot but also the best-looking ones in my opinion. They remind me of car photography. They’re challenging to shoot because they require a controlled glare all over without reflection to keep a good contrast, allowing for them to stay black in the picture and not appear grey.
How or when do you know when you’ve got the shot?
Cédric: When I like the lighting, the composition and the shadows. A key ingredient in photography is lighting which makes all the difference. Most importantly, I know it’s time to move on when I have to shoot the next product! If I listened to myself, it would never end because I’m a perfectionist. There are abstract photographers who photograph the same object hundreds of times for years, that’s remarkable and it shows it’s not about what you photograph but about how you portray an object. The best example of that art form is Jean Vigneau’s photography (who’s also a New Look colleague!), go take a look!
Now that you’ve gotten a sneak peek into what it takes to capture the perfect eyewear shot, browse our new collection or follow us on Instagram or Facebook to see the final results.
