Covering the New York fashion shows is not the glamorous assignment that many of my "envious" friends envisage. As a matter of fact, most photographers at The Washington Post never volunteer for this job: It involves a week of 12 to14-hour days along with very unpleasant working conditions. What is a typical day like? Here is an example:
Monday February 15
9:15 am--I arrive for the 10 am Carolina Herrera show. Ideally you should get to a show 45 minutes before it is scheduled to start--especially a big one. I say, "scheduled to start," because all shows begin at least 20 minutes late. That you can count on. If you don't get to a show early, you will find the place reserved for photographers already packed. At that point you can only hope that a friend will squeeze you in or you will have to cause a scene by forcing yourself into the congested area. Be prepared to defend your position for 30 minutes before the show starts, knowing that you will be doing this all day and all week long. Later in the week as the schedule gets worse, tempers start to flare.
11:30 am-I arrive at the Yeolhee. Fortunately, both the Herrera and Yeolhee shows are at the Tents in Bryant Park. Having the shows in one place makes it easier for everyone. You don't have to dash all over New York, which is what happened before the idea of tents came about.
1-3pm--I process, edit and transmit film. This is where split second timing and good fortune are crucial. After Yeolhee I dash to Suyama, a one-hour photo next to Bryant Park. They develop my film from Herrera and Yeolhee (7 rolls) in twenty minutes. I also pick up the film from the previous night (DKNY and Cynthia Rowley).
In my hotel room I go over about 20 rolls of film and edit them based on previous discussions with Robin Givhan, the Washington Post Fashion reporter. She describes to me the dresses that she plans to write about. I then scan the selected images into my computer and transmit them to the Post. As a photographer I'm always drawn to the colorful or exotic looking dresses. Robin writes about the subtle changes in style and clothes that Washingtonians are most likely to wear. Because of this discrepancy, I must be careful to shoot all the dresses that come down the runway.
On such a tight deadline, I have to hope that there are no glitches with the phone lines or computer problems at the Post as I send up to 10 images.
3pm--I get to TSE and luckily, with the help of friends, secure a spot to shoot.
4pm--I jump into a cab to the Betsy Johnson's
show, which like TSE, is offsite. Fortunately, the people at
Betsy Johnson know me, since they helped with the promotion of
my book last fall. They warn me that out front is packed and
that I would be better off shooting the show from backstage.
They were right. Later, I talked with photographers out front,
who told me that their positions were so bad that they never
had a clear view of the dresses.
As for me, the my best backstage images this year were from the
Betsy Johnson show, which are always full of energy and outrageous.
Not all designers or their companies can be as pleasant to work
with. At the Donna Karan show later in the week (Friday), her
people kept myself and a group of photographers outside for an
hour before they decided that there was not enough room to let
us in. And we had RSVPed. The rudeness you encounter with some
designers and organizations in the fashion world never ceases
to amaze me.
7pm BCBG
8pm After BCBG I go directly to the 9 PM Marc Jacobs show. You would think that getting there an hour early would yield a reasonable position, but the photographers are so crowded by then that the only place I can squeeze into was high and off to the right. In this position I only have a brief clear shot of the models as they walk down the runway.
Before the show a photographer next to me holds my position, so I can go backstage to document the scene. My name isn't on the list, but I manage to get in anyway. I end up having an Absolute and cranberry drink, which by then I can definitely use. The show turns out to be a nightmare to shoot. From my tight position, I can barely fire off one frame per dress as the models walk down the runway. Worse, the music is the most earsplitting I have ever heard. But Jacob's designs are among the favorites of the critics, including Robin. That is why his show is always so crowded.