1943I've been reading the autobiography of Carmel Snow (1887-1961) who created the Harper's Bazaar that rivaled Vogue from the 30s through the 50s. Snow is describing an early fashion shoot:
"It was to feature saddle leather, and it was one of the first color photographs taken by Louise Dahl-Wolfe, the woman who was to revolutionize Bazaaar as Mankacsi and Brodovitch revolutionized it, because she developed color photography to its ultimate. "
This made me curious about Louise Dahl-Wolfe (1895-1989) so I looked up some examples of what she contributed to Harper's Bazaar.
1948
1949
1950
1951
1952To me, the color seems more quaint than charming. How much better her work in black and white holds up (as below).
There is a good black & white mode on the work-in-progress birthday camera, and one of the many things I intend to try and learn more about is working in black & white, out of sheer awestruck admiration for effects like the light through those tiers of tulle.
In closing, the photographer herself (photographed by Abe Frajndlich in Princeton, New Jersey in 1988 when she was 93).