(gentle music)
- (Cindy) Well, I don't usually do commissions,
but I think when I haven't been working,
when I feel like I need some sort of,
project to challenge me, to get me- to force me to start working.
I sometimes will just accept it
because I have a real deadline to
you know, to force me to get going.
It was through a friend of mine who represents Balenciaga
asked me if I wanted to do some shots for French Vogue.
And I said, my sort of stipulation is
you know, as long as I can,
you know, you can lend me the clothes for weeks at a time,
and I don't have that kind of pressure
that like, normally I think
commercial photographers shoot everything in one day.
And I said, 'No, I need the clothes for longer.'
And, so, they were totally cool with that.
I wanted it to look like these are people
who happen to be wearing Balenciaga
at like, some kind of groovy, you know, parties.
Maybe they work in the fashion business,
or maybe they would like
to be working in the fashion business.
I was trying to, you know,
sort of make it look as if they're shot with flash,
the backgrounds are all digitally added
with just shots of people in restaurants and bars.
And, yeah that was kind of what
this series started out as.
And, then I subsequently blew up
one of these large to see
how it would hold up as a work of art.
And it didn't look good with the backgrounds.
So, I wound up going back
and completely changing the backgrounds
and they, sort of, now have a new life
as different sorts of pictures.
Still somewhat as if they're from parties
but even-in some cases even more so
because I added these flash effects.
And it was actually the first time
I tried shooting with the digital camera.
I borrowed a friend's camera
and I was kind of nervous about that too,
now I'm suddenly experimenting with a digital camera
and I don't know really how to use it,
and does it work the same with the lights?
And I have to set it up to look at my computer while I'm shooting.
And it was all kind of like touch and go
in the beginning, and a little scary.
But, once I was into it,
it was just like I'm a total convert,
I threw out all my film
and like, I'm ready to get rid of all my cameras,
and, you know it's like
I'll just never go back to film.