4.28.2011 at 7:27 AM
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I've been intrigued with the blog lamodeoutre.com for a while now, being increasingly obsessed with it as it shows me a different side of Singaporeans apart from the "Singaporeans cant dress" that has been overly used with no one providing another perspective or suggestions on how this can improve. James Bent is the author and photographer for this blog. Basically, he snaps pictures of people who he thinks dresses well in the streets of Singapore and then post them on his blog. So the people you see on the blog are real people who most probably lives a life very much similar to us but well, dresses well. I think it really gives us no reason to dress badly since you can no longer use the reason "He/she dresses well because he/she is rich/famous/not real" because they are REAL! (Not so sure about the rich part though but you get my point!) Anyway, enough of my rambling. Here's a short interview I did with him and well.. enjoy!
What inspired you to do street photography?
There was never a point at which I consciously went out and said "I'm going to do street style photography". In fact, even when I first found Scott Schuman's book, I had no idea what it was or how it happened, I just loved the photos. At that time I was using his photos to write short stories from, and I only started taking photos so I could have some new people to base characters in stories from - the streetstyle just happened because people responded well to it, more than my writing!
Over the years, do you find it easier to get well dressed people or is it increasingly difficult?
It's easier now for me to know what I'm looking for, and I start to trust myself more and more. Plus, I'm doing it more than ever for myself, so when I see someone I like, it's easy. However, it is getting harder as I think I've become more critical and more capable of editing on the street, so that reduces the potential people who I would possibly photograph. In that way it's harder.
Does your job influence your dress sense?
I work a corporate day job, so I have to fit into that to some respects. I often joke that if you want to see me, look out for the tall ang moh dressed like an office worker, carrying a camera. Doing the site, however, has made me much more aware of style, and if anything I've realised that style is usually quite simple. It's more about how you carry yourself I think, and so I like to think I present and hold myself 24/7 now because I've seen that and realised that a lot more doing this site.
How can Singaporeans dress better?
Just feel confident that they're allowed to. And don't be afraid to make mistakes. If you get something wrong then you can go "what would I do differently next time?" or "how can I develop this?". People can't think that their style will happen overnight - it's a learning process about yourself and the reward is that over time you find something uniquely you. It's as much about that journey as it is the final destination.
What is most satisfying about street photography?
I think that it's great doing this here in Singapore, as I can walk around for hours and it feels like there's no-one I am particularly taken to, but then all of a sudden, out of no where, there they are - someone I want to photograph. It's such a rush, like suddenly when I see someone it's senses all go, adrenaline rush happening, and it's this whole thing of meeting someone new, getting their photo and then kind of bouncing off the whole intensity of the moment. It makes me feel alive, and I have something to keep potentially for the rest of my life from it. That's really cool. For me it's all about that moment rather than anything else.
Do you have any fashion tips for the readers?
Be aware of your body shape. Work out what your basics are - e.g. long skirts might work for you particularly well or you might be able to work all your outfits around white T-shirts or loose fitting shirts, so use that as a base around which to experiment. And you're not a hanger - the clothes complement the person, and at the end of the day it's about you, not the clothes - don't walk around being all stiff thinking that the clothes alone will make you look great, they won't - you have to carry yourself. I see a lot of stiff people wearing good clothes and they look... stiff!
Lastly, what are your future plans for La Mode Outré?
Take more trips now and again and expand into South East Asia, then Asia, then go West and capture Asians there. It's my point of difference - it's an Asian streetstyle site, and I would love to travel more with it. However, it all depends really - that takes money so unless someone is paying it'll take a bit of time.
You can check out his blog here: Http://lamodeoutre.com
love, px
Labels: Fashion Scene
