Visual Hyperconsciousness

I read from a photography publication something interesting regarding the camera-conscious culture of the Brits. It goes to show that 86 percent of British citizens believe that they aren’t photogenic enough, hence they constantly find ways to enhance this so-called visual representation of themselves. In a report by Canon UK, out of 1,700 individuals surveyed, 52 percent admitted that they hold in their stomachs while their photo is being taken. Other than that, the survey shows a further 19 percent who do not fancy the idea of being photographed in direct sunlight, while 3 percent hold out on being lit from below.

On another note, social networking sites have also been on the rise. And when Facebook, Friendster, MySpace and photo-sharing sites like Flickr and Multiply just aren’t enough, there are far more ways to dig into this social networking phenomenon. These days, there are exemplary sites like Chictopia, I Like My Style and IQONS (just to name a few), which seemingly cater to a more specific audience. More specifically, these sites cater to the fashion-oriented crowd.

The youth often seem to have a notion of what’s happening and what’s not and are always keen to jump on the bandwagon. For instance, sometime last year a lot of teens in London started wearing Acne Jeans because they’d seen it on a lot of celebrities (as read in Tatler).  Apparently, getting in line with current fashions by scouring the high street for look-alikes just won’t suffice.

This sort of mentality leads to some parents worrying that kids these days are demanding a little more allowance to allot for clothing, or that perhaps they’re finding other ways to deal with this clothing dilemma. In today’s world, seeing a person wear a pair of Prada loafers or Chanels doesn’t necessarily mean she’s affluent. Buying power is extending further and further to the bourgeois.

In the present time, we also see a bigger audience for fashion and as the audience grows bigger, so does the market. As this market grows far more saturated as the days progress, it is inevitable for consumers to end up in a manufactured look. Think of it this way: a certain male consumer saw these recommendations by an editor at GQ and went to buy the look, or saw this look from Gucci’s current collection and bought everything from head to toe. Others condemn that as laziness while others see it as a lack of originality. In a world spoon-fed by the media, it is not hard to see why. We develop a wanting for something because we saw it on television, in print or on the Internet and countless others.

Personal Style

This is where the concept of personal style comes in. More and more individuals these days are keen on owning up to what they wear. I guess there is this strong need to realize this as well. It’s seemingly an active resistance to being like the many when you can always choose to have your own take, or perhaps stand out from a swarm of identical individuals.

Moving back to the matter, what makes this relevant in the contemporary Filipino culture is that I find myself greatly involved in this certain matter — it’s urgency, its relevance to cult status in popular culture, and how in a way this coincides with globalization and consumerism. It is, on one hand, a lived reality. This certain aspect of popular culture is something I experience and am heavily involved in.

These days it’s all a matter of documenting oneself. Where were you? What were you doing? What were you wearing? With the given prerequisites, it is not hard to see why social networking sites have achieved cult status, more specifically towards the youth. One may view it as a form of narcissism or peut-être — something of the sentimentalist working within your veins.

Documentation

I then remember how one of my favorite photographers, Nick Knight, said that this documentation thing is seemingly significant. In an interview with French quarterly publication Crash, Knight said that each time he goes on holiday, he takes thousands of pictures. He cites different examples, such as his children when they were one or two years old or images of his wife when they first met. It’s certainly a form of nostalgia. And according to Knight: “Photography makes your life larger but trying to relive these moments is futile.”

So this defends that little voice in you that prompts you to end up with good images. You can easily play nostalgia with them and with a good image; they are reawakened in your own mind and then comes the reality that they cannot necessarily be relived. This puts me in a similar sentiment as Knight. I’d like to create good visual imagery of myself and leave that alone for the sake of nostalgia. At present, it is not uncommon to find kids with highly effective skills in Photoshop and most of them are self-taught. Adobe has indeed broadened our horizons in this visual generation, where the image can really go that far.

Cyber Style

With the Internet deemed a necessity among many, a lot of things become more and more accessible. There is also a rich formation and evolution of culture that emerges online. For instance, I usually go visit fashion blogs and fashion-related sites to get my fix on mouthwatering visual imagery. Before, my notion of a fashion blog was merely writing what you wanted to buy and acquire and “I don’t like this or that.” But as I’ve come through more, a far more personal take on things makes a more insightful fashion blog. It’s like, how do you try on the trends and how do you assess your relationship with fashion? It doesn’t necessarily have to be a proliferation of the mainstream way of thinking of how wearing clothes must be as close to how they re showcased in the magazines or in the store displays. Fashion is also famous for making you feel more insecure. You may feel that your skin is not fair enough or you’re not tall enough or perhaps not thin enough. Fashion is keen on promoting that ideal image of the human being, where the unreal could easily be perceived as the real. The same thing goes for the ideal being a necessity, thus the quest for perfection is more strongly enforced. All this somewhat changed when fashion became more interested in real people — street style sites came about like The Sartorialist and The Face Hunter. Now there are countless Street Style blogs out there, ranging from Copenhagen to Tokyo to Singapore to many others. The streets provide a rich set of visual imagery as to how clothes are to be worn. I guess individuals these days want to see images that are more relatable.

Conclusion

There are far more ways of delving into the visual generation and their concerns about being visually represented in a way favorable to them. Now you do not have to be a model to be in an editorial. You can easily stage one yourself. The DIY culture has grown overwhelmingly over the past few years. If you want a cape and don’t have one, you do not necessarily have to rush to a clothing store and buy one. You can easily do a makeshift one with a skirt. With the power of blogs and sites like I Like MY Style, I have seemingly found a haven for fashion brought to a reachable and a more interactive level.

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Gian Cruz is a student, fashion blog fanatic, and an aspiring photographer.