All that glitters isn’t always gold in images taken by photographer John Rankin Waddell, who is known for his portraits and shots of intensely made-up models. In his latest collaboration with jewelry designer Stephen Webster, Rankin captures diamond, ruby, or emerald sparklers in a manner familiar to fans who frequented his Los Angeles pop-up gallery on Melrose (the project is now back in London). Like the arresting images he shot of models made up by Caroline Saulnier, this latest collaboration between the two British creatives has produced striking visuals, blurring perception and reality. Just try to resist taking a second look at his images. Is that a model or a mannequin? Were those lashes really white or was the color added in post-production? All are valid questions.

This project has a special resonance. Webster and Rankin have been friends for years, but they started collaborating over a decade ago on a project for Dom Pérignon when Rankin shot members of London’s Royal Ballet wearing high jewelry designed by Webster. The two teamed up on a campaign last fall, and again ducked into the studio to shoot images for Webster’s fall 2013 collection. Webster, who met Rankin in a nightclub “somewhere I can’t quite remember,” says the photographer has a “real talent in capturing people, their personalities and the sculptural form of the body.” And, as always, the human form enlivens the intricate metal designs in these photographs Rankin shot with a Phase One medium format camera modified to shoot digital images. Here the two men discuss their latest project and elaborate on the behind-the-scenes discussions hinted at in this video taken at the shoot.

By Elizabeth Varnell

How did you decide on the look of this current shoot?
SW: We’d already decided that the only way to make the jewelry the hero was not to use such a recognisable personality. Rankin envisaged colouring the models bodies and keeping them anonymous so that they became these beautiful and sculptural forms on which to capture the jewelery.

You’ve painted models in the past, what inspired the look of this campaign?
R: For the collection last fall, we painted the models dark purple and black—the idea came from Webster’s previous identity and packaging. Whilst I wanted the new campaign to draw on the same visual concept as the preceding year, I also wanted it to evolve. We turned the last concept on its head by opting to use white as the dominant color.

Why white?
R: At the International Jewelry and Watch show in Basel, Switzerland, Stephen Webster’s stall was all gloss white, which was the inspiration behind the white porcelain aesthetic that we went for in this shoot. I also felt that it best conveyed the elegance of the line and really accentuated the colors in the collection. The white adds a wintery fantasy element to the images—the models are almost ghostlike.

Why convert everything including lashes and eyebrows into a white canvas?
R: It creates the illusion that the models’ limbs and body parts have merged with the backdrop to become one. Almost camouflaged, the model is not the central focus of the shot, yet she still arouses intrigue. The jewelry colors and shapes stand out best against this all-white canvas.

Is there a particular shot in this campaign that catches your eye?
SW: It would be easy to pick a shot that features colored pieces against the white skin as it just pops. But in a more subtle way, the diamond pieces in the Thorn collection seem to provoke some background story, which speaks in a different, yet just as powerful, way.

Did you light and shoot each metal or type of stone differently?   
R: We shot each image as a whole—the light on the models remained consistent. However, for each piece, honed and shaped the light so that it hit the jewelry a little differently; some of the darker stones required us to bounce or direct the light in a slightly different way to how we would light the lighter stones.

How much post-production work was done on these images?
It’s very hard to make the gems pop in the right way and also light the models so as to bring out the highlights and that porcelain finish that we were after. We worked mainly to enhance the natural lustre of the gems and bring the jewelry out against the white.

Do you imagine jewelry pieces lying against skin when you design them or do you envision them worn over clothing?
SW: On the skin. To me you should dress around your jewelry.

 

Pictured: Rankin
Photo courtesy of Rankin

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