candid cameraman
by Samra Habib
At 26 years old with Carine Roitfeld’s number practically on speed dial, Tommy Ton is the street-style photographer du jour. Thankfully, inspite of our collective desire to sky-rocket people to fame and leave them behind at the blink of an eye, his street-style has spiraled into something solid — style.com, gq.com, Vogue Paris, Lane Crawford and Rad Hourani to name but a handful.
And having known Ton before his bulging bylines, packed PDA and busy schedule, I was delighted to catch up with the globe-trotting photographer.
BiLT: So let’s start from the beginning, how did it all start? When I first met you years ago, you used to take pictures of these society ladies at Forest Hill parties.
Tommy: Well, five years ago I was trying to do an US Weekly-style site focused on the party scene in Toronto and then I got really bored. I got tired of shooting the same people. In 2006, I was working at Vintage Couture and my boss Lynda Latner suggested some vacation time and I thought it might be fun to go Paris. I wrote to Nathalie Atkinson at the National Post, asking if I could take pictures for the paper [she said yes] and [I] was instantly in awe and became addicted.
One of the most important lessons I learned through all this is that my niche is raw candids.
In 2008, after going to Paris for four seasons, I decided to archive a gallery of the shots I had taken. Because of the immediacy of the internet, I was able to launch the blog. I was lucky enough to have the support of popular bloggers like Susie Bubble and Fashion Toast. Shortly after that, the number of site visits went up from 400 to 3000. A couple of months after I launched the blog, I was contacted by Lane Crawford to shoot their campaign. One of the most important lessons I learned through all this is that my niche is raw candids.
B: How would you say your eye has changed since you launched the website?
T: It changes constantly, I feel that I’m kind of a fashion editor who takes pictures. I’m increasingly drawn to simplicity. I’m not into excessive details. I like how people wear clothes in a natural way, like I love the French way of dressing: blue shirt and a belt knotted in a certain way. I also like it when people wear clothes that aren’t necessarily meant for them.
B: Maybe it’s a little vague, but what inspires you?
T: I’m more intrigued by my friends and the way they select clothes. When I visit my friends’ closets, I can easily see how their oversized sweaters, negligee, and other interesting bits of wardrobe reveal something about them. I’m also inspired by what Phoebe Philo’s doing, she’s back in fashion and that’s a woman in charge.
B: What’s on your plate right now?
T: I’m shooting for style.com as well gq.com. I just shot for Vogue Paris which is all I ever wanted! Aside from that, I’m shooting a bunch of campaigns as well.
B: Which city are you inspired by the most: Paris or New York?
T: I love the energy of New York. Paris is only exciting during Fashion Week.
B: What would you like to do next?
T: I’d like to work on a book. It’d be great to illustrate a nice body of work as opposed to rushing into something. I’m still trying to figure out what I have to say. I’m still shocked that I’m still being hired! I’d also love to work as a brand consultant. I’ll try my best to try to build the Jak and Jil brand. But I don’t expect things right away.
B: Is this all you ever wanted? How does it feel to be part of the machine?
T: Vogue Paris was all I ever wanted to achieve. Being recognized by people you respect definitely makes a huge difference. I mean, it’s nice when Lauren Santo Domingo says she’ll call you but I like to focus on the work because it impacts me the most. The whole story about being seated front-row for Dolce and Gabbana was weird because it’s awkward to assume that the bloggers would tweet during the show. Also, now I feel very protective of myself and the people I feature. People have started to attack the private lives of bloggers and people featured on blogs. Because of that, I don’t like to voice my opinion on the blog and I don’t care about what other people have to say either.
Suppose a picture does really say a thousand words.
[...] this candid interview with the tremendously talented Tommy Ton. Best: he talks about how he really got his start, and his real feelings now that he and his fellow [...]