Welcome to the future. It’s an intimidating place. Donald Trump may very well be the next president and Mario Testino’s iconic Towel Series, featuring photos of notables like Naomi Campbell, Kristen Stewart, Anna Wintour, Gigi Hadid and Blake Lively wrapped up in varying amounts of terrycloth, now comes in 3D.
The idea for Testino’s photo series came when he spotted Kate Moss reclining during an “off” moment on set, her body sheathed in a white robe, her hair secured in a towel turban. Thenceforth, the Peruvian photographer often follows his commissioned shoots with a stripped-down segment. The ongoing project, documented on the shutterbug’s social media, seeks to liberate its subjects. Testino holds: “I think girls and guys feel this freedom at being able to express themselves because there is no predetermined way of how they should put the towel on. You can do anything you want…wear it however you want.”
Thanks to Facebook, the Peruvian photographer has also been liberated — from the confines of 2D portraiture. Panoramic photographs have officially made the jump from red carpet fashion inspections into our everyday lives. Yesterday, the social media channel unveiled its Facebook 360-degree image option, which allows viewers to create 3D photos by uploading panoramic shots or snaps taken with specialized 360-degree apps and cameras. Friends and followers can then observe every angle of the scene by clicking and dragging said photos.
And who better to demonstrate the feature’s functionality than Testino, with a little help from models Karlie Kloss and Lily Aldridge. The photographer’s latest Towel Series breaks the fourth wall, allowing fans to hold and drag the black and white photo to see a smiling Testino and his crew in action. Owners of virtual reality headsets can further geek out to a fully immersive view.
Of course, Facebook isn’t going to the trouble of implementing this feature just so we can better envision our dream of reenacting Gigi and Zayn’s steamy photoshoot. According to CNET, this is all a ploy to keep us on pages longer so we’re exposed to more ads. As if we’d pay any attention to those when there are models in towels to ogle.
[ via Glossy ]
