+...CaMiLLa AkRaNs...+

Swedish-born photographer Camilla Akrans boasts an impressive résumé: Since snapping her first picture in 1999, she’s shot advertising campaigns for Hermès, Missoni, and Eres. But it’s her linear aesthetic and theatrical style—often marked by stark white walls and electric blue skies—that made her the ideal candidate to shoot the Spring 2008 Neiman Marcus Art of Fashion®.

Since she’s one of the industry’s most sought-after talents, scheduling time with the busy Akrans is often the biggest challenge. When she wakes up in the morning, she doesn’t ask, “What time is it?” but “Where am I?” since her itinerary could easily call for flying to Belgium one day and Costa Rica the next. “I have a studio in Stockholm, but these days I just live out of hotel rooms,” she explains.

In fact, when I caught up with Akrans, she was sitting by a pool in Los Angeles, enjoying the first two hours she’s had to herself in three weeks. But it’s this around-the-world lifestyle that fits in perfectly with a season where global influences are ubiquitous—be it a dash of Peru in a jacket or an Asian-inspired print.

Despite her hectic schedule, Akrans managed to track down the perfect location for the Art of Fashion shoot: a classic Hollywood home overlooking Sunset Boulevard with gardens so enormous and bountiful, they have over 100 varieties of roses. “It was just amazing—really beautiful and completely empty,” Akrans says of the house. From the beginning she wanted to shoot in California for its cobalt skies, but her plans were nearly thwarted by bad weather. “Every day started out really foggy, but by afternoon—like clockwork—the sun came out. Then the crew and I would become frantic, trying to get great shots before it got dark.”

The grandeur of the scene led to a softer, richer, more airy touch to Akrans’ work, perhaps because the scene was infused with a lightness that can only come from shooting in a beautiful milieu. “It was a fantastic shoot,” Akrans notes. “We were so efficient—we listened to music and had a really good time.”

Thanks 2 Neiman Marcus