Minimalistic, with a touch of darkness. Ukrainian born photographer Egor Tsodov has worked in fashion all over the word, is still an underdog- and on top of Envelopes "one to watch list". Tsodov has a huge fascination for Scandinavia and hate fancy places.
Name: Egor Tsodov
Camera: Nikon D4s
Based in: New York City
Contributor: Fashion IQ, Tatler Russia
Web: tsodov.com
When did you get your first camera, and what kind of camera was that? I got my first digital camera in 2009. It was a Canon 450D.
How did your interest of photography start? I think it started in 2009. I used to work as a graphic designer in an advertising agency in Kiev. The greater part of my job was working directly with fashion brands and photo galleries that were clients of the agency. While I was working with all these very interesting and professional people from the fashion industry, it started to encourage my interest in fashion. Eventually it became more interesting to me than graphic design so I got a camera and started to style and photograph for my friends. Now I can’t even look at those first photos— they are so bad… hahaha.
Where does the fascination for shooting people come from — and when did you start capturing unique style in the street? I was always interested in style, trends, and the way people dress. I used to work as a stylist and I still style sometimes. Around two years ago I met the right person, and she recommended that I try shooting StreetStyle. I did and I liked it. But still I would not consider myself as street style photographer. I do more editorial things. I do street style photography because I’m very interested in style and trends in general, especially street style from Fashion Weeks. What we see in the runway shows are the trends for next year, but what we see on the streets— before and after the runway shows— those are the trends for today.
What makes a great photo? And what makes not? Feelings. If you see the photo and you can feel something, it’s a great photo. The picture should bring you there. Cheap posing and fake emotions work the opposite. But, if we are talking about editorial photos— styling, colors, and composition are all very important as well.
Any personal favorites to photograph right now? If you mean from Street Style, I like the styles of Natasha Goldenberg, Irina Lakicevic, Celine Aagaard, and Pernille Teisbaek.
In what way do you think Scandinavian People are interesting? Its their taste and sense of style. I like everything from Scandinavian countries— the style, art, fashion, design, photography, architecture… literally everything. Scandinavian aesthetics are very close to my philosophy of beauty. I would describe it as minimalistic, with a touch of darkness, and sometimes futuristic notes. I personally wear Scandinavian brands, I listen mostly to Scandinavian music, and I find the Scandinavian people to be very beautiful. My godfather lives in Sweden and when I visited him I could not leave the house without my small pocket camera.
Where do you find inspiration? There's so much inspiration out there. It’s hard to say. It could be everything. People, architecture, music, movies but the most is travel, I think. To see things is very important for me. I’m like a sponge, and all that I absorb, I have to express.
Any tip for an unknown person to get your attention during fashion week? Be low-key.
What is style for you? Style, it’s the way you want people to understand you. But still, I think taste is very important. Sometimes people can be tempted to wear a trend just because it’s cool or in style, but not consider if it works with their body or personality. I think its more important to wear something that compliments them physically and characteristically, than to follow a trend.
Have you never been much into colors? I don’t think I’m a color person. I think I can feel the colors and I can put them together and they will look nice, but I just don’t see myself in them.
We love your sense of style, for photography- what photographers do you love the most? Jamie Hawkesworth, Viviane Sassen, Jurgen Teller and Glen Luchford
Whats your highlight in your carrier so far? Most recently…. I would say, I’m very proud I had opportunity to work with H&M and shoot the collection H&M X BALMAIN before it was released. The style of collection wasn’t really my style, but I wanted to try and show it through a different angle. I was very exited and I think it went well. The Client liked it and that made me happy. Also, I'm currently working on a project with a great designer that's very exciting for me, but that's all that I can say about it at the moment.
About how many travel days do you have a year? I travel a lot, but not as much as I've wanted to in the last two years. New York keeps me busy. But, if I could have the chance to travel as much as I want, it would be 365 days a year.
How many hours a sleep do you get during the night with so much work? I won't go to bed until my work is done so sometimes I don't sleep much.
Is there ever a day you don’t bring your camera around? No. My small pocket camera is always with me.
Favorite Area In New York? I like Brooklyn. Williamsburg is nice, but just became too popular and touristic, which is annoying for living. Clinton Hill is a nice area in Brooklyn - very green. Regarding Manhattan - the Lower East Side and Nolita are my favorites, I think.
Where do you take your coffee in NYC? There are so many good coffee shops in New York— small, tiny, cute places. It’s hard to say which is my favorite, though I always stop by the Konditori - Swedish coffee shops.
Where do you eat in New York? It depends on what I’m craving, and in New York there is any food you could want. There are so many places, but I’m not a huge fan of fancy places. The food quality is more important than the status of the place. For new American — Cafe Clover in West Village and Five Lives in Greenpoint (Brooklyn). For very good oysters and seafood— Maison Premier in Williamsburg (Brooklyn). For something simple and quick— Lovely day (Thai food) and Taim (Mediterranean) in Nolita. There is a good place called Magador in the East Village for lovers of Moroccan food, and for Vietnamese cuisine I would suggest visiting An Choi in the Lower East Side.
Where to stay in New York if you’re a traveller? I don't stay in hotels that much in NYC, so I can't recommend any. I would say the area is the the most important when deciding where to stay. If you’re a young and artsy traveler, I would recommend that you stay in Brooklyn (Williamsburg, Greenpoint, Bushwick) or the Lower East side in Manhattan where most of the galleries, parties, and events are. If you like more fancy things, you want to stay in Soho or the West Village.
Envelope by Celine Aagaard Photo credit Jurij Treskow/Egor Tsodov/Private
Read about the other photographers on Envelope.no
Adam Katz Sinding here
Daniel Bruno Grandl The Urbanspotter here
Nabile Quenum here
Marie Paola Bertrand-Hillion here
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