This story originally appeared on the Gents Cafe Newsletter. You can subscribe here.
Somewhere deep within the Styleforum catacombs lies a menswear discussion thread titled “The End of the Sartorial Road,” where once ensued a lively debate about how much is enough when it comes to clothing.
Maybe it’s the natural cycle of all interests to boom with imagination and acquisition before busting into an era of paring down. Watch enthusiasts talk avidly about becoming a “one-watch guy” or assembling the perfect collection of three watches, all while having a dozen watches stashed in various watch rolls. The sartorial crowd’s version of this scenario is to study capsule wardrobes or go the uniform route. Recently, I discovered the answer – at least mine – to this conundrum: dress like a photographer.
Years ago, I was listening to an interview with Matt Hranek, of WM Brown fame, when he described how his photographer friend Dewey Nicks influenced his style as he was just getting started in the business. Hranek recounted how Nicks maintained a disciplined yet stylish uniform as a young photographer: Gucci loafers, Levi’s 501s, and a cashmere sweater.
Depending on climate, this setup has a lot in its favor. It’s refined. It mixes high and low. It’s ultimately unpretentious, as long as your loafers have the right amount of patina. It gives subtle hints at one’s sensibility.
Alternatively, photographer and former husband of Brigitte Bardot, Gunter Sachs, maintained a capsule of six blue shirts, four pairs of white pants, and two blazers. An elegant mix that winks towards a light and fun approach to life at home on the French Riveria or at a work event. Personally, I’ve shifted this ever so slightly into ecru jeans rather than white pants.
The thing about photographers is their lifestyle necessitates streamlined utility. They must pass in and out of occasions and often stylish venues while travelling lightly. When combined, the style choices made by Nicks and Sachs represent a concise summer-winter spectrum for those interested in adopting bits of both uniforms. And as I hustle about this fall between the office and dropping off my three children at school and daycare, the knowing ease and simple elegance of the photographer’s capsule will give me one less thing to sort out.
