How Photographer Matt Sheehan Uses Cinematic Techniques To Illustrate Contrasting Fashion Trends

Matt Sheehan started his creative journey at the age of 14; taking inspiration from a New York City street photography book, and capturing the streets of his hometown. A decade later, Matt has accumulated a diverse portfolio of clients, from entertainment platforms such as Netflix, high street fashion retailers New Look, and independent fashion brands such as GVNMNT Clothing Co. Matt’s diverse roster is a testament to his adaptable photographic skills, and ability to recognise and capture a moment in a snapshot, that lives on infinitely.

Matt Sheehan’s inaugural project ‘Infinite’, is a reflection of the immortal nature of fashion and photography. It is a body of work exploring recurring fashion and photography trends in contrasting eras, drawing inspiration from the pulsating vertical neon lights of Tokyo streets, to America’s feminist movement in the 1970s and South Korean’s emerging pop culture. Although the entire series was developed in England, Sheehan uses manipulation of light and fashion to teleport you to different time zones through this enthralling series.

The portraits captured in the ‘Infinite’ series are a juxtaposition of reality and fantasy, depicting clothing and fashion trends through the realm of art and capturing the beauty of muses against urban landscapes and resplendent lights. Although modern in execution, this photographic series is heavily inspired by classic cinema, exploring light through the implementation of vintage cinematic techniques to achieve ‘purposely imperfect’ lighting.

The ‘Infinite’ series consists of 5 scenes, each reflecting distinctive time periods yet are a dovetail of one another, creating a cohesive and thematic body of work. Throughout the series, Sheehan uses straight forward shots and saturated colours to exude mystery and suspense whilst simultaneously capturing the rawness and movement of fashion. This series contains the boldness necessary for fashion photography but also the uniqueness and depth desired for portrait photography.

The ‘Infinite’ project is a glance of what can be expected from Matt Sheehan this year. Proving to be a mastery of his craft, Sheehan is definitely one to lookout for in 2020 as he prepares to release more projects and host a solo exhibition in the city of London this summer.