The decline of fashion photography

Karen Lehrman, the author of The Lipstick Proviso: Women, Sex, & Power in the Real World (read a review here) has documented the decline in quality and style of fashion photography for the ezine Slate. I seem to agree with almost every point she makes here, especially that which reveals/shows how the photographs in fashion mags currently often don't even show the clothes they're supposed to be showcasing. This is something that annoys me more than anything else in the style at the moment - you buy a magazine to see the clothes but the shots are so supposedly arty that you can't see the clothes. I bought Dazed and Confused, Wallpaper and i.D. recently when on a long train journey in hope of something interesting between them. By the end out the journey I was phased - there'd been little of interest and much to annoy - they seem to highlight only the 'cool' parts of what they're talking about rather than giving a full discussion. I'm not going to even bother to look more into some shoes that cost $200 if I can't see them properly in the first place - if the setting isn't right. Fashion and style magazines will always be in part to do with making an impression and trading on the magazine's particular look, but without proper content, there's no point and I'm not goign to buy it.
This collection of photos and comments alongside illustrates this point perfectly as well as others that Lehrman has come across in her experience. Quick to look at and engrossing even if you disagree.

The decline of fashion photography