“These are some of the photos I’ve assigned to my iPhone contact list. I don’t believe in personal photography. I’ve never owned a camera as there is always someone

nearby documenting my life. I rely on Self Service photography to capture the essence and spirit of my beloved friends. Here you’ll see portraits of some of my BFFs

from Jeremy Scott deep in his J.Lo Love Don’t Cost a Thing cornrow phase to Chloë Sevigny giving us full 8th grade realness.”

“Besides being living proof that print still has a place in an increasingly digital world, I’ve always enjoyed how selfservice manages to effortlessly combine

photography which can be glamorous and editorial on one page and raw and personal on the next. This mixture of contrasts is what makes the magazine

such a rich source of inspiration and let’s be honest: without contrast the world would be a less interesting place.”

Self Service. After reading an issue you want to light up a cigarette… The rapid fire glamour… The mythology of Paris… The gloss… The shimmer… The lacquer…

The sheer unadulterated indulgence. No one does it better!

Gauthier Gallet’s pictures fascinate me. They show people who are still sitting

in the front row today, but at the same time you can tell they’re dated.

Fashion people don’t need Facebook. They have Ezra Petronio’s portraits.

I’m not surprised Tommy Ton loves the magazine: one can clearly see the link between

these pictures and his.

This beauty still life exudes the seventies Laura Mars spirit of the magazine.

Why is fashion not always as sensual as that?

Leopard print on black, graphic feast, monochrome… You can trust Suzanne Koller to build

strong, simple and timeless silhouettes.

This picture could be from today. I still want to be this girl.

I’ll never get enough of men’s shirts on girls. Fortunately, neither will Self Service.

Charlotte Gainsbourg, my favourite Parisian icon.

Vintage You encapsulates the spirit of Self Service, nostalgic, feminine, effortlessly chic.

“In our selection we attempted to capture the evolution of Self Service magazine. We are interested in the diversity of the photography and the different contrasts that are forced

into similar associations when grouped together. Our aim was to select images that varied in subjects and spanned the legacy of the magazine. We focused on color, lighting,

details, abstraction, shape and form and diversity.”

“There is something very raw and very sensual about the photography in Self Service that I’ve always been drawn to. Ezra’s capture-them-as-they-come approach seems to influence

every one of the stories in the book—that energy, and underlying focus on characters and personalities, whether inherent or invented, is what sets Self Service apart.”

“Self Service has been a constant source of inspiration for us for as long as we can remember; we’ve been pinning pictures to our teenage moodboards for years. From Ezra’s polaroids

to Juergen’s portfolio, peeking at the issues of yesterday was a total blast from the past. Besides, there’s nothing like seeing vintage Anna Wintour and ALT in the front row…”

We will post mood boards from The Sartorialist, The Coveteur, Café Mode, Into The Gloss, September Industry, Haw-Lin, and Models.com amongst others, every day for the next ten days.

Scott Schuman, The Sartorialist
“The thing I love about Self Service are the polaroid portraits by Ezra Petronio. Not only does it capture a moment in time of the movers and shakers of the fashion community, but he also

does a fantastic job capturing the oversized personalities within a tiny, confined space. How he’s able to communicate personality through simple gestures and composition is the mark

of a truly accomplished photographer. The other element that I really enjoy is the unvarnished, un-romanticized “portraits” of fashion product. He lets the simple beauty of each design

speak for itself without the aid of overcomplicated set design or other elements that would distract from the subject at hand.”

Additional Credits

Additional Credits