This shoot had great pressure around it. Two weeks prior, I had been shown a singular Instagram reel of some brand's holiday shoot. What they loved about it was that it felt candid, as if a party host had left a disposable camera in the middle of a table.
At Tula, we had recently received our winter collections, consisting mostly of Tibi. My coworkers, Margeaux Souza and Lillian Landwehr, were instructed to style two looks each and model in a "Holiday Party" style. The shoot would take place at my childhood home, where my mom had set up a holiday party set.
This would be the first time I would shoot using only my second-hand digital camera. In previous shoots, I borrowed Tula's professional camera, but I didn't feel as comfortable shooting on it in indoor lighting, and honestly didn't feel like watching a YouTube video to learn how.
I'm going to tell a truth, which seems to be a pattern that, as I'm reflecting on, makes sense. I was in a completely uninspired and dreadful mood before we began. In fact, for the first 30 minutes of the shoot, I was on the verge of tears because of how bad I thought the images were turning out. But as they say, great art comes from great pain.
T
I didn't want the shoot to feel the same as the reel I was shown. I wanted candidness, yes, but I wanted a story. A portrayal of an evening with highs and lows. I wanted to shoot the moments of laughter and euphoria next to the quiet and reflective moments, left completely unacknowledged. This, to me, is how a holiday party feels. Most elegantly, a holiday party is a fever dream.
Sometimes, I believe that the placement and portrayal of images may hold higher importance than the images themselves. I want the viewer of these images to feel the emotions of such a fabulously lonely evening.
What I mean by highs in lows can be described in the layout of this gallery. The viewer may watch as two friends connect but individually ruminate as the evening goes on.
Seemingly chic, both Margeaux and Lillian perfectly embodied the nostalgic but heavy blur of an annual holiday celebration.
Margeaux and Lillian styled all four of their looks imaginatively.
For their first looks:
Lillian wore a silk Maroon set from Velvet below a Tibi Blazer, decorated with Lie Studios and Hanayoo works jewelry.
Margeaux wore a Tibi fringe backed sweater and a pair of silk trousers layered below a Tibi embroidered sheer skirt.
For their second looks:
Lillian wore a feather knit sweater from Velvet, a Velvet silk skirt, and a Lie Studios belt.
Margeaux wore a Frank & Eileen oversized button down below a Tibi hole in back sweater, both layered above a Tibi sheer embroidered dress.
At the time of writing this, I wish I had begun sooner. It is July and this shoot was in December. I do not feel or remember the energy and passion I carried when I first finished these photos. Therefore, I have nothing more to share. I hope I've learned my lesson.
These images were taken in Fort Collins, Colorado, in December of 2024 as a holiday campaign shoot for Tula Boutique. Modeled and styled by Margeaux Souza and Lillian Landwehr. Photographed, imagined, edited, and written by me
By Lucy Hart Hannah