An abstract theme like color-blocking gave us the freedom from sticking to a story line.

Androgyny gaveus the excuse to inject color into men’s wardrobes while challenging what a male South Carolinian can look like.

To stick to the theme—and because our male models were too small for regular men’s sizes—we put them in women’s pants. Following Spring trends like slim ankle-high trousers and thigh-high shorts made the task much easier, and tangerine tango, this year’s Pantone color of the year, made for wonderful color palette inspiration.

Our female models were petite and athletic, with strong brows and marked jaws. They exuded both fortitude and femininity, so we opted for looser silhouettes that contoured their shapes without stifling their curves.

The studio was a nice change of pace from multiple-location shoots and offered great lighting control, which made post-production pretty much pain-free.

I designed the layout with Illustrator, Photoshop and Indesign, using assistant style editor Christian Barker’s colorized images of a quarry nearby for texture and contrast.