I’ll disclaim from the outset that the title of this post is inaccurate: “best”, when it comes to any form of art, is subjective. There’s no right or wrong on what can be called the best when it comes to fashion shoots, but there’s only so much you can explain in a title so I’ll say it here instead. There are certain editorials that stand…

Kati Nescher + Camilla Akrans. We need not talk at length about why Vogue Germany’s latest cover works so well, or why it’s arguably one of the best to hit news stands for October 2012. You need only look at the picture.

Despite its neo-Gothic styling – such as this dramatic Gucci cape – Camilla Akrans chose to set her latest Vogue Japan shoot in a soft and sunny garden setting. Styled by Sissy Vian, the shoot stars Edita Vilkeviciute and takes the romantic title Remembered By Eros.

Rihanna’s rich Barbadian skin against a pure white high slit dress. Mel Ottenberg got clean and simple styling right for the August 2012 cover of Harper’s Bazaar, photographed by Camilla Akrans.

Once again H&M prove that price point in store does not necessarily correlate to quality of production of editorials (you need only look at Edita Vilkeviciute by Camilla Akrans). This time it was photographer Marcus Ohlsson enlisted to shoot a simple yet slick swim editorial for H&M’s summer 2012 magazine, consisting of bold colours, stripes and classic black pieces alike as modelled by Hanna Fridh.

How do H&M create campaigns and shoots that make their clothes look ultra-luxurious? Perhaps a behind-the-scenes video will give some insight. Shot by Camilla Akrans and starring Edita Vilkeviciute, this particular shoot from H&M’s summer 2012 magazine takes inspiration from Alabama Whitman, Patricia Arquette’s prostitute character in True Romance. Updated for the now, of course. Expect plenty of cut-away swimwear, crop tops, and blonde wigs.

Can high street clothes look like pure luxury? The answer is yes – it just depends on how you wear them, or in this case how you shoot them. Put Camilla Akrans behind the lens and model Carola Remer in front of a backdrop of minimal lines and clear blue water, and you’ve got a shoot that defies the price point of the H&M clothing…

As spring heats up and the pristine whites again start to move to the front of the wardrobe, it’s worth remembering two things. First, there’s nothing quite like a bright white outfit set off against bronzed skin. Toni Garrn’s tanned body makes for an ideal spring whites canvas in this shoot by Camilla Akrans, dispelling any doubt. Secondly, near all of spring 2012′s fashion trends…

Like Magritte’s famous Son Of Man, Diane von Furstenberg’s spring campaign model is somewhat faceless. Or, obscured at least. It’s another notch on the belt of surrealism in fashion, channeling not just Magritte but backed by cracked desert and cloudy skies that are distinctly Dali-esque. But Furstenberg isn’t questioning reality or the human condition; her model isn’t faceless by some societal symbolism. The point is…

The surfer girl and the biker chic aren’t that far removed from each other. In some minds the former will be marked by bright neoprene and bleached blonde hair while the latter is heavy and black all over. But a girl can easily be both. There’s a tomboy thread, a rough-and-tumble fearlessness, that runs through both personas. In Vogue Germany’s April 2012 issue Eniko Mihalik…