Byredo

Jan 2024

For their Year of the Dragon: Coming Home campaign, Byredo leans into a sophisticated synthesis of heritage and contemporary luxury. Under the creative direction of Ben Gorham and captured through the precise lens of photographer Leslie Zhang, the fragrance and beauty brand orchestrates a visual narrative that feels both deeply rooted in tradition and strikingly modern. The campaign imagery utilizes a masterfully controlled palette where saturated, deep red backgrounds function as a bold, cinematic canvas for East Asian iconography and minimalist composition. Through the use of studio strobe lighting, the work highlights the intricate textures of traditional garments, glossy surfaces, and the tactile nature of floral arrangements and ritual objects like the carved white dragon sculpture. Each frame operates as an editorial portrait that balances symmetry and grace, intentionally avoiding clutter to let the subjects and the brand identity resonate. By weaving together elements of editorial lifestyle and commercial precision, the project creates a high-concept dialogue between the legacy of the Lunar New Year and the aesthetic discipline for which Byredo is renowned. The result is a polished, live-action technique-driven showcase that feels less like a traditional advertisement and more like an elevated study in texture, shadow, and color, effectively capturing the spirit of a homecoming through a lens of curated, refined minimalism.

Editorial, Vertical, Commercial

Studio strobe

Fragrance, Beauty