THREE-DIMENSION (3D) seems to be all the rage and now the elaborate process has even reached fashion photography - but you need 3D glasses to appreciate it.

Matija Tancic, one of the world's top (and few) 3D fashion photographers, recently joined Chinese 3D photographers to shoot Chinese super models Li Danni and Liu Wen, TV star Dong Jie and other fashion celebrities.

The result is China's first 3D still fashion photography exhibition, which runs through today in Beijing's Sanlitun Village.

Slovenia-born Tancic, who is based in London, presents a striking multi-layered world and uses backdrops such as the Great Wall, the Bird's Nest National Stadium and Beijng's quaint lanes (hutong) and courtyards. Models appear to be part of the landscapes and settings, not posing with them in the background.

Tancic, who is 29, and other lens men were invited by LensCrafters, the eye wear maker, to create 3D fashion photos for the exhibition "What Eyes Love." It was Tancic's first visit to China and he told Shanghai Daily he hopes to return to China for a couple of months early next year to take more photos.

"China really gives me a lot of inspirations and I discovered many beautiful things here," Tancic said in an interview with Shanghai Daily.

The young photographer started out as a photojournalist for Mladina, a Slovenian weekly current affairs magazine. He attended the London College of Fashion and gradually made his way into the world of fashion photography. He has staged 11 solo exhibitions and taken part in around 40 group shows.

His photos have appeared in Vogue, Playboy, Modna, Inspire, Look de Book, Digital Camera and Mercedes-Benz Magazine.


Q: You studied fashion photography and started out as a photojournalist. How did you turn to 3D?

A: Because I always love to experiment with new technologies. And 3D was a big and different step when I discovered it. There were many trials before my first 3D work, which was my final college project that took four months to complete. At that time, many people were suspicious, but I reckoned 3D was the future and I really wanted to do it. Finally I got the highest grade and everyone really loved it. I know I made the right choice and I just want to continue researching and developing it.

Q: 3D photography is more complicated and presents a stronger visual experience than 2D. What's the essence of 3D art photography?

A: I think the idea behind it is the most important thing. It's not only the technique, which is a way to express the idea. Some people use sculpture, some people use oil paintings, some people photography and some people 3D photography. For example, if you turn a black and white photo into an art, it's everything about the story behind it. It's all about watching the artist's mind.

Q: Where is 3D photography heading?

A: It's hard to say; 3D is one of the types of photography which is coming and going. For example, technique such as black and white photography were quite popular in the 80s. I think 3D photograph will be popular for a while, because the market is ready to embrace 3D photography as there are 3D everywhere.

Q: What message do you try to convey?

A: The main idea is about to tell the story of myself. I shoot in different locations around the world from Slovenia to London and China. In Slovenia, the shooting is about the nature, because my life there is about relaxed things, meeting good friends, returning to nature and enjoyment. In London, I shoot an urban environment where people get into competition with others, learning and getting jobs. Here in China, I want to show the passion of my travels. I was showing my vision of the world.

Q: What's the situation in China for 3D photography?

A: Since this is the first 3D exhibition in China, I think it's clearly at the beginning. I am impressed by the Chinese work shown in this exhibition and I am happy to work with great Chinese 3D photographers. I hope there will be more of them. Although 3D is getting popular around the world, you don't really see much inspired work or good material anywhere.

Q: Do you have plans to show the exhibition in other cities of China, like Shanghai?

A: I just returned from Shanghai yesterday. It is my first time to the city and I spend two days there. I am thinking of moving to China for a couple of months in the beginning of next year, so I am sure there will be much more shoots to come.

Q: What's your shooting style?

A: It's quite a lot of experimentation, a lot of nice colors, a mixture of photojournalism and fashion. I always tried to get inspiration from different things - books, movies, travel. My works look more Western because of my roots: I was brought up in Slovenia and work in London. But in China, I try to put as much Chinese influence as possible in my work, making it both Western and Chinese.

Q: What makes your work so special and distinctive?

A: One thing is the quality of 3D work. My mentor is a really good 3D photographer. He is my partner in photography; together we are a really good team and can do anything we want. There are no technical obstacles. Learning 3D photography is a long process.

Q: How do you make a 3D photo? Can ordinary people like me make one?

A: Theoretically you can, you can even make one with phones if you know how to do it. But that's not the best quality equipment that is used for billboards, advertising campaigns and other things. For example, this time in China, I used two professional 2D cameras of the exact same model. Adjust the lenses' focus, aperture and other data needed to the same specification. The difficult part is to take care of a lot of details and so many calculations, such as the distance between objects and the distance between cameras; clicking at the same time is also tricky. If you don't have knowledge and experience it's difficult to do this.

Q: How do you get models in the perfect mood?

A: You have to work well with the model, tell her the story and she just keeps trying to capture it. At the end, it's very hard to choose a favorite because you probably took 100 photos. During the shoot I am quite strict but also very nice. I may shout to my team if they are doing something wrong because they are missing the moment that we have been building up for. I always take care of models, I push them to shoot when it's really cold, but I also bring them tea, blankets and whisky to warm up.