Topshop Resurrects Helmut Newton's Photo Machine

World-renowned fashion photographer Helmut Newton always believed that models could take better pictures of themselves than their photographer boyfriends did, and he consequently created the Newton Machine in the '70s. Using a mirror and remote trigger, the machine empowered models to take their own photos.

Now, London retailer Topshop has created an in-store digital version of Newton's photo contraption that's traveling around the UK. Topshop's pop-up studio boasts waiting rooms that allow time for dressing up and accessorizing, and the retailer even has professional makeup artists and stylists on hand to assist in creating that picture-perfect look. But it's really about finding your own personal style. As Newton himself said of his creation, "It's up to you to control the whole sitting, you will decide when to stop, the entire responsibility is with you."

The machine is now in Topshop's Manchester store and then headed to Dublin through June 22nd. But if you can't make it to the studio yourself, you can at least see how others fared in the gallery. After some exhaustive analysis, we find that jumping seems to make pictures at least 110% better.

www.newtonmachinetopshop.com

—Vildana Kurtovic