The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show has been a tradition during the holiday season for 22 years and has become one of the most coveted jobs in the modeling world ever since the first catwalk event took place in 1995.
Throughout the years, the fashion show has become an increasingly popular tradition in the fashion industry, with almost every supermodel worth her salt walking on its runways, including the likes of Gisele Bündchen, Naomi Campbell, Kendall Jenner, Gigi Hadid, and Heidi Klum.
But while the very first Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show was held in 1995 at the Plaza Hotel in New York City, the runway show wasn’t accessible to the public until 1999 when it was webcast for the first time with over a million viewers from 90 countries.
However while the world has been privy to the catwalk collections, and official backstage image releases, a newly-released collection of never-before-seen images are revealing a much more candid side to the models’ backstage antics.
Photographer Russell James, who was hired by the brand around 20 years ago to in order to give its campaigns a more ‘fashion-forward look‘, has just published a new book entitled Backstage Secrets: A Decade Behind the Scenes at the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show, which is full to the brim of the ‘sexiest’ backstage images from his many years working as a photographer at the event.
The 55-year-old photographer is mostly noted for his innovative concept of shooting the backstage action which he described as ‘a delicate environment with the girls’, an intimate statement that is perfectly captured in the fun-filled nature of his snaps, which feature the likes of Kendall, Miranda Kerr, Candice Swanepoel, and Taylor Hill.
Book: Photographer, Russell James, released never before seen images from the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Shows, including Miranda Kerr (pictured) in his new book, Backstage Secrets
Friends: Kendall Jenner and Sara Sampaio pose backstage at the 2016 show held at the Grand Palais in Paris
Alessandra: Victoria’s Secret Angel Alessandra Ambrosio, 36, pictured at the 2015 show, just retired this year after modeling for the brand for 17 years
Paris: Brazilian model, Lais Ribeiro, 26, who earned her wings in 2015, poses with the orchestra at the 2016 show in Paris
Sneaky: Gisele Bündchen, 37, hides a hairstylist under her arm at the 2006 show at the Kodak Theatre in Los Angeles
Class of 2013: All of the models that walked in the 2013 show which was held in New York City pose backstage for a ‘class photo’
Sexy Stella: Stella Maxwell, 27, poses backstage at the 2016 show in Paris wearing a sexy lederhosen inspired outfit
Run! Candice Swanepoel, 29, spotted running barefoot backstage at the 2009 show held at the Lexington Avenue Armory in NYC
Pretty in pink: Doutzen Kroes, 32, growls at the camera, dressed as a sexy pink poodle from the 2012 show held at the Lexington Armory in New York City