Catherine Talese, photo editor of Absolute, explains the intentions behind the magazine's images:

In September 2004, when I joined the Absolute team to work on the prototype, I realized I would have to hire photographers with a strong voice to distinguish ourselves from other so-called luxury magazines. When looking at portfolios we were drawn towards work with drama and polish, a partnership we knew would help elevate our subjects, something our larger paper size really helps us maximize. Robin Broadbent's exquisite rendering of Lanvin pearls pushed the page limit with its graphic scale and tonality. Mitch Feinberg and Andrew Bettles imagesfrom ABSOLUTES demonstrates the range of our still-lives. When discussing projects with our still life photographers, we'd often say we wanted to get at the glandular impact of things, and to monumentalize the experience. Paging through Absolute should be a sensual experience for our reader. In our summer issue, for example, we photographed gooseberries for ABSOLUTES. The photographer Christopher Griffith and I were on set, marveling at these unusual fruit the size of small cherry tomatoes. How best to describe the delicacy of their leaves, the oily exterior of its berry and appreciate the bright orange fruit itself, in a skin that is practically transparent? We want our readers to feel they can touch the object in the photo. Photographers such as Anthony Cotsifas and Richard Pierce responded well to this directive. Richard's dramatic approach to vintage perfume bottles was a bit of a departure as he is a master of shooting against white, and was the result of creative discussions between Richard, Deanna Lowe, our Design Director, and myself.