Icon not always in vogue

"To see the opera singers arrive at the studio and get themselves ready was an unforgettable moment," Testino says. "That was really, really exciting, because they couldn't really understand what they were doing there ... why I was interested in them."

"They are the biggest names in their field," Angelica Cheung, Vogue China's editor, says of the actors, such as Wen Ruhua and Wang Peiyu. This is Testino's first collaboration with the magazine, which boasts 1.3 million readers, about 10 percent of Vogue's global audience.

Vogue China's latest issue also features celebrity photos that Testino has snapped over the years: Lady Gaga, Brad Pitt, David and Victoria Beckham, Jennifer Lopez, Kate Moss.

"How do you stand out? I think that is by looking inward and seeing what you are and what you represent," Testino said at the forum, a point he repeatedly made. "Especially when you come from a country that is not England, France, Italy, America, you think that everything you think is less, and everything they think is more. We have to develop strength to really believe in ourselves."

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