John French (1907-1966) was an English fashion and portrait photographer. Originally trained as a commercial artist, French went on to set up his own photographic studio in 1948. French devoted much attention to the set and posing of his models and left the actual triggering of the shutter to assistants, including Terence Donovan and David Bailey. Using natural light and low contrast, French pioneered a new form of fashion photography, perfectly suited for reproduction in newsprint.