{"id":165099,"date":"2017-04-28T09:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-04-28T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/heartifb.com\/?p=165099"},"modified":"2024-02-13T23:10:41","modified_gmt":"2024-02-14T07:10:41","slug":"masculine-style-blog-tanner-guzy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/heartifb.com\/masculine-style-blog-tanner-guzy\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Masculine Style Blogger Tanner Guzy is Not A Fashion Blogger"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/p>\n
“So much of what I do is talking about mindset or self-improvement with my readers and viewers,” Guzy states, in an interview with IFB. “You can take the principles that I teach guys about dressing, your presence and other variables and apply it to so much more than just the clothing that you put on your body.”<\/p>\n
Guzy founded Masculine Style as a menswear advice blog in 2011 and joined Youtube in 2014<\/a>. Throughout the past few years the Masculine Style brand has\u00a0continued to evolve. Originally acting as a space where men can seek practical style help for any occasion, Masculine Style – in addition to still dishing out advice – \u00a0discusses topics such as the philosophy behind getting dressed, style\u00a0as a method of communication and the power physical appearance in today's world. It also acts as a community for self-improvement-minded men, who value the importance of looking sharp for\u00a0any occasion.<\/p>\n We spent some time chatting with Guzy about the Masculine Style brand and the philosophy behind the blog – check out the interview below if you're curious to learn about his approach to running a menswear style blog, tips on getting started with Youtube and why he's adverse to\u00a0labeling\u00a0himself a fashion blogger.<\/p>\n Name:<\/strong> Tanner Guzy I wouldn\u2019t say that I\u2019m totally adverse\u00a0to going beyond [sticking with blogging and online self-publishing] . . . As far as wanting to go work for a radio station or write for GQ [or other media outlets], I love that we\u2019re in the \u201cwild west\u201d with the Internet, where you can do what you want, be your own boss and set the tone of how you want things to be. I love how it\u2019s made things more meritocratic. Instead of having to choose between GQ or Esquire \u2013 because those are only two options [for information on menswear style and fashions] \u2013 you\u2019ve got hundreds, if not thousands of options out there. You can go and find who is objectively \u201cthe best\u201d, or whoever \u201cspeaks\u201d your [style] language or someone you\u2019ll most identify with [style-wise]. It opens up a whole lot of options for Millennials, to be able to find somebody who they can identity with and then start to internalize what it is that that person is teaching (as opposed to just one or the other.)<\/p>\n Everyone is the hero of their own story. [I see it as] my job is to be someone like Yoda or Dumbledore, someone who is leading the hero along his journey. Ultimately, what that means [as a style blogger and style consultant] is that my job is to become obsolete in the eyes of my clients, Youtube viewers and the blog readers. If I\u2019m doing it right eventually they won\u2019t need me anymore, because I\u2019ve taught them [via the blog and Youtube channel] the principles and foundations that they can apply to various situations [when it comes to style, appearance and attitude.]<\/p>\n <\/p>\n It was definitely something that evolved over time.<\/p>\n When I first started writing [about menswear style] \u2013 and you can go back to my first articles \u2013 it was really basic stuff (like how to tie a tie and everything that is oversaturated in menswear blogging). As I started to find my own voice and see where there were holes in the [menswear blogging] market . . . this ended up leading me to this idea of approaching it from a philosophical mindset, as opposed to discussing the tactics of \u201cWear This With This\u201d or \u201cDon\u2019t Wear This.\u201d<\/p>\n The book will be called The Appearance of Power<\/em>; it\u2019s a long form version of everything I have been talking about on Masculine Style throughout the past six years.<\/p>\n When you talk about sociology and philosophy, telling a story and communicating masculinity through your clothing, it really dives into a lot of the aspects – you really have to take it in the long format. In the book, I\u2019ll be discussing the differences between visual appeal and visual power; how men and women dress and why [we dress differently from one and other] etc. I\u2019ve got something in there called “The Battle Plan”, and that talks about the six components of what really needs to be factored into style . . . It\u2019s a strategy book, as opposed to a tactical book.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n I absolutely love it and I\u2019m glad I made the jump to Youtube. [I had to work on] getting over the idea of having it be perfect, before I could hit publish on anything \u2013 which is why it took so long to actually get a video up on the channel. I let perfect get in the way of being good enough and taking action.<\/p>\n Now it\u2019s actual work on my part to go back – \u00a0to write the blog posts and convert videos into written format – whereas turning on a camera and just going is so much fun; especially so, because of the immediacy it allows me with my audience. I\u2019ll put up a video on Tuesday and then I will go through all the comments that will come through, and will put up a response video based on those comments on Thursday. It really starts to turn it into a conversation and a community.<\/p>\n Vlogging is so much more than just responding to comments [on a written blog post], because there\u2019s so much more of a conversational aspect to it \u2013 you can see body language and visual aids, hear tone of voice, etc. which is really hard to get across to [your audience] when you\u2019re just writing.<\/p>\n I am currently using a Canon T6i<\/a> and it\u2019s got just a kit lens. I also use a simple lav mic<\/a>, with my Zoom H1 audio recorder<\/a>, and occasionally I\u2019ve got a shotgun mic<\/a> on there. Other than Joby Gorillapod<\/a>, I\u2019ve just picked up a slider for some more of my B-Roll \u2013 it\u2019s not a whole lot of gear.<\/p>\n I\u2019m finding that the videos that I would rather watch are of higher quality in their cinematography \u2013 and I want to create content that I would enjoy watching. [Therefore, I\u2019m getting] more and more into the cinematography [aspect of the filming process].<\/p>\n I use Final Cut Pro to edit my videos \u2013 I just upgraded a year ago from iMovie.<\/p>\n I just started with my phone; I didn\u2019t have a microphone and I barely had a tripod. You have to do just that.<\/p>\n You save to go through that stage and recognize that your first videos . . . are going to suck. And In a year or two, you\u2019re going to be totally embarrassed about them and you won\u2019t want anyone to see them \u2013 and you have to be okay with that. That is the only way you\u2019re going to get better, where you\u2019ll be able to produce content at a [higher] level. You make to make mistakes to get to that point [where you content will be \u201cgood\u201d].<\/p>\n <\/p>\n That\u2019s funny, I haven\u2019t paid attention to that; I have no qualms about calling myself a style blogger.<\/p>\n Having spent time on the other side of the industry [at Beckett & Robb<\/a>], where I was actually involved with a brand and making a physical product . . . you have two very different tribes: those who are making stuff and those who are writing about stuff, and there isn\u2019t a whole lot of overlap. I think that was why I probably didn\u2019t use it [the term blogger] as strongly; up until a month ago, I had one foot in both of those worlds and now it\u2019s entirely working from the blogger and influencer aspect of it.<\/p>\n \u201cFashion\u201d, on the other hand, is a word I very actively choose to avoid. From my own experience (and from my experience with most of my clients and my readers) [the term] is mostly associated with femininity \u2013 which is not a bad thing at all. It\u2019s just not my demographic or who I write for. Fashion is usually externally projecting onto the person wearing it; whereas, I\u2019m trying to get men to understand is that your style is an external expression of who you are internally. It\u2019s inward-out, instead of outward.<\/p>\n *Interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.<\/em><\/p>\n **All images taken from\u00a0@tannerguzy<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n
\nAge:<\/strong> 32
\nLocation:<\/strong> Salt Lake City, Utah, United States
\nOccupation:<\/strong> Full Time Blogger at Masculine Style<\/a>\u00a0and Menswear Style Vlogger\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
You have a background in journalism and mass communications, and worked in radio for a period of time.<\/em><\/h3>\n
In an interview with Elite Man magazine\u2019s podcast<\/a>, you discussed how you fell into menswear blogging (while trying to \u201chone\u201d your journalistic voice) and stated \u201cI am totally in this industry and want nothing to do with journalism any more, and I couldn\u2019t be any happier with the happy accident\u201d that falling into blogging was for yourself.<\/em><\/h3>\n
Would you never consider contributing to a mainstream media outlet such as, say, GQ magazine in the future?<\/em><\/h3>\n
\nNews is being reported [via] Twitter nowadays, as opposed to my having to turn on CNN or Fox News [to be informed of current events]. People are live streaming fashion events and fashion shows . . . I don\u2019t have to go to GQ to get information anymore; I love the element of being able to see it [i.e. information, news, data, trends, etc.] in its real form, as opposed to going through the bureaucratic red tape of [established mass media companies]. I love how the internet is really the wild west of all this stuff.<\/p>\nWith all this information floating around on the web and with everyone being able to project a voice out there, how do you think it\u2019s influenced Millennials [and the next generation] and how we related to style today?<\/em><\/h3>\n
How do you ensure that you\u2019re providing valuable content to your readers and subscribers, and what they really need [in terms of style advice and help], as opposed to just . . . trivial information or \u201ceye-candy\u201d (as many menswear bloggers do, by featuring themselves as the main focus of \u201cthe story\u201d, so to speak)?<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n
The Philosophy Behind Masculine Style<\/h2>\n
Masculine-style.com<\/a> and the Masculine Style brand addresses general themes surrounding the philosophy and sociology of a man's appearance, and how the power of a man\u2019s image affects his life. When you started Masculine Style in 2011, did you aim to work around themes or was this something that naturally developed over time?<\/strong><\/em><\/h3>\n
You have a book coming out in the near future \u2013 can you tell us a bit more about that?<\/em><\/h3>\n
Making The Jump From Blogger to Vlogger with\u00a0Masculine Style<\/h2>\n
You joined Youtube 2014, but didn\u2019t start posting videos on your channel until late-2015\/2016. It seems that 2016 was\u00a0the year of bloggers getting their Youtube channels up and running \u2013 how does making videos and posting vlogs on the Masculine Style channel<\/a> compare to creating content for the blog?<\/strong><\/em><\/h3>\n
What kind of camera and equipment do you use to film, edit and produce your Masculine Style vlogs?<\/strong><\/em><\/h3>\n
Any advice for people looking to get into Youtube or bloggers looking to make the jump?<\/strong><\/em><\/h3>\n
Don't call Him a Fashion Blogger – Masculine Style is a Style Blog<\/h2>\n
Lastly, going through your past interviews, articles, etc. on yourself and the Masculine Style blog I have seen every title except the words \u201cStyle Blogger\u201d or \u201cFashion Blogger\u201d, describing your position and relationship with the Masculine Style brand. Do you have any adversity to these terms \u2013 or is this just a coincidence?<\/em><\/strong><\/h3>\n