Fashion photographer David Bailey captured Queen Elizabeth’s youthful spirit ahead of her 88th birthday on April 21.
"I've always been a huge fan of the Queen. She has very kind eyes with a mischievous glint,” said Bailey according to Britain’s Press Association. “I've always liked strong women and she is a very strong woman."
His affable nature behind-the-lens helped catch the oft photographed Queen with a more candid expression than what is seen in her typical formal portraits.
British-born Bailey, 76, rose to prominence as a fixture in the ‘Swinging London’ scene of the 1960s, and was caricaturized in Michelangelo Antonioni’s 1966 film Blow-Up. Antonioni based the film’s main character on Bailey’s signature flamboyant rapport with his subjects.
The portrait was commissioned as part of the GREAT Britain campaign, intended to encourage business and tourism to the country.