Vogue, Elle, and WSJ Hire Same Photographer for Three ‘Identical’ Covers in One Week

Vogue, Elle, and The Wall Street Journal Magazine hired the same photographer for their November issues, resulting in three strikingly similar covers that have drawn criticism.

On Thursday, Vogue unveiled the cover for its November issue featuring actress Jenna Ortega, photographed by acclaimed Hungarian fashion photographer Szilveszter Makó.

The cover for Vogue reflects Makó’s signature painterly style, with Ortega posing in sculptural outfits against a trompe l’oeil backdrop that creates the illusion of depth and dimension. Makó’s painterly approach to photography stems from his early ambition to become a painter. The photographer is famed for creating theatrical, carefully constructed scenes that evoke fantasy while using real-life elements rather than Photoshop or AI.

However, according to a report by Page Six, the Vogue cover follows two “identical” magazine covers released in the last week and which were also photographed by Makó. Earlier this week, The Wall Street Journal Magazine featured Makó’s portrait of supermodel Gigi Hadid on its cover in a similar art-like set up. Meanwhile three days ago, Elle published a theatrical cover also shot by the Hungarian photographer featuring Euphoria actress Hunter Schafer.

‘It’s Irresponsible From The Photographer’s Side’

All three covers for The Wall Street Journal Magazine, Vogue, and Elle were released within days of each other and feature portraits by Mako in a similar visual style. In a statement to Page Six, an unidentified fashion media source blamed the photographer for allegedly failing to alert the publications that they were using the same concept for their covers in the same month.

“This is a giant screw-up,” the source tells the news outlet. “Vogue is the leader. It’s bad and unheard of. We don’t know the timing of the shoots, but it’s irresponsible from the photographer’s side not to let the magazines know they’re doing the same concept.”

ALL the magazine covers photographed by ✨️Szilveszter Makó✨️ over the past four months.🪡

PS: I have a feeling there’s more to come https://t.co/g3L3OPuT0O

— La Mode Unknown (@LaModeUnknown) October 22, 2026

The source also criticized Vogue for publishing a cover that closely resembled other major magazines’ recent covers and says it is unusual for the leading fashion magazine to be the last to publish its cover.

“The fact that Vogue is the last — and I love [editor] Chloe Malle and the covers — it’s so unlike Vogue,” the source adds. “I have never, ever, ever seen anything like this before.”

According to Page Six’s source, the similar covers raise questions about the long-standing fashion industry tradition of photographer exclusivity. Vogue once kept major photographers closely tied to the magazine’s publisher Condé Nast. But it is believed that tighter budgets have made it harder for the publisher to maintain such arrangements with photographers.

A source close to the matter tells the news outlet that Hadid’s cover was planned in March and photographed in July for a digital-only couture feature focused on photography and that “any visual similarities across Szilveszter’s work are a reflection of his well-known signature aesthetic.”