There are several reasons why Vogue Russia's shoot of models with their mothers for the September issue is a stroke of genius. First of all, they're stunning, intimate images, taken by photographer Danil Galovkin. Secondly, they pull at the heart strings – suddenly, we see these professional beauties as young women with parents, and it's touching to see them in a more personal context. And thirdly – who wouldn't want to scrutinise the kind of genes that lead to a career of being photographed for Vogue?

It's not the first shoot on this theme – in fact photographer Howard Schatz has been snapping models with their mothers for over a decade (and if you, like us, are fascinated by the concept, you can see 19 of his images courtesy of the New York Times). It's clearly a winning formula.

This time, they're photographed in the AW13 collections of Prada, Balenciaga, Miu Miu, Dolce & Gabbana, Valentino, Emporio Armani and more, and styled by Olga Dunina.

The all-Russian cast of models includes Vlada Roslyakova (top), Maryna Linchuk (second image), Valery Kaufman (above), Anna Martynova (below), Sasha Luss, Anna Selezneva, Katya Riabinkina, Nastya Kusakina, Irina Nikolaeva and Anastasia Ivanova – plus, of course their all-important mums.