Vassanta
October 13th, 2007
From warmer days, here’s a shot I did with Vassanta http://www.modelmayhem.com/member.php?id=209943 under a bridge in a little town north of Columbus. The light and backgrounds under bridges are often very nice. And, even in busy places, people seldom look under bridges, so it’s possible to shoot nudes, even with busy traffic going overhead.
There’s more to this story, though. If you look closely you will notice some small dark marks on the cement behind Vassanta. We both just thought they were marks on the wall…until Vassanta backed up against the cement and then noticed that those “marks” were actually little caterpillars which were now crawling all through her hair. The resulting screaming was loud and long…and put an end to our shooting in that location, lest someone come to investigate the screams of a woman in distress from under the bridge. There are hazards to doing figure work outdoors…but the bugs were harmless, other than upsetting Vassanta to no end. We were still picking them out of her hair as we drove back to her apartment…each newly discovered bug producing a new round of screams and convulsions.
But despite all that, Vassanta still is willing to work with me again…and we may do some more shooting this coming week. Thanks Vassanta, you are great!
It’s Getting Cold Outside
October 10th, 2007
Plant a flower
October 8th, 2007
Something a little different today.
We returned from our trip to Long Island and Vermont late Saturday night. Yesterday we went to visit a friend who has been in a series of hospitals for the past three months, ending up in a hospice. When we arrived his wife dashed out to run an errand, leaving my wife and I there in the room to stand beside his bed while he finally gave up his fight and breathed his last. He had had his 61st birthday the day before he died.
So, today feels a bit different from other days for me.
This is a photo from a few years ago of the bleeding hearts I planted beside our front door. I’ve always loved bleeding hearts. They are the first flower out in the spring, a sign of the new life and beauty that is coming. And I find them remarkably lovely.
So, I just suggest that you stop for a moment today, and every day, and enjoy the life and beauty that is all around you.
Back Home
October 7th, 2007
We are back from visiting Long Island, NYC and Vermont. It’s a busy day today, so here’s a snapshot I did with my little Casio pocket camera while we were walking to an Indian restaurant for lunch while visiting the Metropolitan Museum with some friends. I’ll be back to editing photos in a day or two and have some more things to share.
A Friend Indoors
October 1st, 2007
My friend posed in her house as well as in the river behind her house. She’s actually more “at home” in the indoor setting.
Friends
September 25th, 2007
It’s always nice to work with a model who is also a friend. That’s always my preference. It’s not necessary, it’s just nice.
This is an old friend. I first met her when she came to my old portrait studio many years ago to model wedding dresses for a local bridal shop. There were several models that day, but the two of us just hit it off. Later she would model a wedding gown in my booth at the annual bridal show. That was a huge success. My booth was the only one with a live model in a wedding dress. Of course, the next year every booth had a live model in a wedding dress…but that’s another story.
When I decided it was time for me to return to figure work after being away from it for more than ten years, my old friend was one of my first and most enthusiastic models. She brought her then boyfriend/now husband, a very artistic individual, along to the shoot and he helped with ideas. The shoot produced some photos that stayed in my portfolio for many years.
From time to time over the years we’ve done more figure shoots and I shoot photos for her whenever she needs something for her businesses. But she has a very busy life and we don’t get together nearly often enough.
So it was a real treat when she contacted me to say she needed some new headshots and thought it would be a good time for another figure shoot too. I only wish we got to do this more often.
Rock House
September 20th, 2007
Southeast Ohio has some beautiful locations for photos. I’ve been down there several times this summer to work. But the best locations are often very popular. Twice I went to this spot, an unusual cave with many openings that let in light. Each time there was a constant stream of people, making figure work impossible.
So, recently I got up at 3:30 in the morning, drove to Gaea’s apartment picking her and her boyfriend, Fen, up at 5 a.m. and off we went on the two-hour drive to this location.
We got there too early. There was no light when we arrived. A temperature in the upper 40s didn’t exactly thrill Gaea either.
But the sun wasn’t far behind us. And Gaea is a great model and a real trooper about the sort of things I keep getting her into. Her fuzzy blue bathrobe did help with the cold between shots too.
I haven’t really done an edit on the shoot yet, but thought I’d go ahead and share one of the shots here. I hope you think it was worth the effort.
Back to our irregularly scheduled nudity
September 14th, 2007
I’m back home from the visit to NYC. Still working on catching up on everything that got behind while I was away. Lots to edit and more to shoot in the coming weeks.
Coney Island
September 10th, 2007
Today you get a very different post from what I usually do. I’ll get back to naked women in my next post, but for now try to enjoy these snapshots.
Dave Rudin and I went to Coney Island on Saturday. That was the main reason for this trip to NYC. Coney Island may never again be what it has been. In the paper today it says that Astroland closed for the season yesterday and may never re-open. There are developers working to make Coney Island nice and Disneyfied. So sad. So I went to see it…I’d never been there and wanted to see it before it was gone for good, at least as it has been.
This wasn’t about making photos. I just took my little Canon G6 camera and did snaps as we walked around. That’s what’s here.
This guy clearly wanted a photo of me. He didn’t speak to me. So I took his photo too, and didn’t speak to him. Don’t know why he picked on me…maybe it was the straw cowboy hat and Hawaiian shirt I was wearing. I only saw one other straw cowboy hat and no Hawaiian shirts there…these New Yorkers just don’t know how to dress for a day in the 90s in the sun.
This is where we had lunch. It’s right beside Nathan’s. There was a huge line at Nathan’s, but here we just walked up and ordered. It was good food and they had Corona too. I’ve had Nathan’s hotdogs and honestly don’t know what the big deal is.
Dave Rudin keeps saying the guy at the bottom of this window reminds him of me…I don’t see the resemblance.
There’s lots of great carnival art at Coney Island. I’m afraid it will be gone soon.
This is a pretty obvious photo. I’m sure it’s been done by thousands of photographers. Now I’ve done it too.
The Wonder Wheel
The End…
News From New York
September 7th, 2007
Those of you who know Theda will know what a big deal this photo is. If I’m remembered for anything involving photography, I now expect it will be that I was the first photographer to get Theda to go out into the woods and lay on rocks and weeds for a photo shoot. She is pretty much the best model I’ve ever worked with, and even totally out of her element here, her beauty and talent shone through. She was quite the trooper about the whole thing to.
This is just the first of many from this day of shooting at a location just outside NYC. Wait until you see Theda in the lily pond. It was quite a day of firsts for her.
I’ve done one other shoot while I’ve been in the city. Today I also went to the International Center for Photography and to the Museum of Modern Art in the company of our old friend, my wife’s college roommate, Swapna. Tomorrow Dave Rudin and I plan to spend the day at Coney Island. Next week there’s another shoot, a brunch with my friend and model, Kat, and a trip to the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
