I
love third sittings with good models! During the
first sitting, you are just getting acquainted. During the
second sitting, you are using generic concepts -- ideas that can
be done by any number of models. But during the third
sitting, you start to develop ideas that have been inspired by
that specific model.
However,
I was a little nervous about my third
sitting with Natalia. She's not
local, so we don't get to see each
other often, and our
last sitting wasn't exceptional because she wasn't
feeling well. Little did I know
that I was about to have one of my
best sittings ever!
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Normally, I get a week
or two advance warning before a sitting, especially with a traveling
model, but because of logistical problems, I got only a couple of
days' warning, but I so enjoy working with Natalia that I jumped at
the chance to work with her again.
Normally, during
the time before a sitting, I plan a handful of concepts for that
sitting, but because I didn't have much advance warning, I had only
come up with one idea (the one shown on the last page of this set, Close
Canyon).
So, as I show
Natalia that setup for Close Canyon, I admit to her that I was
experiencing the photographer's equivalent of writer's block.
She turns to me, smiles, and says something that would set the tone
for this wonderful sitting:
But,
you like the way I dress! |
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"You
like the way I dress".
That
is very true. Her style
is casual but unique.
I've like the choices she's
made & how her clothes
drape on her lovely figure.
I get as many comments
on my writing as I do on my
photography. People seem
to appreciate the insights I
share here in my commentary,
documenting my thought process
& what was going on in the
sitting.
However,
I have never found a similar
offering from a model's
perspective. There's
probably lots of reasons for
this -- models are not
selected based on their
ability to be verbally
articulate (although many are
quite intelligent &
creative &
articulate). Further,
models are hired by
photographers, which may
inhibit a model's willingness
to be totally honest.
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Now, I think I am
successful in getting beautiful models to work for me. I do well
in large part because I treat models well. I hope that when the
sitting is over, the model leaves feeling appreciated &
respected. (Creating good images is secondary to that, for
me). I will note, however, that not all photographers put that
kind of effort into such goals.
Natalia does a lot
of fashion / lifestyle modeling and even more fine art nude
modeling. But when she said "You like the way I dress"
to me, it was as if she was acknowledging that I appreciated her, the
real "her", and
not just her figure & face.
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Now,
I don't have to be close
friends with my models.
In fact, being friends is
fairly rare, especially since
I'm often older than the
model's parents. All we
need is some respect, a good
attitude, and some creativity,
and we can have gobs of fun
making beautiful images.
Natalia
is one of those models who
tends to keep things private,
and that's fine. We have
had some good times during our
sittings together, and that's
enough for me.
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It is
rare that I get meaningful feedback from a model. At most, I
would typically get some polite compliments.
But when Natalia
said, "You like the way I dress" with her pleased &
happy smile, that meant a lot to me. It meant that she took a
good look at the images we had made previously and that she had read
& remembered my comments from those sittings.
I always assume that when
someone models a lot, her experiences will tend to blur
together. In fact, one rare downside to experienced models is
that each experience tends to become more & more routine.
But by telling me
"You like the way I dress", Natalia was telling me that we
had something special that was unique to our chemistry together.
That made me feel special.
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During
our previous sitting together,
when Natalia posed while not
feeling all that well, we
spent nearly the entire
sitting with Natalia partially
clothed.
Before
this sitting, I told myself
that I'd make more nude
exposures of Natalia.
But then she said "You
like the way I dress",
and that made me happy.
As
you can see from the images on
this page, we were slowly
moving towards total
nudity. Partway through
this process, I noticed her
t-shirt, which I liked.
For the past several sittings
with various models, I've
photographed them topless,
wearing jeans & bare skin,
and I liked that.
Natalia were heading in that
direction today when I decided
to do the opposite. I
asked her to put that t-shirt
back on but to be otherwise
nude, and we made tons of
exposures that way. See
those on the next page.
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So,
a few key points:
- A
simple comment from Natalia made
me feel special & unique, and
with that little extra
inspiration, we had an exceptional
amount of fun.
- "Chemistry"
is an undervalued aspect to good
photography, and Natalia's simple
comment filled me with excitement,
and that sparked a gob of
creativity.
- We
made some exceptional images by
doing the opposite of what was
called for. Here, instead of
being topless, we made exposures
of Natalia wearing nothing but a
top.
This
sitting continues with The
Clothed Nude
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