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Here's the
very first image of the day. Keira had posed for me
twice before, and she knew I liked to start each session
with the "Getting Started" setup (where the model
starts with the clothes she wears to the door, and we make
photographs as she removes her clothing). She put
a little thought into what she was going to wear for this
first setup, and she chose this little tight black dress,
her lacy stockings, the new jacket, and those funky shoes
(because she knew that we'd be walking around afterwards).
The rare Autumn sunlight was unexpected, and we chose to
take advantage of this gift from Mother Nature. |
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When we
do these "Getting Started" setups, the model knows
the overall concept beforehand. After we make a few
exposures with the model fully clothed, I simply ask her
to get started and to take her time. What the model
removes and how she removes it is the model's choice.
I like doing it this way -- the model is more engaged and
feels that she is making a significant contribution to the
artistic process. Sometimes, the order of clothing
removal is predictable; sometimes not. In any case,
the model gets a say in how she expresses herself.
Today,
Keira's jacket is the first to go.
I love
the tight dress -- this is my first look at it. Keira
has such a muscular & defined figure that tight clothing
always looks especially well on her. Most of the time,
I've seen her in loose clothing, but I'm pretty sure that
the next time we get together, I'll request that she dresses
tight for some of the images we make.
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Some models
take their own sweet time removing their clothing, and that's
fine with me. The anticipation can be exciting.
Other
models, like Keira, can't wait to shed their clothing.
That's also fine with me.
All the
models I know are comfortable being without clothes.
Sometimes I think that Keira is not comfortable in clothing
at all. When we work together, she moves around the
house nude -- no robe, no blanket, no sweat pants (like
many other models wear between setups). "Nude"
is just her natural state.
(Calculating the exposure is a nightmare today -- the
sunlight is bright & harsh, and Keira is very fair skinned.
I'm afraid that many of these images are overexposed.
Sorry.)
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Part of
me will be sad to see the dress go. Does that mean
I'm getting older? |
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On second
thought, I'm probably not sad to see the dress go.
Keira has a figure that is absolutely breathtaking. |
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I do like
the way Keira moves. Her body is a three ring circus.
I am
sorry that there isn't enough tonal separation between the
hot spot on her belly and the bright wall behind her.
I do like that the wall has a textured paint effect, but
if/when I repaint my house in a few years, I think I'll
have to tone that wall down a bit.
I still
do experiment with my editing software's "artistic
effects"; below is one example of an effect that I
usually don't use. I must be enjoying these images
a lot, because I'm doing a lot of experimenting with them.
In general, feedback from web site visitors is tepid with
regards to the "artistic effects" -- see the Out
Takes gallery for more examples.
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Off with
her shoes!
I look
at my own photographs a lot. In fact, that's the real
advantage to creating web pages like this -- I select significant
images, and that selection process makes me think about
my images. In particular, I notice that when I'm left
on my own devices, I tend to create images from a specific
distance from the model. However, I especially enjoy
unusual (often off-center) compositions, and for that to
work, I have to step back & include more in the image.
Nowadays, I look for excuses to create images with a wider
field of view. Here's a case in point. Under
normal circumstances, my eye would be drawn to the beautiful
naked woman on my floor. But I'm not here to talk
with a nude woman; I'm here to make artistic images, so
I have to be aware of the surroundings. Hence, I include
the discarded jacket & shoes. What are you looking
at?
Check
out the image below, where Keira is removing her stocking.
It's not quite as tall as the image above, making the horizontal-ness
stronger. Hence, Keira's figure seems even more off-center
than before. For me, this works.
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I have to
admit that I am enjoying these non-conventional composition
greatly. Images like this just make my eyes dance. |
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To be honest,
these photo sessions are exhausting! I think
I have several separate thought trains going on in my head
at all times. I'm engaging the model in the process,
I'm evaluating the most recent image, I'm creating a mental
checklist for the current setup, I'm keeping an eye on the
clock, I'm thinking about what I should do next to shake
things up, etc.
One trick
I do is that when I start to feel that I'm repeating myself
within a setup, I look for ways to change things up within
the current setup. One easy change to consider is
stepping back or moving in close (like here).
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The pendulum
swings back. After some super-close exposures, I step
back, set the camera's lens at "wide angle", and
find some interesting (to me) compositions.
I'm finding
that I don't like the super-close images. I'm confident
that Keira doesn't mind -- we are quite comfortable with
each other, but I do feel that I'm crowding her. Moreover,
there's something about the super-close-up that feels like
something a beginner would do. These images are all
about the space and the light.
This
image might be my favorite Keira Grant image.
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I like this
picture a lot, too. Both Keira's pose and the composition
is a bit screwy, but both work well. I'm also gratified
that the exposure is a lot better. And I love the
light & tonality. |
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For the
most part, I'm not a fan of the "contemplating model"
picture. I especially loathe the "model wistfully
staring out the window" images.
But I
kinda like this image: the composition is strong &
unusual, and we don't wonder what the model is looking at.
I like the tonality. It is a balanced image.
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As a photographer
of the nude, I am often interested in those images where
a model appears more nude than is typical. This is
one such image to me. The thing that makes me meditate
on this image is that I can't articulate why I think
this is more nude than nude. I like the light.
I like that Keira (as always) is comfortable in her skin,
yet her expression is a little more vulnerable. I
love has absolutely fit Keira is. I don't even mind
the electric socket on the wall -- it contributes to the "realness"
of the image.
As many
visitors know, I do a lot of cropping of my images, and
this is a cropped image. The image below is a wider
view of this exposure, but I like this tighter cropping.
I think I have a couple of style -- I greatly enjoy interesting,
non-standard compositions (below), and I often enjoy reducing
the details of an image to those parts that are essential
(left).
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I think
Keira got tired of being in the corner long before I did.
Then again, I got to look at her, but she got to look at
me.
That
is one of the photographer's responsibilities. The
photographer should be giving the model feedback & describing
not only what he sees but also what he wants to see.
Still,
Keira is patient with me, and she is quite happy working
in any spot.
For the
moment, we move her under the window.
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Subtle changes
happened when Keira got up on her knees. I knew that
exposure would be challenging, but I soon decided to ask
Keira to stand directly in front of the window. |
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