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I started photographing
through the glass window from outside the steam room with
Valentine,
back in 2007. While I have photographed Natalia in
the shower before, I was always in the shower with her.
But when I left models in the steam room & photographed
them from outside, I knew that I wanted to ask Natalia to
pose for this setup.
Y'see,
this is how this setup works: We would close the steam
room door, and we would turn on the hot water through the
shower head (turning on the steam would be too intense --
it would be tough to see through that steam). There
are variations, but I would like the model from outside
the steam room, pointing the strobe heads through the glass
door or window and possibly bouncing it off the wall.
But with
the door closed & the showerhead going, it's very difficult
for the model to hear me. In normal circumstances,
I'm giving the model direction, feedback, & encouragement
all the time. With this setup, I have to give the
model all the direction before we close the door & turn
on the water.
I wanted
Natalia for this setup because she moves exceptionally well.
She's intelligent & creative, and she immediately grasped
what I was looking for. As you will see, she does
an excellent job under these circumstances.
This
is the first image from the setup. The steam is just
beginning to accumulate in the steam room -- see?
You can almost make out the wall sculpture on the back wall.
You'll see that gradually morph into a white blob in the
coming images.
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Besides being
unable to get direction & feedback from me, there are
additional posing challenges for the model:
-
I've learned that I can put a pad on the floor under
the model -- you can't really see it, but I like Natalia's
knees, and I'm sure they prefer the pad to the stone
tile.
-
The space is very tight -- that window is just that
wide and no wider.
-
Because of the steam, the model has to be as close to
the window as possible (and pressing against that window
is often interesting).
-
The space for the lights is cramped, too. For
the most part, the model has to kneel or sit on the
floor.
Natalia
is a moving dynamo -- she finds all sorts of interesting
shapes for me to photograph. I can hardly keep up.
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A person's
face is the most expressive part of his/her body; hands
are the second most expressive part. I also have to
admit that I didn't realize that Natalia was blowing me
a kiss until I edited these images.
As I'm
drafting these images, I'm evolving my recent resolution
to keep only B&W or only color images on each page.
Instead, I think I'll keep only B&W or only color images
on these public pages, but I'll allow myself to mix them
on the Out Takes pages.
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I especially
like the added abstractness of this image and the femininity
of Natalia's pose.
When
I lived in California, I found that the local models all
talked together but the local photographers pretty much
kept to themselves. Up here in Portland, there's more
of a local photographic community, and all of us talk with
each other.
I've
had the opportunity to work with other photographers.
I've noticed that some don't talk much with their models
while they are working together. (That's fine; to
each his/her own). In these cases, the photographer's
creativity is limited to arranging to bring the model, location,
and lighting together, and they just capture what they see.
I guess
I'm more of a control freak -- I talk with models all the
time. Sure, most often, we are just talking about
stuff that has nothing to do with the images we are making,
but I am also telling the model what I am seeing, what I'm
looking for. The model may have suggestions (and we
always try them), and I may have suggestions. My sessions
with models are highly interactive.
Not so
here -- Natalia can't hear me, and she can't see what I
am seeing. I can't show her the images on my camera's
LCD screen. She just moves, and I try to keep up.
We are
both inside our own heads, but we are definitely still working
together.
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I'd like to
think that Natalia is really enjoying herself in
this setup.
It's
funny. I really study each & every image from
each & every setup of each & every session.
I may make up to 300 exposures or more from each session,
and I have to admit that I edit each one. It takes
weeks.
But as
a rule, I don't discuss the images with most models:
-
I don't want to make them uncomfortable (they might
not have enjoyed the images),
-
They might have different tastes than I do,
-
If they are proficient, these sessions might blur together,
-
Some models don't know how to express their thoughts
in a diplomatic manner,
-
etc.
Natalia
is also a photographer, and she creates some terrific images.
She has volunteer some information -- in fact, she picked
out about a half-dozen of her favorite images. Still,
we haven't discussed the session in detail. I figure
she's too busy for that.
Still,
I'm satisfied -- this setup is wet & messy, and I think
Natalia found the water on her skin to be sensuous.
I think she got into it, and she was constantly moving.
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Natalia is
constantly moving. She has already far exceeded my
expectations -- she keeps coming up with new poses, and
she is maintaining my interest.
Nataila
has strong, expressive hands.
I like this
image a lot. The setup & the technical aspect
are working together well: her hand on the glass means
that they are sharply defined, but her face, a little ways
away from the window, gets softened by the steam & the
water condensation on the glass. Further, there is a little
wide-angle lens distortion here, making Natalia's hand appear
large. Finally, I like the abstraction, the loss of
details while maintaining shape & form.
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