From my last shoot with Mindy Ann a few weeks back. This was literally the last photo of the day as we fought the setting sun. It’s also probably both my and her favorite image from the shoot. Funny how often the first or last photo of a shoot turns out among the best.
Some more work the same day as the recently posted photos using candles with Moon. We took advantage of the surprisingly warm temperatures and setting sun for a few outdoor images in the backyard.
Some nice early spring images and a little light from a setting sun before it dipped behind the clouds. Since this is in my yard there are no nudes in these, but like the results. You can find more in the members area.
One more from the desert. Today a photo from the (sorta) famous snake shoot with Leanne from June 2013 near Phoenix. Short version of the story is that while Leanne and I were working that day we ran into a rattlesnake. We decided that was enough outside for the day. Here is a photo from later in the shoot as the sun began to set and again the wonderful golden light began to come down. We didn’t get too many of these because of the abrupt ending, but nice photo of her in that light.
Leanne and I did some work later inside that day, and I had the chance to work with her again in November. None of our shoots have been dull and she did well adapting to the interesting circumstances. Enjoyed working with her both times and hope to have the chance again.
Keeping in the desert for another day and going back to the first shoot I did near Phoenix back in 2012 with Jen Phoenix. This was my first time working in the desert. We shot late in the early evening and were perfectly located out there for the wonderful golden light of the setting sun. The timing and location were great. Toward the end of the evening the sun began setting over a ridge and we finished scrambling up a hill across the valley chasing the light as long as we could.
Here is a photo I don’t think I’ve posted before from the shoot from right as the sun started taking on that nice golden glow. Here we were working around a large outcrop of rocks found while heading toward the valley we’d later end up chasing the setting sun along. Love the relaxed pose here, almost enjoying the last light of the day. It’s also a bit more relaxed than many of the more intense artistic poses around it making it stand out a bit.
You know, looking back at that 2012 trip out west I spent way too much time trying to fight the desert sun at the wrong times of day. Looking back I think my biggest accomplishment on these shoots was not getting a serious sunburn along the way. Though I did learn the lesson in that my outdoors shoots in the desert since have all been scheduled around sunrise or sunset.
This photo of Wonderhussy comes from near Las Vegas again starting too late in the morning. As always when the sun is too much, look for shade. This photo of Wonderhussy has her posing on a rock wall. Again it was way too hot by the time we wrapped up. Loved the nice red color of the formations here, and it’s probably not where you think.
Going to the desert for today’s photo for this image of Plush from back in 2012 near Phoenix, my last before leaving the city that year. I love the desert light in the early morning or evening. This shoot started later in the morning and we probably wrapped up around noon. By then it was very hot and the light was really harsh, pushing us into the shadows like in this image. The terrain and rocks at this location were gorgeous, enough so that I came back my next trip with Arizona though that shoot didn’t go as smoothly.
This month I’m going to try a bit of an experiment. Mixed in among the more normal entries I’m going to try to post at least one photo every day. Some will be never before posted, and others may be repeats. Some will just be a photo with little other comments, and others may have some added comments about the shoot or other items. I’ll probably start with some of my earlier work, but who knows what will end up here before the month ends.
Today’s starting with a photo from my first and only shoot with Carlotta Champagne back in 2010. An outdoor shoot at one of my favorite locations, which I’d not used that many times before this shoot. In fact I want to say this was only the second time I’d ever used this waterfall as a location. It was a good shoot and enjoyed working with her.
So the start of my month of photos came a day early. Actually the Tumblr version of the May 1 post went up a day early due to a bug in the tool that sends my posts here to Tumblr. Hopefully this one goes out as it should. So bonus photo to actually show on May 1.
Going way back for today’s image, early 2009. The model is Melody and she travelled through on her way to Nashville from somewhere in North Carolina, but I honestly don’t remember much else about the shoot. My main focus of the shoot was a concept inspired by a music video I’d seen a few days before. Here though is a more art nude styled image. I like the pose here, but wince a bit looking at my lighting and a lot at that background.
After the shoot with Bree using candles, I decided to work the concept again with Xlcr Moon in another shoot. The setup I build much the same with the black flooring and black background. The main difference in these images came in planning to shoot them in color from the start. Moon’s pink hair provided a nice focal point for the color images. Adding color also made me feel more free to bring in some of the wood flooring in addition to the foam core such as in this first photo.
Candle light provides a different color texture and feel to the images compared to working off traditional flashes. The dim light also meant longer exposures. Having models capable of holding a pose for a few seconds both here and with Bree let me take longer exposures giving the candle light time to provide a more even soft glow.
As always you can see more from the shoot in the Members Area.
Working outside takes a bit of luck. The weather from November through February rarely allows outdoor work. Even as late as May an unusually cool snap can bring cancel or bring a planned shoot to an early conclusion. So it’s a bit of a surprise that I’ve worked with Bree Addams a few times, and we’ve been able to shoot outdoors each time. It was a near thing last time thanks to threatening rain, but the shoot worked out very nicely. This time though we scheduled to work inside for the first time.
We started working with candles as the sole light source. I used candles in one of my first nude shoots, and have always liked the combination of the relatively dim and unsteady light with the nude form. The light is very distinct from any other light source and can give some interesting effects. Having all the light on the floor around Bree lets the dark areas dominate the image, especially toward the top of each photo. I like the way it brings focus to her and the different perspective of being lit from below instead of above.
I used a textured floor to give something else for the candle light to play on. The flooring actually comes from foam core that was dimpled by stilettos in a shoot several years ago. I’ve found it handy for just these types of situations and keep it around. I like how these came out and the results inspired me to try some color variations in a shoot I’ll be posting images from soon. Also did some more traditional art nude work that day, but those will come later.
