Category: shoot

So far it’s been a cold and snowy winter here in East Tennessee.  We’ve already had a few significant snows (around here anything more than an inch is significant) along with an ice storm.  Yesterday had a somewhat unexpected couple of inches that’s already mostly melted, but the forecast calls for more snow overnight into Saturday.

I’ve really enjoyed shooting outdoors since spring and the temperatures and weather make that pretty much impossible now.  With one exception I’ve shot indoors since November began.  That one exception was a short shoot where the model and I talked ourselves into giving it a try.  We got some nice work, but it was way too cold to be shooting nudes outdoors and we had to call it a short day.  I do give the model a lot of credit for braving the elements that morning.

One of the last images I shot that day and therefore one of the last outdoor nudes I shot in 2010.  The model, Adrina Lynn, stopped shooting nudes a few weeks later, so I was glad to get the chance to get to work with her before she made the change.

In mid-September I had the chance to work with Melissa Troutt as she was travelling with fellow model Katlyn Lacoste.  The two have worked together quite a bit and it really showed in their images together.  We spent a long and fruitful day working in one of my favorite areas in Northeast Tennessee.  The weather was perfect and we got an amazing day and many great shots including a few that I’m going to share.

I’ve actually rarely worked with two models at the same time.  One of my first nude shoots had a brief overlap where I worked with two models together between working with them alone.  My inexperience left the photos lacking and I didn’t attempt the concept again for a number of years until I’d gained more experience working with just one model.  In fact the next two attempts both had a bit of a jinx as the first was beset with problems and the second last fall came right before the personal issues that put me off photography for a while and it never got the attention it deserved.  In fact I hope soon to go back and process the photos from that shoot again as I know they deserve more attention.

Working with two models is a different experience than working with a single model.  In fact the biggest mistake that I think I made during this shoot was being too conservative in working with them.  I too often took simple compositions and centered the models in the frame instead of more interesting compositions.  It’s a lesson for the next time and a reminder to me to not be as timid when trying new ideas and concepts.  There was one place though where I did not take that conservative route and think the resulting image is amazing.

This image was the one I mentioned and that inspired my Post on Learning from Mistakes.  As I mentioned there, this image was the result of what initially was a mistake.  The image was shot with both Melissa and Katlyn lying on the rocks at a waterfall perhaps thirty feet from me.  A few shots before I’d mistakenly hit the trigger while recomposing by zooming in from a wide angle to close shot of them.  The result of that try was a mess, but I noticed the warping effect you see here in that image.  This was the best of several images that I took experimenting with creating that effect.  The dreamlike and almost vertigo like effect to it really appeals to me.

A couple of final images from the shoot with Carlotta Champagne in late August.  I do think that is probably my second favorite location that I’ve shot at this year.  It’s a relatively short hike from the trailhead to this falls, but the trail is rugged enough to keep the traffic down for the distance.  I’ve shot there a number of times and rarely been disturbed even after a lengthy shoot.  The only disadvantage is that the rough terrain and noise from the falls generally means you’ll have no idea someone’s coming until they are on top of you.  It can make things a little exciting when working without a lookout.

The first image I like for the different perspective.  It was done late in the shoot and actually in the rocks that are a probably forty to fifty feet from the base of the falls.  The rock that Carlotta is sitting on here lies above the stream that flows out of the base of the falls.

The second image is a black and white taken among some fallen trees near the falls.  The water from the falls is visible in the background and the falls itself is to Carlotta’s right.

A few other images from the shoot with Carlotta Champagne last month.  As I post this image taken on a warm day just over a month ago, today really felt like fall for the first time.  We had a dreary day with temperatures in the 50’s and a cool, light rain much of the day.  I still hope to have a couple more shoots before the weather makes them too cold and have one more shoot that I’ve not posted anything from yet.

This image comes with Carlotta at the base of the falls.  The sun was at the perfect angle to provide a nice highlight on her as she posed here and I was able to capture that fleeting light.  A lot less water comes over the falls in late summer compared to the spring, but the depth of the pool here didn’t differ by more than a few inches from when I’d shot here in March with Melissa.  The difference showed more in the size of the pool as the spot I’m taking this photo from would have been wet in March, but was dry in August.

As a bonus, I’m also posting a variation of the image from my last post.  I think that I like it better in black and white.

It’s really starting to feel like fall now.  The weather in East Tennessee the last few days has been much cooler and less humid after a long and hot summer.  That means I’m going to have to start winding down the outdoor nudes project for the year as the weather gets cooler.  While I expect I’ll be able to get in a few more shoots maybe even in as late as November if I’m lucky, the truth is that most of the shoots for this project are now done.  I’m happy as I things worked well and I had the chance to work with a number of amazing models.

In late August I had the chance to work with Carlotta Champagne, a talented model who has been featured in Playboy and Carrie Leigh’s Nude among her many other credits.  Also, thanks to Carlotta for going a bit out of her way on her trip to work with me.  We shot at a waterfall that I’d used earlier in the year with Melissa Troutt, but the months between the shoots make it look like a different location.

This first image from that shoot is probably my favorite from the work that we did together that day.  I love the curve of her body against the waterfall and rocks behind her and how she stands out against the background.

I’ve always seen this blog as a bit of a journey and after pondering for the last week I’m making a minor course correction.  In the past I’ve posted a number of photos from a shoot together.  Sometimes I did this with commentary and other times I left the photos stand alone.  I preferred posting with some thoughts about the image and think that I’m going to try to do that more starting in this entry.  I’m also going to move away from posting as many images and concentrate more on a set of a few chosen images.

I’m only posting one more image for now from that shoot with Melissa back in July that I call Last Night.

Really it’s a combination of five images combined to tell a story.  Sometimes you go into a shoot with the specific idea you want to capture, but not in this case.  This was more experimental where Melissa and I started shooting with her in lingerie on a futon and I just let the idea evolve during the shoot.  Melissa is great to work with like this as she brings a lot of experience and her own ideas.  This image was a result of following those idea through.  In fact one of the images making the final photo (the bottom right image) was shot the day before in a completely unrelated context, but I think it makes the result better.  With that final image, the other four take an entirely different meaning and it elevates it above a standard erotic image.

I also like how much is implied even though she is alone and without showing anything explicit.  I much prefer to imply sexuality instead of being blatant with it and I think that this accomplishes that well.