Please Take Off Your Clothes

When Betcee first visited me, she arrived with another photographer who wanted to use my home as a location for his photography (you can see images of Betcee from that sitting on his website). When Betcee came by for her second sitting, I shared her with Jessica -- in fact, we had a whole day photo orgy, spending time both here and on location, with Betcee posing alone and with Jessica.

This time, our third sitting together, was the first "typical" sitting -- just the model & me. It was very fun -- we had gotten to know each other fairly well over the past several months, and we were quite comfortable with each other. In fact, this sitting was the only one she undertook while in town.

I believe that all of us are a little bit blind and a little bit ignorant about our blindness. Occasionally, some gifted genius will see something that all of us could have seen but didn't. That's how Sir Isaac Newton was able to see an apple falling & as a result invented calculus. That's how Galileo was able to observe the night sky & deduce that the earth traveled around the sun. Who knows how Albert Einstein was able to see the relationship between mass & energy or how gravity was able to bend & attract light?

The essence of science is also the essence of art: observation. Perhaps that's why I enjoy this "getting started" setup so much. It always amazes me how these glorious, beautiful models can look just like regular folk you are likely to meet on the street.

Hence, I ask models to start a sitting wearing the clothes she wore when she rang my doorbell, and then as they remove their clothing, we can see them transform into nude goddesses.

Betcee's best physical feature is her lovely face, including her sultry blue eyes.

I mention this because unlike many other models, Betcee looks like a model even when she's walking around on the street -- you are just captivated by her eyes. I have to admit that I stood a little taller when I walked with her around town, showing her the sights.

Betcee takes her time removing her clothing.

I remember some visitor once asked me what I find most attractive in a model, and my answer was & is "confidence". Betcee is totally comfortable in & out of her clothes (at least around me).

Much as I enjoy Betcee's entrancing eyes, I am always pleased by the appearance of her smooth, clear skin.

Now that I think about it, another positive aspect of this "getting started" setup is that it gives the model something to think about & something to do with her hands.

In fact, that's advice I give to other photographers who ask for tips: give your models something to do with her hands. I should listen to myself more often.

Well, I did it again -- I got a beautiful woman to remove her clothes for my camera. I could be the luckiest fellow in the world!

When I first starting making nude photographs, my planning often ended when I negotiated with a model for a date, time, and compensation. I would rely on "the moment" of the sitting for inspiration, and afterwards, I would often be disappointed with the results (e.g. nothing new or significant). Nowadays, I do much more session planning -- by that I mean that I figure out maybe five or six different setups to try, and during the sitting, we settle on three or four to implement. Further, I can give the model advance notice of some of the ideas & give her some time to think about what sort of poses would be appropriate. Experienced models like Betcee especially appreciate this.

So, what did I have planned for this sitting with Betcee? Certainly, the "getting started" concept, where she starts in her street clothing & removes them was one. Our first sitting, due to technical errors on my part, only produced a few worthwhile images -- the sitting met its objective of "getting acquainted" but it didn't produce meaningful images. In deference to Jessica, our second sitting utilized natural light in a variety of natural settings. Although I enjoyed these pictures greatly, I decided that it was time for me to return to my roots, specifically fine art studio lighting. Our next setup follows.

This sitting continues with Clothed In Shadows.