Invoking the Goddess

Here is Melissa again, by the way... was lucky enough to get her for a second shoot on Sunday before she left town.

Sorry for the blog-slackery this week. Been busy and the heat is just melting my brain, so I seem to be functioning at about 2/3 speed. Guess the photo news of the week besides Melissa was Boyd's group shoot at Collingwood in Toledo this past Saturday. For some reason, I just can't seem to do good work at these things, while others seem to use the opportunity to make some very cool images. I don't know... maybe it was the heat, or just the feeling of people looking over my shoulder, or some other mental block that makes it less than conducive for me to make great images. But I'll keep going back until I get it right.

The unexpected windfall of the day was a particular model I had booked for a two-hour block mid-day decided not to attend. Usually I would have been pretty ticked off, but in the heat, I figured I could use some downtime, maybe find another model who wasn't busy. Instead, fortune smiled upon me when the incredible Chris Maher happened by, and I took the opportunity to introduce myself. Chris does amazing art nude work, outdoor nudes, landscapes, wildlife, scenics, etc. and has studio space at Collingwood, but I'd not met him on my previous visits up there. I didn't have a portfolio with me, but showed him a few images I had on business cards, and he invited me up to see his studio space. He was extremely generous with his time, experience, philosophy, and enthusiasm (and a nice cold Dr. Pepper to boot). He even had an internet connection in his studio so was able to review my OMP portfolio and gave me his views on what I was doing right, and ideas where I could improve certain images. He was nice enough to show me some of his amazing prints and share some of his lighting techniques and photoshop tricks. But perhaps the most valuable thing was when he shared his ideas on working with models to bring out natural positions instead of "poses" and to just trust the body to find the right movements. He also shared some great information on more practical matters, such as selling prints and finding subjects to photograph. What's incredible to me is that many of his subjects are NOT models, and have never posed before, let alone done nudes. But his art inspires them to participate, and his skill and gentle demeanor bring out the "goddess" within each of them. Many thanks Chris for the insights, hospitality and a generous portion of your afternoon. :)

So, a pretty good two weeks for me... audiences with three of my favorite fine art photographers, as well as a workshop with four top commercial photographers. Now, let's just see if I can take the deluge of information and inspiration and channel it into my own work and take it to a new level. Wish me luck!