The Digital Photo Guy

A Different Kind of Nude Shoot

In December 2015, I was in Sedona to make a presentation to the Sedona Camera Club (SCC.) At the meeting, I met Bonnie Miller, a local wedding photographer and irrepressible soul. During our conversation, the topic of art nudes came up and Bonnie was all over it. She and a few other members had been trying to organize such a shoot. I offered to help if she found a studio and other interested parties.

After a few false starts, we pulled together a shoot at the Sedona Art Center Art Barn, a large meeting room behind the main Art Center this past Friday, 1/22. I didn’t know what to expect since this was the first time the other six photographers had participated in a nude shoot and four of the five models were new to nude modeling. My fears were unfounded as everyone (5 models, 7 photographers and 1 cat herder) got into the spirit and created some amazing art.

I haven’t yet processed all my images but here are a few to give you an idea of what I captured. All photos were made with a Canon 5D Mark II and a Canon 24-105/4L IS lens. Postprocessing was in Adobe Photoshop Lightroom 6. Initial starting point was LR B&W Filter Presets, Red Hi-Contrast Filter. For lighting, I used my new BFF, two Yongnuo YN-685C in an Impact Luxbanx 12″x36″ Strip Box. My only boo-boo was failing to set up a hairlight for M’s beautiful hair.

None of these three models have ever modeled nude before. Yet, they were all so enthusiastic and fearless that I would never have known that. The top two are M, a young lady of Mexican heritage with an Egyptian name (I didn’t ask how that happened.) It wasn’t until later that I noticed her long, gorgeous legs. I plan to engage her for a future shoot where I can feature and emphasize her legs.

The next two are Z, a bubbly, fun woman of indeterminate age (she has grown children) who, after seeing my BW bodyscapes, rushed up to me and exclaimed, “I love your work!” Z is of Czech ethnicity and she lives in the moment. A published author and belly dancer, Z wants to participate in a future project I’m designing about women of different ages.

The last two are A, a strong, fearless young woman of Asian descent who has hitchhiked across the country by herself and sports a Burning Man “brand.” Thinking the tattoo-like brand on her hip was simply a henna or ink creation, I asked, “Is that temporary? She casually replied, “No, they used a blow torch and branding iron.” I nearly dropped my camera in shock. I have more of A and I hope to work again with her in the future.

Stay tuned for more photos from the shoot. There are also photos of Cayleigh, the only professional model of the bunch. Cayleigh was terrific, not only as a model but also, as a mentor to the other models. She offered them tips and helped them express themselves. The last model was K who was still a bit shy and wasn’t sure she wanted her photos posted online. We agreed we could work together in the future when she’s more comfortable.