Racy but Concealed

[OrcaBob]

One of the many reasons I've been away from the boards this week. This is from a shoot today.

I almost had a shoot with this lady a year or two ago via One Model Place. She joined Model Mayhem recently and I decided to give her another chance. It almost fell through again but it happened. It turns out this was her first photoshoot. She worked out pretty darned well.

Since this was a first shoot with a model I didn't know, it was a test shoot, which covers everything from casual and fashion and goes to glamour and however racy that model is willing to go. We spent most of the shoot on glamour and concealed nudes.

She's the first black model I've worked with extensively. Her skin posed some problems with exposure and dark blue materials blended too well with her skin. One great thing, however, was she kept moisturizing her dry skin... so we proceeded to a planned look that involved her getting oiled up and using a hard light to maximize the sheen on her skin. We used the fake sweat -- a spray bottle of baby oil and water.

It was effective but messy for a concealed nude look that used three yards of bridal white satin. It soaked up the oil and darkened where the oil touched it. A small price to pay for a dramatic look.

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[Steve (FloppyDog)]

This is great Bob. What did you use for your hard light? (silver umbrella?) I think I remember you mentioning her before but wasn't sure if it was the same model. I really like the highlights using the purple gel, that really adds to the image.

[OrcaBob]

IMO, a hard light doesn't use any diffuser larger than the 7" basic dish, which isn't really much a of diffuser but blocks lateral spillage of light.

For a hard light on the main, I used nothing more than a 40-degree grid on the 7" dish. The colored fill/hair light used no gridspot.

The grid provides directionality but no diffusion.

[NCPhotoTrekker]

I've got to be honest with you here Bob...I'm not wild about this shot. What you did is great though. The pose, the sweat, and the satin all go for a alluring shot. My issue is with her face...its very masculin IMO, and that works in direct opposition to how the picture flows.

I think that you ideas here would go much better on a model with a more feminine face. He body is just fine for the look you are after by the way. For this young lady I see more of an athletic look showing her power and strength. These qualities exude from her face...not the alluring sexy look you have captured here.

[jimhobson]

Have to agree with NCPhotoTrekker here Bob. Sorry.
She has more of a Grace Jones look. Tie her up in leather, give her a gun or sword and then the same sweat and lighting.

Let's see some of the other shots.

[OrcaBob]

I had issues with her androgynous face from the getgo. In some angles she's very feminine, though her head and facial proportions are very African and not African-American. In some angles, her face is anything but feminine. But I was most drawn to working with her because of her lean muscularity and -- this comes down to artistic tastes -- I still think the combination of graceful flowing white material and lean muscularity (regardless of the gender or race) is pleasing. I'd like to do this shot with male athletes, too.

Greg, if you got a sense of athleticism only from her face, we're on completely different planes of existence. If anything, I was afraid her thigh and rippled muscles in her hip and glute would overpower the image. She does look like a track star in that image and in that respect it's almost like a painting on an ancient Greek urn. Athletes in flowing robes.

In a week of conversation and negotiation with her, the name of Grace Jones came up several times. That said, why automatically plug a Grace Jones into leather restraints? That's the predictable thing. Grace Jones did plenty of looks that bent convention and blurred gender.

Here's Tamica in a more conventional setting.

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[jimhobson]

LOL I'm sorry. Not restraints. The short hair, muscular body, sweat, to me, gives her a "tough girl" look. I would use that to my advantage to create a "look" for her. Hard tough girls and soft satin don't mix for me. More like leather top, pants etc.

The second picture, as taken, is also a good look. But here she is feminine and this creates a totally different look, a pretty sweet young sincere woman. A softer person. I think it's great that you and her can change "looks" so drastically.

But that's just my opinion.

[NCPhotoTrekker]

Of course the body is athletic, but it does have the feminine curves, and does look the part of what you are pulling off here. For me the face doesn't have that same range. That's why I suggested the athletic angle...everything goes together for that theme.

I can see the draw because of the muscularity. She is a great study in the human form, and the body is quite feminine...not in a soft and sexy kind of way, but the curves and definition are quite womanly. A wig might have helped pull this look off...especially after seeing the secong picture. She has a softer side in her face, and I think with a little help this could be accentuated. She might have more range than I thought.

[john101477]

hey Bob, looks like you have been a busy bee. I have to say I am not a big fan of the first image either. I do not really see much, if any femininity to the model at all. She is extremely athletic, bordering on overly muscular and the hips and legs turned at that angle embellish that fact. The second image is quite a bit softer and shows that she can be versatile. She has a great facial structure, but the close cropped hair and strong jaw/chin keep her from being truly feminine.

[musicman5]

I like the first shot because of the lighting. The second shot I like a little less, the light here does not move me like the first one.

Both very nicely done though.