Jess

The last post has inspired me to start posting some selective focus shots over the next few days. Actually, just about all of my images employ selective focus- but here are some that feature very particular or even odd points of view. Some are old, some are new, but I have never shown any of these...

Samantha

Abstract Expressionism is my favorite art movement, and it has always inspired and influenced my own work- although it's probably hard to tell from most work that I show here. I often shoot images like the one below, but I don't show many of them to anybody. I consider most of them to be indulgent exercises that no one else would want to look at. Every once in a while, one strikes me of having enough merit to show with the rest of my body of work- I think that this may count as a good example. The impressions left behind from a corset (an old theme of mine) make for a nice touch- I don't think that this image would work without them.

Devorah

I thought that these were some less interesting out takes from a set with Devorah, but they have been growing on me. They show her wonderful dreadlocks better than any other images that I've taken of her. It's really difficult to show the nitty-gritty detail of dark dreads the way that I shoot- it all simply disappears. It seems that perhaps capturing a good silhouette is the way to go...

Kelly

I seem to have a trend of turning floors into textured & graphic compositions as a background. I like this trend.

Autumn

These are out-takes from a suspension shoot, although they may be nicer than the suspension shots themselves. They seem to be much more soulful than my usual rope work images, which are typically much more intense or kinetic.

PXE

More fun with water.

Tali De'Mar

There always seem to be so many diagonals happening in the shower scenes. Tiles make slants when skewed, of course- but this really inspires me to pile on more and more lines. One more thing: You can't go wrong with water- it it so inherently sensual.

Jena

There is something wonderfully dirty and gritty about this one. Gritty, dirt-under-your-fingernails kind of raw. I think that I now need to actually shoot someone with dirt under their fingernails.

Meira

A first for me- I'm in the image. A self portrait. Sort of.

M & M

I think that if there were no ropes or rope marks (they tell an ambiguous story), that this might be close to straight porn. Or perhaps not- there is the low point of view and fade to black which makes it interesting and/or different as well. I'm always worried when shooting that my images look too porntastic- because then I'll have to discard it completely. I not concerned about some closed minded viewers that may think all of my work looks like porn- they can fuck off because they're wrong (says me). If someone who tends to admire my work thought an image looked like porn, though, I'd be embarrassed.

Lady Lazurus

I shot this in a cold, dirty, and actually very unexceptional basement space. Yet it doesn't look much different than my usual "spiffy" studio shoots. I've always said, since I starting photographing twenty years ago, that I could probably shoot anywhere and make it look striking. I tend to get very close in on people, so the only thing that matters are a couple of small details of the background- fancy settings tend to go to waste.

H & L

Here is a point of view that I've never tried previously. Can't say that I've ever seen it done elsewhere, either. I'm quite sure that it has, though- everything's been done before...

Li

I think that this is one of the strongest images that I've shot so far. This is the only past image that I tend to think of when I'm shooting, as a guide to what I'm trying to achieve.

Manchester

Tattoos may not seem out of place among other images posted in this blog, but they are something relatively new to my body of work in general. The reason that tattoos are conspicuously absent from much of my work is certainly not because I don't like them- I do, actually. The reason is that most of my influences come from classic masters, and I've always wanted my images to have a timeless feel- so I've always either avoided using models with tattoos, or made sure not to show them. I've always had the same policy with contemporary clothing, hair & makeup- I've seen some otherwise great images from the 80's & 90's that look painfully dated simply because of the clothes, hair or makeup. Lately it seems that all of the most interesting models, or models that are the most uninhibited, have many tattoos. Not to mention body modifications, body piercing's, scars, et cetera. So I've kind of given up excluding these things from my work, and I've actually embraced them. I still tend to stick with vintage looking hair, makeup and lingerie, though. I honestly don't think that there have been any great new strides made in those departments in the last 30 years. I'm very happy with the recent work I have been doing, but only time will tell which will hold up better- my newer work (which is also digital), or my older work in film...

Tali De'Mar

This seems to fit in with what I've been posting this week...

Jade Vixen

These are best panty hose that I've ever photographed- or that I've ever seen, for that matter. Crotchless, buttless- but the way the back makes an upside down heart, and the wraparound overlap... Priceless.

Sable

These images are going back in time, rather than forward, as I have been the past few years. I tend to be unstuck in time, Slaughter-House Five style.

Grace

This image may not be erotic, or as moody as most of what I typically post here, but it seems to fit in with what I've been posting lately. It does show my 1940's Hollywood glamour and film noir roots, which was my main inspiration for years. It still is my main inspiration, but when I use very contemporary subject matter (tattoos, piercings, graphic sex) the images now seem to bear my own fingerprint, rather than just emulating an old style very well.

Caroline

I like the mystery in this image. What is that thing? What does it do? What does it look like farther down? I'm not telling!

Tali DeMar

I sure do miss those windows from the second floor. For over ten years, I never cleaned them- just to give them that extra grimy look.

Mistress Thora & Slave

This was definitely an interesting shoot. Lighting something that was all black, without much detail, yet keeping it all dark and moody- not so much fun. I was not happy with most of the shots- but I do like this one. Nice point of view.

Lady Lazurus

I love the point of view on this one. I don't see this point of view often in images, and that's a shame. I can see why you never see it in fashion mags- the focus needs to be on the clothes rather than the face. Blurry clothes don't sell well. I suppose the same goes for porn- everything needs to be more straightforward and real. Formula always trumps what may be more interesting when an agenda is involved...

Thora

I'm mot really Panda. So I dlack spot myself.

Maeve

The first image has nice, abstract quality to it, concerning the background. It would be interesting to me without the figure- but perhaps only to me. If a simple close up on a breast can be moody, this might describe the second image.

Devora

I've been getting more playful lately- ironically, the intensity thing starts to become a formula. A formula that I don't get bored with is turning fans towards the models in winter. Preferably with the windows open as well. I'm not always the most liked person in the room...

Lady Lazarus

Perfect timing.

Cahira & Kiki

I keep forgetting that I want to try incorporating dance into my work- so often a couple of years will pass before I try it again. A slowly developing body of work...

Sarah

I'm not a big fan of visual gimmicks and photo manipulation, especially if they are obviously photoshopped or digitally altered. I have to admit that I sometimes play around with images- but almost never anything that doesn't look like it could of well been done in the darkroom. I rarely show anyone these images, since I'm basically just playing around. I do really like this one, though...

Izzy

I think that these two images work wonderfully as a diptych. Another thing- typically I can get the front rope work looking just right, but the back often looks half ass. The back is usually where everything ties together- practical, but not very aesthetic. Here the back looks even better than the front!

Miera

I love the detail on these. I'm constantly striving for more detail, and these are inching close to what I'm looking for. I've always been a BIG fan of freckles, so it's about time they are starting to figure prominently in my work.

Lady Lazurus

I love the contrast between the look of vulnerability in the first image, and the come hither look of the second image. Both have the sleepy eyes and open mouth, and she's doing a similar thing to her breasts with her arms- but it can be such a fine line between what an expression and body language portrays. Frankly, I rarely have a problem capturing the come hither look- but getting a look of genuine vulnerability is much harder to capture.

Adrian Louise

When I first started using the 4th floor as a studio as opposed to the 2nd floor, I was both looking forward to new shooting possibilities and lamenting the loss of others at the same time. I was losing the tall windows that people could stand in, as well as the shower that I built from scratch and loved so much. On the other hand, I was gaining a much larger shooting space, as well as access to the adjacent rooftop. At first I wasn't sure how to best utilize the rooftop. There is a stucco wall which looks pretty nasty because there is a vent that blows exhaust from the restaurant below. At first I really despised this, because it represents everything that I dislike about Chinatown. Someone with some respect for others could have easily blocked and/or diverted the exhaust. Instead it just blasts away directly at my bathroom window (and the surrounding wall), so that the window had to be permanently sealed up a long time ago. Looking at this wall just pissed me off. Actually, I initially tried shooting on that wall- with a flash fill-in because it's in the shade. I didn't like that look. So later I tried shooting with out the flash, and the raw images looked very flat. Thanks to the wonders of Photoshop, I was able to really give the wall some pop- and make the grime look as grimy as it deserved! That awful wall is now one of my favorite places to shoot against.

As a side note, Adrian Louise really dislikes her scar from an abdominal hysterectomy. Of course, I really like it. I love scars- they tell a story, and the more extreme the better. So I remove the scar for her pics, and leave it in for myself.

M

This is definitely one of the more intense set of images in the shower series. That is saying a lot, since apparently everyone becomes much more uninhibited in the shower.

Holly

I love it when you can see the translucency of skin, showing what is going on beneath...

Miera

This below might be a keeper- it seems like a memorable image. The nipple shot isn't too shabby, either...