Carol's Pregnancy

Digital original, 11 frame stitch

The documentation of Carol's second pregnancy continues as expected, with this being our third session of what will hopefully be six or more.

Digital original, 4 frame stitch

As the pregnancy becomes more evident, we'll be spending more and more time working on other images, besides those I intend to use in a final image spanning the entire pregnancy (similar to what I'd created with her during her first pregnancy, but this time as a series of horizontals, as opposed to verticals). This image is one of the first which really focused upon the pregnancy, with Carol in her fifth month.

Digital original, 3 frame stitch

Lisa on a Beach at Sunset

Digital infrared original

The longer I work with digital cameras, the more they are influencing the images I make. On the simplest level, they are still just cameras, however the fundamental difference in how they create images and how those images are then treated before use, has pretty much revolutionized how I photograph.

Digital original

For this session, Lisa and I went to Long Beach, to work along the shoreline and hopefully catch a good sunset. When we arrived, it was still several hours to sunset, so we began the session working with Lisa in the water and making a series of images using long exposures to transform the moving water into more of a swirling mass than a series of individual waves. As a side effect of the longer exposures, however, Lisa was continually being buffeted and jarred by the incoming waves, which in turn blurred her pose. Here the digital camera came to the rescue; I ended up making two series of images of Lisa in the water; one with a high shutter speed so with Lisa's pose recorded with crisp detail, and a second set of photos with long exposures showing the water blur. In the computer, these two sets of photos were combined to yield the final image, a process that would have been impossible with a film camera. There are, of course, many ethical issues brought up by the idea of image editing in this manner but, as my images are about the celebration of beauty, as opposed to the news or current events, I feel no compulsion to ignore such an obvious benefit, simply because of some illusionary sense of photographic truth. Everything in the resulting image was present when I made the original images...just not quite at the same time!

Digital original, 2 frame stitch

The other strong influence that the digital camera had on this session was the fact that it was almost exclusively photographed in colour. When I used film, colour was always an option (it is simply a different kind of film, after all), but it came with a high price - lack of control. With both print (colour negative) or slide (colour positive) film, there was never an easy way to gain control over the quality and characteristics of the resulting images - without a dedicated colour darkroom, I could not make my own prints. So for most of the first 17 years of my photography, I left colour alone. Since I started working digitally, colour has crept more and more into my work - especially on a day like this, when the light was perfect, the setting dramatic, and model patient enough to put up with my passion for the technical; many of the colour images combined two or more exposures for the longest possible tonal range - the last of the big digital influences that played a part in this photo session!

Lisa on the Barrens

Digital infrared original, 25 frame stitch

The glacial barrens of Nova Scotia have long fascinated me and have been among my favorite places to work with models outdoors for over a decade. One of the best aspects they have to offer is that they are just so vast, spreading for miles in every direction and, while it is easy to become familiar with a section or part of them, I doubt in a decade I would find all the magical spaces they have to offer. Which of course makes it the perfect place to work with a model, as there is never any lack of locations to work in.

Digital infrared original

Lisa had the entire morning free to model, so we headed out to the barrens relatively early and walked about for a bit to find a good place to start working. The glacial plains are crisscrossed with paths and simply by following a couple of these, we found a lovely location to work on a right rock bluff overlooking the ocean.

Digital infrared original, 4 frame stitch

The light was near perfect throughout the session with high clouds diffusing the sunlight and a cool breeze off the coast keeping everything a comfortable temperature. It is really hard to express how joyful it is to be able to work on a day like this - no restrictions on time, a great setting, beautiful light and a keen model. In all the years I have been photographing, sessions like this happen only a handful of times a year, and are well worth savouring as they happen!

Meghan's First Time Modeling

Digital infrared original, 2 frame image blend

Working with a model whom I've only met just met is not that uncommon an experience anymore thanks to the proliferation of my work through the Internet and various publications but, all the same, it amazes me how often it works out really well. Once we were down by the shore and set up, I indicated to Meghan that we were ready to begin and with no signs of trepidation or hesitation on her part, she simply disrobed and asked where I wanted her to be.

Digital infrared original, 28 frame stitch

We worked with both the old concrete searchlight emplacements along the shoreline (working inside the buildings permitted us to photograph without disrupting any of the other visitors to York Redoubt) and on the rocky shoreline. As Meghan was only available for the single session, I wanted to make sure she got as much variety out of the session as possible.

Digital infrared original, 21 frame stitch

It was a real pleasure during the session how comfortable Meghan was with the whole process, regardless of whether the composition was a bodyscape, where the pose was elongated and languorous, or a portrait where she was simply standing before me, nude. Meghan came across as comfortable and confidant, which made the results all the more striking. I don't know if she has any plans to return to Nova Scotia in the future, but I will definitely be letting her know that, if she does, I'd be happy to work with her again!

Brianna in an Abandoned Building

As the day progressed, the weather declined and by mid afternoon, as we were looking for our second location for the day, the drizzle finally set in. Brianna and I talked briefly about the options, and decided that we'd head for an abandoned house I'd worked with three years earlier as a place to work I have always had an affinity for working in abandoned buildings with the Nude, and Brianna agreed that the location had potential, so we set up and began to work. The first set of images were made on the main floor, working with the light coming through the windows and doors, but very quickly, we discovered the best light was upstairs, where the windows were unimpeded by the rampant foliage that surrounded the building.

Digital infrared original

Once upstairs, we began exploring similar images (Brianna lit by window light) but this time, the light levels were high enough to get realistic exposures from. The best image from these compositions actually made better use of the outdoors than the building; Brianna has carefully sat down on a windowsill, and I was immediately struck by the strong contrast between the warmth of her skin and the green of the outdoors.

Digital infrared original, 13 frame stitch

The last images of the session were made outdoors; on the back on the house was an old dilapidated deck which was sheltered enough from the weather to permit Brianna to work on it without getting soaked. With some care she found a location she could work in, and very quickly we came up with a pose that worked in the space. I was unsure how the vertical posts would work in the final image, interrupting the flow of her body so strongly, but overall, the image is exactly what I was seeking, contrasting the wonderful weathered wood of the old house against the pale, luminous tones of Brianna's body.

Digital infrared original, 28 frame stitch

When we drew the session to a close, it also marked the end of Brianna's third visit to work with me. Over the couple of days we'd worked together, she'd help me make many striking images, and with her departure, I began the lengthy process of editing and archiving the hundreds of digital files we'd produced.

Brianda Models at Shenstone

The last day of Brianna's visit was spent dodging weather; the forecast called for showers all day, but a glance out the window showed only threatening clouds, so Brianna and I decided it would be worth the effort to try to find locations to work in that were either not wet, or sheltered enough to work in, regardless of the weather.

Digital infrared original

The first location we worked in was Shenstone, the summer home of two good friends of mine, and a piece of private land with several ponds and a couple of streams. I'd only seen Shenstone in the winter (when the steams were all covered with ice), but was assured it was a sight to behold in the summer, and given carte-blanche to work on the land whenever appropriate.

Although actually finding Shenstone turned out to be harder than I though (we ended up at a golf-course on our first try), Brianna and I had no problem finding the main stream at Shenstone. After setting up our equipment by the shallow swimming hole, and a quick test of the water (a little cooler than ideal, but good enough for a couple of poses, Brianna reported), we set about working. Brianna had previously modeled nude in a lake and the cooler water of the stream was a bit of a shock. But we managed to make several very striking images before she (quite wisely) declared the water too cool to continue modeling in.

Digital infrared original

Just after Brianna exited the water, for a few brief minutes, the sun broke through the clouds, and warmed the air quite suddenly. The increased contrast of the direct sunlight was a small price to pay for its luminous rays, and within fifteen minutes, Brianna was all warmed up, and happily modeling again. We first made a small set of images in the ferns along the riverbank, and them moved out into the open fields, to give Brianna a chance to warm up.

Digital infrared original

The last photos of the session were made beside one of the ponds; ringed in bullrushes (also called cattails) the pond was deep and black, and not at all enticing as a space to model, but as the sunshine came and went, Brianna soaked in what warmth there was, and I made a small number of portraits of her surrounded by the foliage. I used a much longer lens for these portraits (300mm, as opposed to my usual 50mm portrait lens), compressing the perspective, and reducing how much was in focus.

Brianna at Cape Enrage

Digital original, 43 frame stitch

The real destination of for my day working with Brianna was Cape Enrage; low tide was at 3:00pm, so we'd planned to arrive in the early afternoon, in order to have the whole afternoon and early evening to work. With more than ten meter tides possible, it is important to time working at Cape Enrage with the tide! Not only was the tide right, but the weather and the light were perfect as well - the afternoon was sunny and bright, but the cape faces east, and cast shadow upon its cliffs.

Digital original, 20 frame stitch

Brianna responded as I'd expected to the cliffs; once we stopped walked and set about trying to find images, she was clambering around on the rocks, looking for spaces to work with, and rocks to fit her body around. I've had the opportunity to work at Cape Enrage for several years now, and it never ceases to amaze me how different models respond to the same spaces in different ways. The space in which I work at Cape Enrage is actually quite small - a section of cliff-face just far enough from the steps to the shore to ensure no interruptions; thus is wouldn't surprise me to see images start to repeat themselves, but this is far from the case. Even working in exactly the same setting as I'd previously made an image with Bobbi and Miranda, Brianna came up with a pose totally different from what I'd made there before.

Digital infrared original, 42 frame stitch

As the afternoon moved onwards, the air temperature began to drop, and fog rolled in on the Bay of Fundy. Realizing our session was going to come to a premature end, I proposed that rather than searching along the coast for a couple of more locations, we find one particularly strong one (I had my eye on one already) and make several images, exploring a couple of poses, before we called it a day. I have only a couple of times combined several poses of the same model into a single final image, and wished to have another try at the idea, to see if I could push it further. The results, above, definitely indicated it is an approach I will continue to explore, if only for the quirk factor.

Brianna Returns

Brianna's previous visit (her second) was in the fall of 2005, and while we did manage to fit in one outdoor session, it was basically too cold to work in the great outdoors. This visit, however, was carefully planned to give us the best window, weatherwise, to work over the course of her visit.

Digital infrared original

Our first day of working together began working at the gypsum silos at Hillsborough. We spent much of the session working inside the towers but it was when we moved outdoors that the images really started to come together. The day was near perfect with light high clouds blowing across the sky. This provided two advantages - first, if I liked a pose, but the light was too harsh, all I had to do was wait until a cloud moved over the sun, diffusing the light somewhat, and second, it provided wonderful richness to the sky, especially with the infrared camera.

Digital infrared original

On some levels, the riverside around the gypsum towers is quite lackluster, being basically a grassy verge between the dyke on the land-side, and the muddy river bank. For Brianna and me, however, it provided a wonderful setting in which to work. There were several large chunks of driftwood which is where we began working. From there, we moved to posing in the grass itself (I was initially hesitant to suggest this, given it was rooted in wet red mud, but it proved to be totally dry, as Brianna's lying on the grasses pushed enough grass down to totally cover the mud).

Digital infrared original

All in all, the first session of the day was a real pleasure; the day was near perfect, and the images Brianna and I made came with ease and inspiration (as opposed to effort and intention). It boded well for the work we planned to create over the coming couple of days.

Following my Own Advice

Digital original, 4 frame original

When I teach, I often talk about being open to the possibilities that present themselves to you, as opposed to trying to create an image by specifically seeking it. This on the surface flies in the face of my usual modus operendi - arranging to work with a model for an afternoon or evening, taking them to a space, and photographing them there, but in reality , all I am doing is setting up a possibility to be open to. When I photograph the Nude, I almost never have plans, expectations, or specific images in mind, instead simply relying upon the process of being open to possibilities to generate the images I made.

Digital original

During this particular workshops, following my own advice was actually easier than normal. The day dawned wet and overcast, so when we arrived in downtown Moncton, all the flowers were covered with water drops, making them just perfect for a series of macro photos. The irony here is that the workshop was almost cancelled on account of the weather, and the rain ended up being the strongest contributing element to the images of the day.

Digital original

The real interesting images of the day came when I left the flowers behind and we headed towards the more industrial side of Moncton; my eye was immediately caught by a yellow no-parking sign painted on a black receiving door. Initially I make an image of this with a long lens (105mm), flattening the perspective and essentially documenting the space, but it was only when I moved much closer, and worked with an ultra-wide lens (10mm) that the final composition came to form, with exaggerated perspective, and dramatic lines. Without being open to the possibilities the space presented, I would have made the first image and then walked onwards.

Carol Outdoor at Long Beach

This was my first full day of outdoor work for the year - from mid morning to sunset, albeit with two separate models. This approach, dedicating a whole day to the image making process, is by far my preferred way of working. It has a number of advantages over shorter days, the greatest being that I can pursue images as they occur, building on the momentum of the moment, as opposed to thinking "hey, that's a great idea, I don't have time now, I will try that sometime." The session's uninterrupted sustained focus on image creation only strengthens the results.

6x7 cm film

I'd never worked on this beach before; a long uninterrupted stretch of shoreline with only one access road, at one end. A twenty minute walk down the beach gave us all the privacy we needed, and apart from a single ATV driver late in the session, the six hours we spent working was uninterrupted (we had easily 5 minutes of warning of the approaching ATV, so all was covered by the time the driver went past).

6x7 cm film

The day was spent working along the rocky end of the beach, moving from space to space as the ideas came. It was about 1/2 way into the session when I asked Carol if she'd lie in a narrow tidal pool, thinking to explore the play of the water on her skin, in a similar manner to the Surfacing image. As I moved around the space however, I very quickly became aware of the rich reflections that the water was providing to Carol's torso - an image that suddenly clicked with my mirror nudes. I went to work with both 35mm infra-red and medium format black and white, totally engaged by the narrow reflections in the water. Because of the size of the tidal pool, there were only a limited number of possibilities, but what was produced in that singles spot was certainly the highlight of the session.

6x7 cm film

Once I'd worked through the possibilities with the pool, Carol and I moved on to other spaces and possibilities, though the water-mirror-nudes were still dancing in front of my eyes. I was on an emotional high after making those images, and that enthusiasm and energy carried through the images from the second half of the session.

35mm infrared film

By the time the session had to wrap up, Carol and I had explored only a small portion of the space's possibilities; like Prospect, the space contained much more then could be worked through in a single day. Without a doubt, I will return to the space in the future (likely taking the 8"x10" camera in place of the Mamiya RB which I used as the main camera for this session).