Coming from California, Ashlee Desire, currently represented by Major model Mgmt. in Munich, Germany, brings a fresh energy to New York that inspires everyone she comes in contact with. I met Ashlee in 2007 at a fashion show in Times Square. She scared me - yelling and clapping at the the models. I thought she was gonna snatch one of the guys off the catwalk when they walked out in a barely there speedos, LOL. When she realized she was sitting next to me in the front row, she insisted I look at her book ( she actually had it with her). Her book was amazing and her energy was so exciting and fun - we exchanged phone numbers and now in 2010 we came together to create some great fashion shots.
Ashlee Desire ( yes, thats her real name) is a really good model who can quickly give you hard fierce and in the blink of an eye become soft and demure. She was in NY for a few days working and stopped by my place the morning she was to fly back to Munich, her new home. All i can say is she kill'd it. We put together some really great pics.
Brandon Parker currently represented by Specimen/ Ford Models NYC has a body that is sculpted to sleek perfection and i thought is was time to show off his amazing form.
I had the opportunity to shoot with Alex Geerman represented by Major Model Mgmt. He is great looking with a killer body. I decided to keep it simple and quick and let the "magic" happen. Check out the results.....
One thing I wanted to do with this series of images was create a fashion story of depicting diverse couples in a passionate state. Shyloh Wilkenson of Identities Inc. and Curin Wilkerson of Wilhemina Model Mgmt were the first couple i shot - my African decent couple. Rarely do we see black people portrayed in a passionate, romantic way and I wanted to do that with Shyloh and Curin.
I didn't have access to a stylist or the kind of clothing I wanted to shoot for this series so I used my available resources and made the clothing myself. Shyloh's braiding dress was made out of a fitted bed sheet. I actually made it on her body.
Curin's looks were taken straight from my closet. I inherited this vintage Christian Dior v-neck from my grandfather when he died and used it for this shoot. I broke a mirror and covered his briefs in the pieces.
One of the most interesting looks was the "rib-caged" look. I sketched it out on my way home from work while riding on the subway. I made it out of a Calvin Klein t-shirt. I assembled it on her body at the shoot. It looked amazing against her skin and she wore the hell out of it. I really enjoyed taking a idea and making it come alive ....
Lawrence Annunziata was the first model I had the opportunity to work with when I first visited New York during my summer vacation in 2006. I was living with photographer William Springfield in the Bronx. His agent, Tim Harris @ Identities, contacted me about shooting him because he had just cut off his gorgeous afro and he need new pictures of his hair cut. I was nervous but I wanted to shoot strong images that showed a sexier side of Lawrence Annunziata.
Toward the end of the shoot, I recall, Will and a full team walked in on Lawrence standing at the sink - but ass naked and we just continued like no one was around. Lawrence seemed more anxious to get a amazing shot than to cover himself. Working with Lawrence was a great way for me to break the ice of NYC. After this photoshoot, I felt comfortable enough to constantly push myself and challenge myself to take models out of their comfort zone and show them in a new light.
After this photo session, Lawrence and I worked together all most every week during my summer vacation in NYC. We have continued working together on countless projects since I have made NYC my permanent home. Lawrence is one of the handful of guys I have worked with who really embody "supermodel". He moves with confidence and effortlessly understand his body and face. He set a standard that many have failed to meet. He is a "cold-muthafuckah" in front of the camera.
modeling is like sex pt.1 (repost)
My patience has gotten very short with "models" who think showing up and being good looking is all they haveta do. They wait for the photographer to tell them step by step what to do. I am so tired of having people standing in front of me who have no idea how to move and serve me something that is inspiring.
Its like having bad sex.
Imagine how fun it is to have sex with a person you have to tell them everything to do....."move your leg over here, twist this way, grab that, push this in, stick this out, tighten this ..." I spend all my time tell you what to do, I don't get to concentrate on what i am doing. Good modeling is about vibing and having a good connection to work together.... the same components involved with good sex, lol.
I am yearning for the day when I can work with models who understand angles, light, shadow, and proportion and how they can use those things to inspire me.
The video below is an example of a model who understands how to move in front of a camera. She moves to accentuate the lines of her body while doing a continuous "shimmey" to compliment the movement and texture of the dress. She is totally aware of her body, her face , and her clothes. I show this video to every model i shoot so they know where they should be as a professional.
Naomi Campbell fotoshoot by Steven Klein
Watch and listen..
This is a recent episode of Tyra Bank's America Next Top Model provides some great tips for models.Pay attention to the what Tyra and her panel of judges have to say because they provide some great advice to help any model in front of the camera.. click here
SUGGESTIONS...
* stand in front of the mirror butt ass naked and pose. Learn your body and the shapes and lines it makes. you can't make clothes look good if you don't know what your body looks like or understand what happens when you move. If you know what your body looks like then you can see the shot in your mind. knowing what your body looks like also give you power and some control. We ( photographers) can only shoot what you do infront of our cameras. If you don't know anything it forces us to think for you ...
*study your face, it's your tool to convey personality and range.
think about modeling like acting and dance without a script or choreography...
in terms of sex...if you know what you got and how to use it, the sex will always be good and you'll have 'em feening for more. If you got all the physical components and you just lying there... just know you suck!
Sean Bennett @ Specimen Model Mgmt called me and told me Magnus was in town with a new hair cut and he wanted me to do a quick test shoot with him. We set up a time and date and made it happen. Magnus performed great in front of the camera and we got what we needed very quickly.
check it out....
Ryan Deharsh is represented by Major model mgmt. He has a great new hair cut and an amazing body. The haircut has given him a fresh new look - I can't wait to see him in campaigns and editorials.
