John Duder

A very quick update mainly to store some images for now :) Will write properly about this shoot next week :p

Images shot by John Duder, slight edit by myself :)

June/July = Zen in full flow! :)

So I've spent goodness knows how many hours online in the evenings updating portfolios, putting out looking for work requests, replying to casting calls and such like - and for all the bum-expanding laptop time, it's paying off, I am pleased to see!

JUNE: So far has planned for me - two paid shoots, one TF with the fabulous Paul Ottey (Paul Ottey's NM) which should be a wonderful addition to my portfolio and a three day stint with Kainine_Photography (Kainine_Photography on NM) in Hull with a Charity Group Shoot squeezed in too. So plenty of great quality TF and a little towards the penny funds too for June :)

JULY: Currently sees four paid shoots (phew!), a TF/Profit share Calendar shoot, and a local group shoot, where I plan on staying firmly *behind* the camera and getting some studio photography practice in :)

So far, so good! Not many available days left to shoot now till the summer, so glad that things are getting booked up and I'll be kept busy :) I feel so much more like a model when my floor is riddled with an array of random outfits, shoes and train tickets :P Sod all the bright lights!

Catching up :S

Ahhh...the art of the creative - procrastination and forgetfulness... time to update!! :p

April: Saw me investing in my first SLR and trial testing it at a Group Shoot in Hull.  The day was fabulous with a lovely bunch of people and I found myself wandering around dressed as a model, with the SLR firmly around my neck. On both sides of the camera, I was happy to shoot and gained results I was pleased with:

First a selection of model images to wet your appetite.  And yes, annoyingly enough, when someone says 'are you small enough to squeeze into there?' the answer is usually 'Yes'.

And I did love getting all dressed up again, or dressed down depending on your standards :p :

I also had the pleasure of meeting and shooting with the lovely OpalineStorm, a wonderful promising new model with a figure I couldn't get enough of and a gorgeous personality to boot:

And a couple of more glamourous shots with Dale Nelson:

It was an awesome day :)  I had planned on staying at TK's - otherwise known as the abominable Kainine_Photography and shooting through a few ideas. After much caffeine and planning, we finally bit the bullet and shot his first ever Erotica set. From here on end, this post gets a little more 'open' ;)  These got monumentally slagged on NM, but gained great critiques on FL, so either way we were happy. We have plans for the next one already... :p

TK and I have a wonderful working relationship and click away with each other as much as the shutter does, it's nice to work with someone in that way, and something I have missed a lot.  

I've had a lot of editing practice recently too and am enjoying playing with effects and styles. I'm getting into this photography thing! :p

Ahhh.....

So June and July see two group shoots - one purely behind the camera for me, and another in Hull playing both sides, and likely more filth with TK.  A few booked shoots, to see me into the summer hols and a couple of shoots I've booked with new models :)  

It's nice that the effort, networking and masses of time in front of the laptop is paying off.  Next phase for me, a couple of TF's for agency submission, new sets for Zivity (get in touch if you would like to shoot for that one!), and building more of a photography portfolio. I'll add some of those here the next time I remember. 

Take it easy you weird little world of lights and cameras :)

Busy Busy!

Well, in the two weeks that I've been actively modelling again, I've managed to have four shoots and booked three more upcoming. I don't reckon that's too bad by my standards!

I thought I would post a little photo update - a couple from each photographer I've worked with recently.  James Rozie and Matt Wagg were lovely enough to book my studio day, ensuring I was rushed off my feet and kept busy all day! It was a knackering reminder of modelling, and I loved it - a mix of alternative fashion, playing with brooms, climbing inside of umbrellas and some nicey art-nudes rounded up that day for variety!

Now - Jaycee who booked me through PS wanted some erotica and fetish, so I spent the day playing nudes, nipple clamps, chains and St Andrew's cross.  I have to admit, it was one of those shoots that made me question why I do this...but I smiled, got on with it, chatted and he seemed more than happy with his results - so can't complain :)

And Mr FineArt from WB who I worked with this week and sent me into a haze of bounce, smiles and utter creative buzz all day :) It was awesome. He's lovely to work with - so easy to collaborate with, knows what he wants but allows model to create too, is happy to move on once that 'one' shot from each set is created.  He booked me for two hours, we made it through six sets in 90mins and the images so far are lovely :)

Here we go!:

Rozie:

Matt Wagg:

Mr FineArt: 

TTFW! :D

Anniversary

Well a marking of time at least.  I hit 40,000 views on NM yesterday.  Weird. Plus I had a email from one of the first photographers I shot with who wants to shoot again.

So I thought I would post a couple of images from one of my first shoots :)  18years old and fairly clueless!

Zenith

Books and Stories

Being a (failing/lazy/sporadic) writer, and an avid reader I've inevitably always written stuff, from poetry to short stories to a little erotica even. I'm currently working on a book - oh yes, a book. A story. A modern tale rags to riches, to rags to medium perhaps story.

Inevitably some of the storyline will be based on experiences, and modelling is one of the themes in the story.  Like, d'uh.  I kind of wanted to highlight some of the lines of modelling, from starting out, to making mistakes, or doing well, or changing styles along the way so to speak...

Well that's my post for today! Very little time and all that ;)

In the Beginning...

...there was a 17year old girl who decided to see if she could become a model...

(Today's post inspired by thinking about my new mentor service for new models).


I wish I had someone looking out for me when I thought about modelling.  I had a few early experiences that taught me lessons very quickly.  They could have put me off modelling completely to be honest.  I am ashamed by one experience/shoot in particular, and horrified at how naive I was at that age.  So with this always in mind - I endeavour to ALWAYS maintain MODEL SAFETY at the heart of the mentor service.

Let me tell you about my first ever 'shoot'.  And yes, I mean 'Shoot'.  What an idiot I was. So, seventeen years old, living in SE London and pretty much skint, reckless and ambitious. I had signed up to a photography site, I can't remember what it was, I didn't stay a member for long!  I posted up a few snapshots of myself to see what would happen - ahhh...the growing fad of internet modelling, eh? And joy of joys! Less than a week later, a photographer had kindly offered to shoot with me :)  I was amazed! He said to bring my favourite clothes, some underwear and such and we would shoot some things to get me started - varying levels and such, as much as I felt comfortable with.  Seemed to know what he was talking about, and has some really nice pictures on his profile (I did at least have the sense to check the quality of work!) and I didn't know any better...so I did just that.  We  were to be shooting at his home studio which impressed me - that he could produce quality of work from his own home ;)

Anyway, he lived in Aylsebury - somewhere in middle of England, very countryside-ish. I trekked for four hours to get there, including a two mile walk from the train station to his house, on my own, with bag and map in hand.  I did have doubts, but I figured that everyone had to start somewhere, and this would be worth the effort.  I will admit that I wasn't entirely sober either -dutch courage and all that...(wow, really starting to reconsider my suitability for the mentoring thing now!).  Onwards a couple of hours to the 'shoot' itself:

The 'home studio' was an upstairs box room, how he even got full length shots (IF he got full-length shots, assuming that he wanted more than thigh to collar bone), I don't know.  I put on some basic make-up, a short skirt and bit by bit stripped to just my knickers.  In those days (coz I'm ancient now, clearly), it was still 'okay' to do topless modelling at sixteen.  He clicked and flashed, and at one point I even let him tie my wrists together with some rope- it was loose and I could have easily escaped, but that's not the point.  Believe me - I want to *SLAP* that stupid seventeen year old.

After the 'Shoot', I signed a release (not that I had ever even heard of one!), he gave me £20 to cover my travel and sent me on my way.  Needless to say, I never heard from him again or received any photos.  And it didn't exactly kick-start an amazing career.  I do remember taking some time to think after that and then being a little more prepared for shoot number two - bringing a chaperone with me and thinking more about my own safety!  From there on end, I learnt skills that to this day, I still keep at the forefront of my mind for every shoot. Simple ways to stay as safe as possible while taking risks - in the end, I always remember, regardless:

I'm still a female with naked/evocative/erotic/sexual images of myself on the internet and the majority of work and contact I get is from some guy in his corner of the Internet with a camera...


(...and hopefully enough money to pay my rates, at least :p)