Laura Myers and the Avant Garde

Laura MyersSince moving back to the USA I have taken an interest pushing my work in a more avant garde direction. Recently, I worked with model Laura Myers. If you ever have a chance to shoot with Laura, do yourself a favor and don’t miss out on that opportunity. She is really great and she usually shows up with a lot of accessories and ideas. In this case, a long red wig and some twine.

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What's Erotic to You?

Yulia shot in Budapest

Since I have moved back to the USA, I have noticed that there seems to be a stigma towards anything labelled ‘erotic’. It begs the question, do people really understand the difference between erotica and pornography. Many people seem to infer that my work is pornographic, however, if we respect the English language, they are applying a very subjective definition of the term. Pornography involves depicting sexual acts, in other words, pictures or video of people engaged in the act of sexual intercourse, fucking.

At least, that is how the state of Florida defines pornography. So, what is Eroica or Eroticism? Let’s start with this definition that I got from Wikipedia:

Eroticism is a philosophical contemplation with a focus on the aesthetics of sexual desire, sensuality and romantic love: ‘the very word “erotic” implies superior value, fine art, an aesthetic which elevates the mind and incidentally stimulates the body’.

I happen to agree with this definiton. It’s exactly how I approach my own erotic nude photography. I aim for artistic value, aesthetics, and I am trying to turn on the mind. 

I think these days, the mix of nudes, erotic art, porn, fetish - and whatever else is out there - has blurred the lines. How you define one genre in comparison to another is completely subjective. I tend to classify erotic art as something that is sensual and suggestive without being too overt in sexual content. It’s a broad definition to say the least, but it’s one that allows me a certain amount of creative freedom as well. I have to trust my own judgement and sometimes I do find that I have gone too far. Other people may approach erotica very differently and what we used to think of erotic in the past, well, we see that everyday in advertising and on our TV screens. 

How do you define Eroticism and Pornography? I am curious.

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A lesson learned from my own workshop, and a message for 'Chris' the Pirate Hater.

 The disputed image - Gio under the waterfall at Bagni San Filippo

The other day I received an email from a former workshop student. The message was in reference to an image I had on my website (a version of the image above) and the student was asking why I had put my copyright info on his image and used it in my portfolio.

I was a bit surprised because I clearly remember taking the image myself and I would certainly never knowingly take credit for someone else’s image. As soon as I was able, I got on my computer, reviewed the metadata and the date/time stamps of the image and I verified that I had many similar images from the same sequence. The images were taken by my camera as verified by the embedded serial number and camera information.

I reported my findings back to the student, who, naturally, found it difficult to accept that he could have some of my images on his computer. I do not think anything untoward happened, I recalled borrowing a memory card that day and I assume that when I returned the card, it may still have had my images on it.

Honestly, I don’t know for sure, it’s a complete guess how he got them and frankly, it is totally irrelevant to this post. I don’t think he stole my images and I certainly did not steal his, it was just a simple case of mistaken attribution.

Unfortunately, during our back and forth emails trying to sort this out, I received the following email message from another party:

Why would any photographer copy another photographers work and tag it as their own? Just how many stolen photographs do you have in your portfolio?

Chris…

I don’t know ‘Chris’. The contact info he provided was just a fake number and a fake email. Chris, if you are reading this, it’s really easy to make accusations, false accusations in this case, without knowing all the facts. However, in this case, you made a very wrong assumption, and made no attempt to ascertain the facts.

I don’t take such accusations lightly. I have never copied someone’s work and claimed it as my own. It makes my blood boil that some nameless, faceless person may be shredding my good reputation without the facts or truth of the situation.

However, this episode certainly brings to light an important lesson if you are attending a workshop. Be sure you take care to guard and protect your images.

If you borrow a memory card from someone, be sure to format the card before using it and after you are finished with it. Do not let anyone copy your RAW files. If your camera allows you to enter copyright information, be sure it is entered so all of your images are copyrighted upon creation, with your name and any other relevant data. Take all steps necessary to ensure you have your work properly organized and verified. 

In the end, I know these images were mine. It was never really a question for me, I remember many details about that day and this shooting sequence in particular. In fact, I can recall many details about most of my shoots, they are burned into my brain. However, because of some carelessness or sloppy handling of a memory card, I have so far spent several hours trying to collect proof that these were my images. That’s time I could have been doing something much more enjoyable and constructive.

My interview for the Audacity of Nude blog

Audacity of Nude Interview from Bryon Paul McCartney on Vimeo.

In response to a request from model Ameena Payne, I answer questions about my fine art nude photography work.

Audacity of Nude Interview from Bryon Paul McCartney on Vimeo.

In response to a request from model Ameena Payne, I answer questions about my fine art nude photography work.

In response to a request from model Ameena Payne, I answer questions about my fine art nude photography for her blog, The Audacity of Nude. Please excuse the length of this video, it’s uncut, but it will give you an idea about my background and some of the things that got me started in fine art nude photography.

Do you want to be a nude photographer or just a GWC: a guy (or girl) with a camera?

Iveta, shot at my workshop in Tuscany, Italy, Summer 2010

Nude photography, in all of its many forms and manifestations is a very large planet within the solar system of people photography. Whether you are shooting fine art nudes, glamour nudes, implied nudes, erotic nudes, conceptual nudes, landscape nudes, infrared nudes, fetish nudes, bondage nudes, black & white nudes, sculptural nudes (the list goes on and on) or a combination of different types of nudes, you need to have a purpose for shooting them.

Without purpose, you may fall into that dreaded category of photographers who take pictures of naked women (or men) for the sheer and selfish pleasure of seeing them naked, also known as a GWC.

So how do you avoid becoming a photography cliché?

Find your purpose, your reason, your concept, your muse: Look for a way to create images with purpose and meaning. If you can’t figure out what type of photographer you want to be, then be certain about what type of photographer you do not want to be. Sit down with your images, review them, analyze them, understand them, show them to others and ask them questions about them. What do these images have in common? What stands out? What do you feel when you see them? Do they remind you of something? Do they speak to you? Do you see a story or message in the images?

Interpretation is everything. What I see in an image may be completely different from what the next person sees, it all depends on your own experiences and references.

In my own work, I mainly focus on three types of nudes: bodies in motion, sculptural nudes and erotic nudes. In all of my photographs, I try to present my models as strong, independent and desirable women. I try to give them power in the image. I try to create a visual story in the image. I do not want to show my models as weak or powerless, I do not want to exploit them or demean them. I want to bring out the best of what I see in them. 

The image above features Iveta, one of the models I have worked with most frequently. On the surface, perhaps some would say that this image portrays her as weak. I prefer to see her more in the role of the sole survivor. Alone, washed up in the surf, naked and alone in the sand. She may be down, she may be struggling, but in the next moment, she will persevere and overcome the challenges she is facing.

In my Amore Toscana fine art nude workshops I discuss topics similar to this one. I challenge my students to find their own personal purpose, direction and vision.