A gallery of my work organized by year.
My step-niece, Kerstin is about 2-3 weeks from unleashing the next generation upon an unsuspecting and unprepared world. May the gods have mercy on us all.
Enjoy the photos.
I took some time recently to complete my finishing touches on the first shoot of 2015. There may be a few more gems buried in the shoot, but I am extremely pleased with the results so far. I hope you will be too.
As you probably already knew, the images past the cut are NSFW.
I’ve been experimenting with low-key lighting and trying to achieve a very soft, body-molding look for a while. Regular readers have seen some of the results of that experimentation in previous posts.
All of that experimentation came together for the first shoot of 2015 tonight. The setup is deceptively simple with a black cloth backdrop, an SB-910 speedlight in a 24inch softbox to the right (photographer’s right) of the model.  I set the speedlight to 1/4 power and shot at F/22 or F/18 @ 1/125 and ISO 100. This gave me a completely dark room with the only light showing up on frame being the speedlight.
The results were everything I had hoped they’d be. The model was very fun to work with and I’ll be shooting her often over the coming year. With the exception of the image labeled ‘Fire Down Below’, the only editing on these is cropping and b/w conversion and, when needed, a touch of sharpening. ‘Fire Down Below’ had a bit of color bump, clarity and sharpening to get the look I wanted. I also brought the exposure up slightly on it.
As you probably already guessed, these images are NOT safe for work. Click the ‘continue reading’ link to see the photos.  And as always, enjoy and I look forward to your feedback.
Back in 2006 I was asked by a friend to play the role of the Sin of Vanity in her Seven Sins party.  What better way to help people wallow in vain sin than setting up a photo shoot for all their sexy costumes.  I spent the better part of the night shooting beautiful people in all their sensual and sexual glory.
Going back through those sets, I come across a few that I passed over before and with new eyes and new skills, bring them back to life. Here is the lovely Niki in an incredible corset.  It’s been eight years since these were taken, but she’s every bit as beautiful today as she was then.
No nudity this time, but corset and lingerie still makes HR directors soil themselves so the photos are behind the cut. Enjoy.
A few shots of the lovely Aimee taken at my studio during an all day group photo shoot in 2009. Aimee’s one of my favorite models over the years. She’s moved on from modeling now, but is still a close and dear friend.
It has been a while since I last posted any of the nude and risqué sets I shoot. These images are from a set that was more of an experiment than a planned session.
It does not take bunches of lights and backdrops and modifiers and other gear to get a very soft, sensual look in a nude set. Often, simplicity is more effective than an “engineered” approach.
I could go on for another few thousand words, but I would much rather let the images speak for themselves. All of these but one were shot with a single speed light on a stand with a 12×8 soft box, The last one was pure available light and is pretty much a candid taken while the model was relaxing g after the shoot.
I shouldn’t have to say this but the images after the fold are Not Safe For Work. Nudity abounds beyond the fold. Enjoy.
This is what will probably be the last batch of edits from my Graduation Day shoot of my niece Kerstin back in May of 2014.  She’s grown into a beautiful and strong young woman over the years.  I sincerely hope this, our first formal shoot, won’t be our last.
After the gallery show (post here) on Saturday night, Wendi and I took a stroll through the square on the way back to our car. Along the way, I took a few shots of interesting sites.  Enjoy.
On the value proposition of art.
Yet again one of the many memes about why you should value an artist more because of all the effort they put into their art. The one currently floating around is one of the least aggregious of the bunch, and one I mostly agree with.  What I don’t agree with is the underlying premise to all of these memes. To whit: effort == value.  Let me speak to that as an artist and a capitalist.
All of those things are the intangible foundations of the drive to create in any artist. How well we communicate that passion, how well we engender a visceral, emotional reaction in the viewer or purchaser is the other half of the value equation. The labor-value theory is an utter fallacy. To the purchaser, the effort that goes into a a creation is irrelevant, in general, in their estimation of it’s value to them. It informs the value for us, the creators, but not the person purchasing the piece.
A successful transaction between artist and viewer or purchaser is one where our value and theirs most closely match. What has our creation given them in exchange for that little bit of their life represented by sheets of dead trees with artistic drawings of dead men on them? When you find that hook, that message, that something intangible that touches the deep heart of your customer the way the effort, the art, the act of creation touches yours, then and only then will there be an equitable exchange of value.
If you’re dismayed by someone undervaluing your time, your effort, your art and your life, look to your creations first and if you find no deficiency there, look to your customers instead and go find different ones whom would find your work of sufficient value for the exchange to be equitable.