This shoot with Ana was one of many ‘firsts’ for me... The first time the model contacted me rather than the other way around, the first time I didn’t choose the venue and had to figure it out on the spot, the first time I shot until we ran out of light. I also told Ana she’s the first Ukrainian I’ve ever met, though she didn’t believe me. Maybe she’s right, but I swear I can’t think of any others!
I’m always uneasy and apprehensive before a shoot, because I’m still very new to this and am very much an amateur dealing with professionals. Or so I tell myself, anyway – imposter syndrome looms large. My two main sources of unease for Ana’s shoot were the aforementioned lack of choice of venue (or time slot, actually – we didn’t start until 4:30, later than I’d have preferred as a natural-light-only-shooter) and Ana herself. She comes across as very serious, focused, and intense in the images in her portfolio, and I feared an encounter with a seasoned veteran who would have little patience for someone who couldn’t keep up with her.
What actually happened? We got along seamlessly from the second she greeted me, had a productive, fun, engaging shoot together, and I left so utterly euphoric that I scarcely remember my commute back home.
We started to get to know each other in the elevator on the way up to the hotel room she’d booked for her visit, which is also our shooting location. The usual pleasantries to begin with, of course, interspersed with business talk (model release, removing distractions, choosing outfits, which was an easy decision as you can see from the photos). Only a few minutes in and she’s excitedly showing me Polaroids of her four dogs (her kids, she calls them). The only thing she’s wearing at this point is her proud dog-mom smile. This is a wild new world I’ve stepped into.
This post continues over at my Patreon page. You can read the rest of the writeup there, as well as see many more photos from my session with Ana, available for high resolution download. You can get two posts just like this one per month by subscribing there, plus lots of other perks.
Nude photography is probably the one area I haven't explored so I congratulate you on taking the plunge and having a go.
In one of your posts you talk about the "film mentality" and how digital shooting allows you to shoot more frame than are absolutely necessary. Back in the 1980s when I shot weddings it was normal practice to shoot 10 rolls of 120 film - 120 shots. I used Kodak Vericolor Pro, a 160 ASA negative film. A light meter and a flashgun were your best friends. The Hasselblad marked you out as the Pro. The only filter I used was a Hasselblad softar, if you're not familiar with them they had small hemispheres of glass on the surface, like raindrops and just took the edge of the sharpness of the lenses.