It’s fantastic to be able to come to a ‘blank canvas’ shoot where the photographer has a number of ideas to  work with – We did a great underwear series on some neutral backdrops whilst we discussed one of Gaz’s seemingly hidden talents. It turns out that Gaz is a recognised professional body painter! <- He kept that one quiet from me! Having someone paint my abdomen and backside was pretty different from my normal shoots but incredibly fun to take part in.

Watch this space as I have a feeling that we will work together again (on location!) sometime very soon!

The first part of the shoot was with the personal trainer and whilst I watched as the other two models did stretches and I confidently thought to myself ‘ I can do that’, my jaw dropped when I was informed that I would be doing free weights instead! Admittedly, free weights have never really been my primary choice when visiting the gym and I always brushed the comments under the carpet when gym buddies told me that they work muscles that machines cant really mimic – Jesus wept, were they right!

I have since added a free weight aspect to my workout for obvious reasons  Keep a look out for the body modelling i did in the second part of the shoot for the health section of upcoming GT issues!

To be honest, i was a little nervous on my way there since i wasn’t entirely sure what i should expect. When i Arrived, Chris was SERIOUSLY busy taking photos and told me to take a look around the shop for anything i wanted to try on. I started to have a browse but admittedly i probably looked like a lost lamb (ok…a hairy cub) The staff at RoB were so unbelievably friendly and stepped in to help me out. Granted, their first choices were a little ‘too’ fetish for my comfort zone being the delicate little flower that i am… *grins*

A big well done to Chris for shooting 47 guys in 5 hours (thats 1 every 6 minutes!). Next time i’ll try and be a little more adventurous

My first shoot of 2010 with Mr Carter and i set him a little challenge; to do something out of his comfort zone! Leigh is not the biggest fan of body hair – Unfortunately for me, i’m covered in the stuff and often find myself running from the keepers of London Zoo.

Admittedly as i am getting older, i have learnt that its a part of me and something i have to accept i cant change. (we wont talk about the 72 weeks of not-so-sucessful laser) One good thing that has come of it is my ‘designer beard’. No boys and girls, nature didnt give me a perfectly curved edge.  You can thank the girls at the skin clinic that had to laser it by hand with me watching like a hawk *goes red*

It was fantastic to catch up with Leigh and see how he is getting on and the projects that he has got coming up. I would thoroughly recommend working with this gentleman – He has that fantastic ability of making you feel comfortable as soon as you meet him, communication and direction is great and i’m always impressed with the final product.

Make a book Leigh!

]]> http://bloggingofamodel.com/studio-shoot/sixth-photo-shoot-leith-carter/feed/ 0 http://bloggingofamodel.com/studio-shoot/momentum/ http://bloggingofamodel.com/studio-shoot/momentum/#comments Thu, 17 Jun 2010 14:48:42 +0000 Stuart Martin http://bloggingofamodel.com/?p=336 Things have really been up in the air in recent months – Following my ‘not quite’ emigration to the USA to deal with the relocation of our New York office, i have stayed put with the right incentives to do so and back on track with my modelling.

I took part in an exciting shoot for Gay times a couple of weeks ago for their health and fitness sections so be sure to look out for them in upcoming issues. Lets just say free-weights are not my forte so I’m a little more confident about how the images will turn out for the health section, haha.

This weekend i have the pleasure to be doing my first shoot for 2010 with the amazing Leigh Carter – The photographer who really got my modelling to take off. His mission for this weekend is to do something that is out of both of our comfort zones which I’m really looking forward to – think wet, fur, and even a bit of leather thrown in for good measure *smirks*.

I also have my 2nd shoot with both Chris Jepson and Pics By Gaz in coming weeks. Following a Skype call with Gaz yesterday, we have already come up with an ‘interesting’ theme that should look fantastic in both of our portfolios.

There is some great work in the pipeline so stay tuned and as always, your thoughts and comments are always appreciated.

I will keep this updated going forward, with some of my favourite work. As always, let me know what you think.

Chris used a plain backdrop whilst focusing on lighting and positioning. I on the other hand was in my element rummaging through his costume box…. *grins*

A good example of one of these for me is body hair; the bane of my existence.  All photographers have different ideals and this from my perspective is something that I essentially need to ask. I remember turning up to a shoot once after clean shaving my face and chest – I just remember seeing the horror on the photographers face because all of his ideas were based around the idea of me having body hair. In the end we had to improvise and try different concepts on the day, but a simple conversation before I attacked my body hair with the clippers would have saved the embarrassment. For my shoot tomorrow, the photographer has asked for me to keep my chest and facial hair for the ideas he has in mind

I tend to pack my bag of clothes the night before, just so I don’t end up running around like a headless chicken in the morning, searching for something I really wanted to take with me. Always take gel as well if you are as particular about your hair as I am – I can remember countless times where my hair has had to be ‘trashed’ for one reason or another and you never feel as comfortable without that handful of hair product rubbed in, do you? The photographer will normally make suggestions of certain things to bring along so be sure to ask if he doesn’t prompt you.

As for healthy living, we all now and then indulge in eating what we want to eat and having one too many alcoholic beverages. I tend to try and behave myself in the week running up to a shoot by eating sensibly and trying not to touch alcohol whatsoever. I’m pretty proud of myself that I have been heading to the gym regularly in recent weeks and hopefully I can continue this trend and bulk up so I can get into different areas of modelling. My arms and chest are still aching from yesterday’s workout which is a good sign, or so I’ve been told!

I best start packing my bag with all the bits and pieces I have been purchasing like a squirrel. I’m already excited to see the results from tomorrow so keep tuning in and letting me know what you think.