Here is an image from my latest photo session for the classic cameras project. Sara was a great model to work with, and she did have one interesting comment, when she said “It’s refreshing to do a photo shoot with my clothes on.” I have never been one to have been objectified based on my physical appearance, but I could understand where she was coming from. The line between “art nude” and soft core porn is indistinct, and every time I think I might try my hand at the art nude genre I have to stop and think; what kind of image would I be making, and would it have anything to say? And can an art nude still recognize the subject as a person, and not just a body?
My Third Eye 
Great shot John, The model is plainly dressed in white which makes you not notice the subtlety of the composition (see her halo). The ample space around her supports the softness of the composition. Just crop the top and the bottom off to make a square image and you’ll see how rigid the composition becomes.
In this shot, there cannot be any denying that the model is attractive and the subject of the shot. What is the viewer mainly attracted to when looking at the photo? Is it the camera, the depth-of-field demarcation line or the expression of the model’s features? The answer of course is the model’s features. Just look at the challenge provoked by her eye. That’s what makes this shot zing.
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Thanks Rodney!
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Interesting subject matter.
First thing I noticed about the model was her body, then her face. I couldn’t stop myself from wondering what she would look like naked. Does that make me a pervert or does that make me healthy?
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Yes 🙂
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“And can an art nude still recognize the subject as a person, and not just a body?”
I don’t for one second claim to understand much about visual art mediums in general, and photography specifically, but isn’t the purpose of an art nude NOT to recognize the subject as ‘a body’ per se, but as part of the overall scene as a set of lines, textures and shades?
Or am I talking out of my bum ? 🙂
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I guess the same answer is it depends 🙂 I’ve seen some “art nude” which to me appears pornographic, in a cliched, demeaning way, but some work, like Edward Weston’s, or Man Ray, does not come across this way at all. It is a very thin line.
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