Nudes

I think that nudes are the most difficult and most rewarding subject for me.  As I have mentioned elsewhere, I like to work in the studio and control every element of the picture.  Working with people in the studio means that I either have to give up some control or learn completely different skills.  It is not just a matter of getting a person to pose a certain way.  Much more subtle elements of the relationship between photographer and subject find their way into the captured image.  This is the very essence of good portrait photography and with nudes it is thrown way off balance by the simple fact that the model is naked while the photographer is not (well, not in any of MY sessions anyway).

Producing consistently good nudes requires that the photographer have a sincere respect for the subject, and I hope that that is the case with my images.  At the same time you must recognize and deal with the fact that almost all nude images express a certain degree of sexual tension.  Such tension is the more obvious part of the broad appeal of nudes, but the greater part is simply human empathy:  Just as we are all interested in hearing the story of someone else's life, we are also interested in the human form.  We are able to "read" a great deal about a person from their body language because we do it all the time, if not always consciously.  Color science tells us that it is very important to reproduce flesh tones correctly because people are very sensitive to small variations in this portion of the color space.  In the same way, we can usually sense quite well the feelings of a person who is so exposed.

Click on an image to see a larger version and to read about it.

Copyright (C) 2004 Greg Marshall

No portion of this web site may be copied or reproduced in any manner without express written consent.