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How to get nude models?


paul_oberlin

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I know this sounds dumb. I see some fantastic, stunning images of

female nudes on photo.net. They are art as well as erotic and a

tribute to the beaty of the female form. But, how do you start? I

don't know if I'd be comfortable asking a beautiful young (or older)

woman to pose for me. Any suggestions? I mostly do landscape, but

am fascinated, and would like to try a few shots to see if I "have

it in me." Thanks, Paul.

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I agree with Robert. Getting people, especially women, to pose nude for you is likely to be a challenge unless you have demonstrated your ability to beautifully render them clothed. Talk to some people who you would like to see photographed. Get to know them. In time I guess you will know. Other route is to hire someone...but remember, for these models, time is money.
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Photograph women clothed first, its a lot easier and you will see if you have any ability to interact with models. Good nude models are extremely expensive if you can even find one. It takes more than just a naked woman to produce a good nude. You need to be a master of posing and lighting.
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One way to get some good nudes in your portfolio, and to get some ideas of the etiquite involved in working with a nude model, is to take some kind of class.

 

A surprising number of photographers offer such classes, and you can also often find them at community colleges, community centers, or independent photography schools. Local photography clubs occasionally do group shoots (especially in places like Florida or southern California). These are all good ways to work with an experienced model in a way that spreads the cost out a bit and gets you some help from more experienced photographers.

 

disclaimer: I'm biased, I teach photography classes, so I may tend to overstate their usefulness. I don't teach any classes that would be good for portfolit building, though. But our school does. I won't name the school unless the moderator says it's OK.

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Well this might surprise many of you but believe it or not, I have taken some very remarkable compositions of girls in chat rooms (mostly based in Eastern Europe).

 

I won't say which one but it's free. And you can learn to charm and get some interesting poses during conversations with them. A few girls have actually taken instruction from me and modelled for me remotely by this method and entirely for free. Since they have been unaware of my captions the results look very natural and not staged.

 

For example I might suggest that they rest a hand on their knee in a certain way, hold their head back in a particular way or throw their hair up in the air to give it volume and movement and they often oblige not realising my intent. Some require no instruction at all since it seems they have had some prior modelling experience from somewhere other than that site or aspire to be models.

 

The downside is that you are relying on a remote web cam with less than acceptable resolution the lighting is more often than not very poor and the background somewhat lacking. Also the communication aspect is often extremely difficult you have to be patient not pushy. If they tire of you they can kick you if they feel the urge too and that could ruin any future prospect of any future potential co-operation. It can days sometimes weeks to get the ideal caption by which time the model might be close to leaving.

 

I would like to share some of those captions with you here at some point but I am not entirely sure if they would qualify from a remote webcam keyboard screen dump point of view.

 

Captions I have taken have been carefully cropped and recorded in a Word.doc format.

 

What I would like to do at some point is to somehow convert them into *.jpg or similar format for more convenient viewing.

 

It is just a suggestion and one that has worked for me all be it crudely by Photo.net standards.

 

But isn?t photography or capturing a point in time at times about making the best use of what you?ve got at your disposal?

 

Maximising the minimum in difficult and trying situations can sometimes make that ideal and unique shot all the more special especially when it is unplanned and unexpected.

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  • 11 years later...
  • 2 weeks later...
I know this sounds dumb. I see some fantastic, stunning images of

female nudes on photo.net. They are art as well as erotic and a

tribute to the beaty of the female form. But, how do you start? I

don't know if I'd be comfortable asking a beautiful young (or older)

woman to pose for me. Any suggestions? I mostly do landscape, but

am fascinated, and would like to try a few shots to see if I "have

it in me." Thanks, Paul.

 

A site called Purple Port is the best around. I've used it many times. There are other model sites around but usually there is very little traffic on them.

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As some others have suggested, work up a portfolio of clothed models first. Use your friends. Learn lighting and posing. With that portfolio in hand, you now have some credibility when you approach someone for doing nudes. In fact, people you've photographed clothed now have a reason to trust you, and might be willing in some later session to pose nude themselves, assuming you haven't come across as creepy while photographing them. One suggestion I've seen elsewhere is that, in addition to the above, you collect some nude images of the sort you would like to take, and show them to the potential models, with the explanation that you are learning nude photography, and want to replicate these images. That, too, can be reassuring. I would also suggest that you cultivate a female friend willing to act as your assistant. Tell your prospective model that that's how you'll be working. That way, she'll know that it's not going to be a one-on-one, just-trust-me situation. The fact you are working with an assistant is a strong statement that your interest is photography, not messing around. And if you really want to impress potential models that you're serious about the nude as an art form, photograph some men, too. (A worthwhile challenge for a straight photographer, and a way for you to test your true motives.)
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I think keeping in mind making photos that are not just tributes to the female form but photos that are tributes to the females themselves could go a long way in increasing their comfort level with you. If you treat them as a "form", they're liable to sense some degree of non-welcome objectification. If you see them as fellow humans with personalities, they may be more inclined to feel comfortable with you. I agree with several above, though I shoot mostly men which has some similar and some different dynamics involved. I shoot them both clothed and naked. I've never started out with them naked. We move to that if we both agree and want to. They're guys. They're not art forms.
We didn't need dialogue. We had faces!
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  • 4 weeks later...

Social media: There are FB groups with models. I am a member of Bangkok models. I prefer to make clothed shoots, but some models are open for fine art nude. You can also search on Twitter.

 

Other options are modelling agencies or sites such as modelmayhem.com

 

Take a class or a workshop

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  • 3 months later...
It really depends where you live. I used to live in London and there was no shortage of models once I started to hang around the right places. As for the Internet, I had some good experience with iStudio - where Models, Photographers and the Industry connects ... Also, after contacting the owner of Naked Horizon, I have come across Adult Talent Agency | East Coast Talent | Get Started in Porn which I highly recommend if you are interested in more profit oriented fine art nude photography. Edited by William Michael
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  • 2 months later...

"girlie bars": they often want a portfolio. hangout, early & get to know a few.

i did the first shoot on a bet with a buddy. :D many others me asked thereafter... and they paid.

"I have always preferred inspiration to information.” - Man Ray

“The eye should learn to listen before it looks.” - Robert Frank

“To photograph is to hold one’s breath, when all faculties converge to capture fleeting reality.” - Henri Cartier-Bresson

"A camera is a tool for learning how to see without a camera.” - Dorothea Lange

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  • 2 months later...
Depending on where you are based, you could try joining websites that are specific to model photography. So for instance, in the UK we have Purpleport, which is by far tge best I have come across and there are lots of models to choose from. In the past I had used ModelMayhem, which has more US based models.
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  • 4 months later...

For some obscure and incomprehensible reason, a comment I contributed earlier was removed. My reply focused on MODEL MAYHEM with over a million subscribers that is not in competition with PN.

 

I said that Jim Phelps and Raymond Elstad with whom I have corresponded extensively over the years, and myself, have used the site successfully to find both professional models and beginners working on a TF basis (which translates in modern times to some of the more successful pictures being sent to the model in digital form). I hope this information is useful to fellow members seeking models (male and female) which I understand was the purpose of this thread.

 

Moderator Note: as feedback only -

There's nothing in the history of the thread which indicates that your comment was removed, that is not saying it wasn't removed, just saying that the history is not there, which typically can be found.

There's nothing in the body of your comment above which would require editing or removal.

William Michael

Edited by William Michael
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