Sam Comer Photography

I could publish a posing guide from this shoot

Only one other time have I photographed a model that was so fast and comfortable and easy at posing as Shae. At first, I was concerned that our one hour and a half or so shooting window would limit how many images we could get. By the end, I had shot nearly 700 images! One pose right into the next. I found myself giving her actual direction very very rarely. Usually she was one step ahead of me.

Not only were we able to get 700 images, but she was able to get in more than a half dozen outfit changes. The bad thing is, I now have to sift through 700 images. The good news is, they’re all so good and should require so little editing that it won’t be difficult to get some quality photographs at the end of the day.

Great shoot today

I had a great shoot today with a model from modelmayhem.com.  Below are some samples of those images. We shot in my home studio and then took a trip out to Mead’s Quarry in South Knoxville to do some more shots out there.

All in all, I think I made nearly 500 images. Now the fun begins – how do I filter through all those to come up with a handful of great images? That’s the problem, I guess, when a shoot goes really well – you shoot and shoot and shoot. Then there’s hell to pay when it’s time to edit. (Not that I mind looking through all these images of a rather amazing looking model.)

Some of these will be up on my website soon. Next shoot? Looks like it’s going to be deep under ground! Fun stuff.

Classic Hollywood in Still

Last night, I made a visit to the Knoxville Museum of Art to A. Check out the Alive After Five for the first time in a long time (Jenna and the Joneses … Good show) and B. to see their new exhibit, “Made in Hollywood: Images from the Jon Kobal Foundation.” Still photographs from Hollywood from the 1920s to the 1950s are displayed. Some are classic portraits where the stars would go to the studio and sit for a session and others are on-the-set images taken while the movies were being filmed. Silent film stars Gloria Swanson, Buster Keaton, and Charlie Chaplin, on up to The Marx Brothers, James Cagney, Audrey Hepburn, Rock Hudson, and on and on.

Several different photographers are featured, and the point of the show is not so much, “Check out the Hollywood stars!” but more, “Here is some amazing work by some of the best photographers in their day, many of whom were responsible for launching and/or saving the careers of many of their subjects.”

It’s interesting how the quality on some of these is sort of … lacking. A handful were simply blurry/out of focus, which is particularly odd for them being still images of a still subject. But those were in the 20s when photos didn’t necessarily have to be good, they just had to be photos.

There were more than a few, however, that were just stunning. In some ways, I don’t think some of these techniques can be duplicted today. Or, if they could, likely wouldn’t because many photographers just won’t take the time to make the effort, nor (more importantly) will clients pay for the extra effort.

The exhibit has definitely inspired me to take some time to make some images like some of the ones I saw. I have a model or two that I just may have to get into the studio and make some Hollywood magic happen.

Saturday’s Photo Shoot

I had a great model shoot on Saturday.  She goes by “Dekilah” on modelmayhem.com. I’ve worked with her before (in fact, she’s currently in my default photo on my Model Mayhem profile.) She’s a really great young woman with a lot of enthusiasm for modeling. And she has an amazing look. Very petite with long (LONG) black hair. We had a great shoot the first time and this one was even better. I look forward to shooting her again.

Some might consider the images “creepy,” because I incorporated various animal bones in them. I’ve had them for quite some time, and I’ve been wanting to use them in a shoot. “Dekilah” was more than enthusiastic about shooting with them. I think it made for some great photos. I can’t post all of them here because many of them are nudes, but I’ll post some of the ones I can.

And I don’t always do creepy photos. Check out my site at www.samcomerphotos.com to see more of my work.