Alyy Katt - Implied Nudes

[Manfred M]

Montreal based model Alyy Katt was passing through Ottawa, which gave me a chance to shoot her. The Ottawa based model pool is not all that large, so it's always great when one of the out of town models drops in for a few days.

1. Through the door





2. Rear view





3. Classic take





These are all studio shots taken in the same location. The door and bed are props.

[Shadowman]

Nicely placed obstructions.

[Manfred M]

Nicely placed obstructions.

That, of course, is one of the key objectives of this photographic genre; breasts, pubic area and much of the bum remain hidden. Generally one sees less of the body than one sees when visiting a popular beach in warm weather.

A lot of people feel it is risqué, but feel differently when people wear less out in public. Go figure...

[skitterbug]

I really like "Through the door"! For me, it is the best of this group!

[mugge]

The lighting in "classic take" is just great.
Cheers Ole

[KimC]

Hi Manfred, I popped in recently and came across the implied nudes you have posted. I enjoy this kind of photography and would like to provide you with my female view. I find the images are too bright for my taste, giving them a bit of a clinical /teaching feel. Perhaps that was the purpose of them as I didn’t read the threads.

I prefer when the lighting is more subtle and dodging and burning is primarily used to draw the viewer’s eyes into the curves and shapes you are seeking the viewer to explore. I’d love to see you do something like that...

[Manfred M]

Thanks for your analysis and thoughts, Kim. I'm new to this genre, so I still have not found a "look" I am comfortable with. I've done about 6 or 7 shoots involving partial nudity or nudity, so I am still at the "stumbling around" stage.

In general nudes, implied nudes and boudoir imagery have tended to use softer and subdued light and settings. In general photography involving women is done with lighting ratios that do not exceed 2:1, so what you are saying is correct when we look at those genres. Even the choice of clothing and props tends to soft and subtle pastels.

In fact, the main exception to those "photographic rules" seems to be bodyscapes, where harsh lighting is the norm and we shoot to include a full tonal range from complete black to complete white.





While I have experimented with low key shooting and the slightly desaturated in my general photography, I really tend to like a full tonal range in my images and while I generally do not "punch up" saturation in my PP, I try to shoot in a way that gives me these bright and "positive" images. Perhaps that does not work as well as I had hoped.

[KimC]

Thanks for sharing these additional images. These are gorgeous Manfred ~ they yield emotions and feelings for me. The first one, you can imagine how her body might feel on that slick wood floor with the awesome reflection of the lines of her body... and then the highlights and shadows and lines of her her body are just lovely and sensual. The second one is very different - it's like you captured a very intimate hidden moment, with the use of the patterns on her body giving it that hidden, mysterious feel.

Thanks for your analysis and thoughts, Kim. I' new to this genre, so I still have not found a "look" I am comfortable with. I've done about 6 or 7 shoots involving partial nudity or nudity, so I am still at the "stumbling around" stage.

In general nudes, implied nudes and boudoir imagery have tended to use softer and subdued light and settings. In general photography involving women is done with lighting ratios that do not exceed 2:1, so what you are saying is correct when we look at those genres. Even the choice of clothing and props tends to soft and subtle pastels.

In fact, the main exception to those "photographic rules" seems to be bodyscapes, where harsh lighting is the norm and we shoot to include a full tonal range from complete black to complete white.





While I have experimented with low key shooting and the slightly desaturated in my general photography, I really tend to like a full tonal range in my images and while I generally do not "punch up" saturation in my PP, I try to shoot in a way that gives me these bright and "positive" images. Perhaps that does not work as well as I had hoped.

[Shadowman]

Post #7, nice additions to the series both have wonderfully places reflections or shadows that play on the replication of shapes.

[Manfred M]

Thanks Kim & John:

The two images are all about the reflections and shadows. The first one is not of Alyy, but another model I've posted before. The second. with Alyy, was an attempt to use side lighting to cast harsh shadows over the breast to give an implied nude shot.