'Luky's filled with positive energy, he's adventurous and he gets excited about trying new things'
If you're a regular viewer of FH, I'm sure that you're very familiar with the work of photographer Phil Diab from Bodytorium. Although Phil shoots a variety of different men, his focus is frequently on models on the verge. Guys who are in the process of transitioning into adulthood, still with the youthfulness, energy and bodies of young men before time, and life, begin to impact body and soul.
I can't think of a better example of Phil's focus than this series of shots of Luky. (Lukas). The 18 year student is turning the corner this year, graduating from high school, and heading out into the world. It's a time of huge change, physical ones of course, but also a change in direction. When we're school, the the focus is narrow, the main goal is making it through to graduation.
Luky's life in Slovakia mostly revolved around studying, and as goalkeeper for the floorball team he plays for. Modeling naked wasn't necessarily in Luky's long term plan, that was until, he connected with Phil. During the pandemic, most of us found ourselves at home more, and consequently, on-line more as well.
Phil usually meets his models in person. If you've read my previous posts featuring his work, Phil often finds new models through his friends, while out on the town or at social engagements. Given people weren't getting that often, especially in large groups, it was much hard for Phil to connect with new subjects to shoot. Although he's not really into social media, and much prefers in-person contact, when the pandemic began, Phil dove in and did what he had to do to connect with perspective new models.
'Conditions often aren't ideal and sometimes to move ahead you've just got to bite the bullet. So I've been scouring Instagram and every so often I find gold. '
When Phil first connected with Luky on-line, he found the 18 year old very friendly and open to shooting right from the onset. Luky was also up for trying new things, and a nude photo shoot was both new, and a challenge he was more than up for. It didn't take much writing back and forth before Phil and Luky were talking on the phone, getting to know one another, and discussing what each might be looking for and expecting from a future photo shoot together.
'Even though Slovakia is a small country and you can practically drive from one end to the other in 6 hours, I don't always have the luxury to meet all potential models in person prior to a photoshoot. Coincidentally Luky had a floorball game in Bratislava, so we were able to meet in person on the following weekend.'
Upon first meeting, Phil felt an instant good vibe from Luky. . He was wearing a hat and Phil thought had him looking like a cute skater boy. Phil asked him if he could see how he looked with his hat off, and when Luky took off his hat, Phil felt like he was watching a scene from a movie in slow motion. As his hair flowed down, Phil could only think how drop-dead gorgeous he looked..
The began their shoot by driving to one of Phil's favorite spots in the country. The location had a good assortment of hills, valleys, meadows and tree's that Phil loves to use as natural obstacles for models to sit, lie, crawl and climb on. It also had a lot of space for Luky to run around around in. Often locations, even outside, can be limiting, and Phil wanted dynamic shots of Luky. With Luky's energy, Phil wanted lots of movements, beyond Luky just walking or standing around.
'Luky has a very healthy and positive attitude towards nudity. It was one of the most comfortable and fun photoshoots I've experienced so far.'
In addition to being a natural in front of the camera, Luky was both pleasant, and incredibly charming. After the shoot, they headed back to Phi's place in Bratislava, ordered pizza and continued the studio / indoor portion of the photoshoot. You can check out 100's of additional shots of Luky from both their outdoor, and studio shoots in a series of three updates on Bodytorium HERE:
