'It all starts with the face. Faces inspire me.'
In the past I have written frequently that I dislike images in which bodies are shot as if there is not a man, a soul attached. It is my way of describing images where you can clearly see that the model, their face and eyes, who they are as a person, are totally ignored. The photographer's focus is focused solely on genitalia, as if there were not an actual human being connected to it.
I understand there are shoots when this is done with intent, when the photographer is making a statement about the human form with a theme in mind. Those are not the shoots I am thinking of. There are shoots when faces and eyes are visible within frame, they are not however considered, nor in anyway important to what the photographer is aiming to capture.
3 images below: Drizzy
I love that the first image from Raw Afrika Photography that I saw was the bodyscape I used for pic of the day. Although it did not include a face, the model's emotion and soul could be vividly felt. Raw Afrika does not just shoot faces and headshots, their port is full of bodyscapes and contextual nudes, contextual being key.
On ModelMayhem, may models begin lists of shots they like and photographers they would like to work with; Photographers in turn begin lists of models that they would like to shoot. I always wonder what it is about a model that first inspires them and ends up making their list. Although FH is about the male form, it always for me, as with Raw Afrika, begins with the face.
It does not necessarily have to be a good looking, handsome or perfect face but a face able to convey emotion. A face that connects with the rest of their body and is able to complete the story the photographer is trying to tell. FH is based in story and an unexpressive model, regardless of how many hours spent at the gym, or impressive inches they may possess, holds little interest for me to profile.
Raw Afrika's images originate from the place he lives and works in Johannesburg. The artist describes himself as an intrinsically African photographer. Intrinsically in this case does not mean necessarily landscape and culture directly. For Raw Afrika, it is about how living in this area of the planet, it's culture and norms translate through the faces and eyes of the men who live there.
