'When I see a model, and depending how he looks and acts, I get ideas of how I want to shoot him. My mind gets thousands of ideas and if we have the right chemistry the photoshoot ends up amazing!'
Since he was a teenager, photographer Alexandre Rios wanted to be a fashion designer. Alexandre would buy fashion magazine like Vogue and Elle to collect material for the inspirations flowing though his mind. Alexandre however found that his fascination went beyond just the fashion, but the actual images themselves. 'I used to say to myself that one day not only my collection will be in those magazine but also my pictures.'
Born and raised in Rio Brazil, was after a move to the US in 1999 when things started to happen. Initially Alexandre lived in New York but soon after moved to the Bay area in San Francisco. It was there, while walking around the city his passion for the male form began. Alexandre would find himself in book stores and eventually purchased his first book featured the male nude and began collecting images for inspiration. Like many photographers, after buying his first professional camera, a Canon, Alexandre began with a focus on landscaping photography. After getting positive feedback, Alexandre started a page on ModelMayhem and begin shooting the male form, using himself as his first model.
In 2013, Alexandre moved to England and got married and has been living there ever since. It was just last year in 2014, after getting his second professional camera, another Canon, that Alexandre began working with other models. 'I invited a few models to pose for me and between one model and another I stared to get more and more experience, but I still have more to learn as I never went to school to learn about photography.'
Alexandre finds it wise to be clear with new models up front what he has in mind and what he expects from them. His goal is to shoot many different looks keeping his models comfort a priority. Alexandre tries to create a comfortable atmosphere, building trust and a rapport and loves to have music playing in the background. Once trust is established, Alexandre finds the rest, just goes naturally.
Nudes came easy, even with a model naked in front of him, Alexandre says his mind and eyes are focused the image he wants, and visualizes what they're creating in the future, on the pages of a magazine. If anything, sometimes models are so comfortable and relaxed they get completely wrapped up in the work. 'On 2 occasions, those guys had a massive erections, yet they didn't seen embarrassed at all. I just kept shooting and the result was great!'
When I was spending time on Alexandre's MM portfolio, there were many images and models that grabbed my attention. There are many reasons a specific image or models stands out to me, but with William, I have to say in addition to his beautiful blue eyes, it was those sweat socks and how Alexandre used them within the shoot. I especially love the image, (second to last pic below) and the angle and pose Alexandre captured.
'My experience with William was good, he was calm and relaxed. Although he is not a professional model he had modeled before. For me his eyes are very expressive which makes him very easy to shoot He had the socks which I thought will be interesting to use that on bed, it was like a fetish which workout very well, and its one of my favorite.'
