Blue eyes laughing in the sun
Laughing in the rain
Baby's got blue eyes
And I am home, and I am home again
Elton John
With all of the artists that I featured over the years, there seem to two lines of attack which photographers use to approach shooting the male form. One is through concept. An artist has an idea, a story or concept they are passionate about creating. In these situations, the photographer utilizes the model, his body, movement and pose in the telling of the story.
When profiling a story driven shoot, writing the test to accompany the images is usually easy. The artist has already written the story, with a beginning, a middle and end. The story, like a book or movie, is complete. Other artists, like 25 year old Ben Octavius, don't present a finished film, but instead create a preview, an opening attraction to wet the viewer's appetite and imagination.
For artist's like Ben, the focus is solely on the model. Their face, their body, their skin and their eyes. There is still a story for sure, but it is more nuanced, and more subtle. In a shoot that is driven by telling a complete story, the control is often with photographer and model. They, through pose, prop and story, take the viewer, and the viewer's gaze, where they want it and when.
When the focus is the body, although there is still a complete vision, it is one you can take your time with. There is no rush to go through the story quickly. The viewer can take their time, taking each image, and each inch of the models body at their own pace. You can spend as much time as you want devouring a models beautiful face, silky skin, stomach, mouth, penis and round beautiful butt.
I took my fair share of time on each of Scott's many sensuous body features, especially his beautiful baby blues. It is not a surprise that Ben choose to ensure Scott's eyes were in each and every shot. Scott's baby blues contrast and compliment other parts of his anatomy perfectly leading to a story that Ben beautifully invites us to finish.
'Photography is a labour of love for me. I am very fortunate that in all my shoots I am able to collaborate with creatives that share and inspire my vision from start to finish.'
