'My goal was to capture the beautiful, private moments of pure, unapologetic love, joy, connection between 2 men. Erotic but not necessarily overtly sexual'
I was fortunate to discover the stunning imagery of studioAtruong back in the fall of 2013. When I saw Alain's images of Joey in (and out) of her overalls, I was eager to showcase his work. For the next few of years, and featured Alain's work whenever I had the opportunity. You can check out all of pieces on FH on Alain's Quaternate Page HERE:
The last time I featured Alain's work was in 2016. Alain sent along his ten favorite images to help celebrate FH's tenth year on-line. (HERE:) I've continued to follow Alain's work, and check out his site, checking out updates to write and bug him about a featuring. Alain beat me to it! I was thrilled to get a message from Alain last week about a new shoot, one he was especially happy with and excited to share.
I am always on the lookout for great images of couples. I love creative shots with multiple models, whether that be men with men or men with women. When the focus is on two men, I am frequently turned off however, especially by the lack of creativity in so many of the shoots that I see.
In part i maybe because so many of the male couples we see on-line are photographed for the promotion of a video, or porn site. In so many of those images, the creativity seems to start and stop with having two penis' in the same frame. It's as if seeing body parts intertwined is fine, and little effort is put into finding creative ways to shoot. There is a distinct difference between sexual and sex, and this difference is one sometimes overlooked.
My interest in imagery, whether it be one model or more, is connection. How the model connects with the viewer, or how the models connect with one another. Even when the connection is sexual, and the focus is the male form, targeting only body parts limits the degree of intensity and energy a photograph is able to convey.
Horny can be fun, but passion, desire and sensual agony are what propel just a hot image, to something artfully substantive. Sexual desperation, that need to be connected with another, even if just for a fleeting moment, is one of life's most sought after emotions. It's the reason we spend so much time looking not just for sexual partners, but momentary sexual soulmates.
Sexual chemistry doesn't just manifest itself in one part of the body, it grow, flows and combusts through every inch and part of the human anatomy, both inside and out. It's felt in the gut, the heart, the stomach and groin and it's intensity is seen most vividly within the eyes.
When Alain first sent this series with Micah and Jared, I wasn't sure how I was going to narrow down the selection for the story. In the end it was easy. I chose based on connection. The images featured are the images I felt most powerfully displayed the intensity of chemistry and sensual connection between Micah and Jared.
It was usually within one or both of their eyes. Sometimes it was a touch, a smile, a perceived moan, or moment of passion or sexual aggression. The moments were all emotions shared between the two, with the Alain capturing the energy flowing back and forth between both models in a single image.
Check out more of Alain's work with Micah and Jared on PAGE 2 HERE:
