'Some of the images that turned out to be my favorites, are not the ones that are garnering attention...I love the dramatic flair in some of images and how well Dave pulled off the overall feel of it. His masculinity and intense stare definitely tied the image together.'
There is a recurring theme which arises each time I feature the work of Reyj Photography. Each time I contact Reyj about a model or a series, the images I am interested in usually have not been ones that have necessarily garnered the most hits or attention in his portfolio. As well, each time I return to Reyj's work there are images I skimmed by without much notice, that now seem to demand my attention. For Reyj's work with Dave, attention was not really the issue. When an artist who shoots the male form features a series which includes full nudes, sometimes sum of the parts divert attention, and dilute some of the strength, of the whole. Dave has a great body, but in Reyj's warrior series, when looking back, it was really the intensity expressed in some of the non nudes that grabbed Rejy, and my, attention, causing the entire series to be looked at differently, and more powerfully.
'The initial theme of the shoot was "Warrior." It definitely is evident in three of the images posted in the folder. Of course, one version of the warrior in the modern sense is the jock representing their school and trying to defeat their rivals. That part of the reason why I've got images of Dave posing in the "letterman's" jacket. Sure, I could have suggested that we incorporate some military themed garb, but everyone thinks back about high school and the "glory days." As such, I wanted to incorporate the jock as a representation of the high school warrior.'
'I figured that each warrior is glorified in art somehow. Thinking back to the Neoclassical era and Jacques Louis David, I remember a painting that he did of Leonidas. To me, that image was amazing given how much action was occurring within the painting, but the warrior was posed and staring directly at the viewer - a moment of time. So yeah, I started thinking about neoclassical and classical poses from sculptures and paintings that could make an awesome image highlighting the glory of the warrior. That thought process became the genesis of the image of Dave with the red fabric draped over his right arm.'
