Above: Image from Mark Leighton
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Wednesday, September 18, 2013
Happy Birthday today September 19th
Check out more of today's birthday's HERE:
Pointed In The Right Direction
I love when a show knows it's audience and Arrow's season two promotional posters target exactly whey so many of us love the show. Arrow star Stephen Amell along with cast members Colton Hayes, David Ramsey and Manu Bennett putting their best pecs forward to promote season 2.
It is just too bad Grant Gustin, recently cast as The Flash, didn't join them for the shoot!
Effervescence by Mark Leighton
Last year, I wrote a small piece entitled The End Of Summer featuring the images from photographer Mark Leighton. For many of us, the summer is drawing to a close, officially ending at midnight this Saturday.
Given one of my goals with FH is to focus on outside and location images, I often find myself enjoying seeking out images, and photo shoots that represent the seasons as they pass. With summer winding down I contacted Mark last month about returning to his imagery, especially his breathtaking views from the southern coast region of Algarve in Mark's home in Portugal.
For many of us, one of the most enjoyable parts of the summer is being able to spend time at the beach. It is not just the sun and swimming and incredible views but also the feel, taste and sound. I have spent many summer mornings woken by the sound of waves breaking along the shore. For me, this sound echoes through all my best memories of summer.
That exact moment, after the build up, as it rises, swells and then crests. The wave then crashes, exploding in burst energy spreading frothy bubbles and discharging fizz and white foam as the wave eventually shrinks back into the ocean. It will rise again, but never exactly in quite the same way.
There is something so magnificent, and even a little sad, that these captured moments of breaking waves are once in a life time events. Each one so incredible, yet experienced by so few. I guess that is one of the most powerful things about great images. Someone in the North East in America, someone who had to put their furnace on for the first time yesterday, could enjoy a never to be repeated moment from a breaking wave, and the adonis over 3000 miles away.
Into The Woods: Michelangelo DiNapoli by Ron Amato
'Into the woods
to get my wish,
I don't care how,
The time is now'
Be careful what you wish for..... In the musical Into the Woods, Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine delve into the darker undertones or our childhood bedtime stories exploring beyond the surface into the characters motivations, pain and longings and of course what happens to them after 'happily ever after.' The Woods, the setting, but also a metaphor the places, both literally and emotionally that we all go to satisfy our longings and needs.
What better place then, for model Michelangelo DiNapoli to enter into the woods then in the Meat Rack, a section of forest between the Pines and Cherry Grove on Fire Island New York. This particular area of woods is known as a place of desire fulfillment, a dark thick forest, you enter, then exit happily, although not usually, for ever after.
‘Armani suit or birthday suit, no difference’
I was first introduced to the work of New York model last year when profiling his work with photographers Kevin Hoover and Rick Day for tMf#7. Michelangelo knows how create a great image, his savory body the bait, his beautiful soulful brown eyes, the lure to hook you in. In addition to his physical attributes, what most impressed me about Michelangelo was his determination. Even when told that he was too short or too ethnic looking, Michelangelo continued to follow his passion, working and creating an impressive body of work with some of the preeminent capturers of the male form.
I love these shots from New York photographer Ron Amato. Within the foliage, within the tree's and on the beach, Amato beautifully captures Michelangelo as if he belonged there. A natural, and sensual, inhabitant of the forest. The images, like the woods, are lush and green and there such detail and depth they almost appear as if a 3D painting. Because of the weather and the lighting, Ron and Michelangelo shot twice, once at 6a.m, which ended early due to the overcast sky, clouds and drizzle. You can see the foreboding sky in the last two images on the beach taken that morning. They got together again at almost 6p.m, to bring in the evening sun, after the days rain finally ended.
The second shoot took place deep in forest, and even with all the trees, there was plenty of sunshine to warm and light Michelangelo's naked body. In this particular section of woods it is not exactly unexpected to run into the odd nude man, or men for that matter. It was still however a nice surprise for others who ventured into the woods, to come across Michelangelo at work. The first shoot included a cigarette smoking spectator on the boardwalk, clearly happy with his early morning view. The second shoot, possibly from the mornings positive reviews, had an even larger audience.
'The men who walked through the woods, looking for sex, stopped to watch our shoot--some stayed longer than others, some stayed too long until Ron stopped and gave them a look, or until we moved to another location. I got lots of attention, which created a great sexy mood for the shoot. I used it to my advantage. The men were pleasantly surprised to see a photo shoot in the woods with a completely nude model.'
'It was the first time that I shot in the woods and there were a lot of mosquitos and I was bitten everywhere. I had OFF on me, but they were biting me anyway. Most were from me posing nude in the woods, not an ideal situation and location. Although uncomfortable, especially being nude in the mud or on a tree and with all the bug bites, I would do it again! We created amazing images, sexy and artist, some of my favorites. There was a sexual energy that I hope came across in the photos. I was nude, outdoors, in public, with lots of horny men watching. It was a great experience.'
Michelangelo DiNapoli
Michelangelo DiNapoli
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