Saturday, October 12, 2013

Favorite Pic of the Day for October 12th

Above:
Doorway by DirtRoad
-See More Below-

Happy Birthday today October 12th

Above:
One of my favorite images of birthday boy Hugh Jackman.

See more of Hugh and today's birthday boys;

Happy Thanksgiving Eh!


I posted the small piece below this past August, when The Bieb's nude Thanksgiving guitar pics, spread across the web. Given it is Thanksgiving Weekend for all the Canadians who stop by FH (second on the list of FH viewers below) I thought I would run it once again.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Weekly Visitors to FH by Country:
United States
Canada
Germany
United Kingdom
France
Australia
Philippines
Spain
Italy
Brazil


Basting The Bird:
From August 2013


In Canada, Thanksgiving is a time to celebrate the harvest and other blessings which have occurred over the past year. There are however, noticeable differences between the Canadian celebration and the American one. First off, the date. In Canada, the turkey is stuffed and basted in the middle of October. I was not however aware of the naked traditions associated with the Canadian celebration.


I have not strutted around naked in front of my grandmother since I was 4, but I guess I will have to give it a try this year. Now Justin Bieber doesn't really have enough meat on his bones to wet my appetite, but there are other Canadians that I wouldn't mind observing partaking in the tradition. Lets hope this October, the disgruntled cousins of Canadian hotties Ryan Gossling, Dillon Cassey, Evan Williams, Sebastian Pigott, and Shawn Robersts have their cell phones handy.


What do they put in the stuffing?

 

DirtRoad: Internal Intimacy


One of the joys of working on FH is discovering artists and images I might have never seen if I hadn't been looking... The search is half the fun especially when the results take you down such a beautiful DirtRoad. This past summer, I was fortunate to discover the work of model and photographer Warren Russell (DirtRoad) and was especially taken with his exterior images in the barn which I showcased in August, To The Woodshed!(Above Image)

 

When Warren sent along his self shot images, in addition to the set outside in the old barn, were these interior images. There were distinctly different emotions connected to this set,. a more personal and intimate feel, that it made more sense to present them separately.


There have been times when I have profiled or interviewed a photographer for the blog or tMf that the artist has discussed their preference to shoot within a model's home instead of a studio setting. The reasoning was usually comfortably as we are all most comfortable surrounded by things we are connected to and in a space we feel safe in. In is interesting to see images of models, completely naked, exposed and vulnerable yet at the same time the model, the images feel distant and even cold. What is often lacking is trust, either between model and photographer or more common, between model and him or herself.


In Warren's case, model and photographer are one in the same, and the setting, a place he not only knows well, but also a place that holds his secrets. When we shut our front door behind us, we are able to be ourselves, remove the public disguises we use for protection and feel totally relax.


The beautiful degree's of intimacy and sensuality Warren achieves within these images is not just due to the location, or the fact he is totally nude. It comes from the trust and connection between model and his body, demonstrated through facial expressions, pose and movement.

 

Reflection Deception: Hansel Wellington by JGH Photography


As with the images sent on from DirtRoad (above), when John from JGH Photography shared his work with model Hansel Wellington, there was a set of images I felt deserved to stand on their on in a separate post. When I put together the first post, The Point Of Convergence, earlier this month the theme was aimed at focus. With mirrors however, the focus gets much more complicated.


Literature, theatre, poetry and art are all filled with stories about mirrors, often as a metaphor. Although mirrors may indeed be a reflection of the soul, they are also deceptive and not always a reliable teller of truth. I leave my house most mornings thinking I look great. My bathroom mirror at home is supportive and kind. The bathroom mirror at work however, has a cruel side. Could be the lighting, but that mirror at work likes to mock. It likes to make my mirror from home a liar. Those tell tale signs of the things I shouldn't have eaten or drank, the sleep that I skipped... My home mirror forgives me. My work mirror however demands penance. I am not sure which mirror is actually telling me the truth, well maybe I do, but I know which mirror I prefer to spend time with.


Besides the beautiful lines created, what I love best in this set of images is how the most interesting facial expressions occur in the reflection. Hansel of course looks incredible on either side, but I love is how in John's images, Hansel is focused on his reflection, but his reflection is sometimes more interested in us the viewer.