Rex Rider
Hey guys! Well, I'm embarrassed to say that it's been a while since I maintained the website - almost three months. It's been a crazy couple of months - new boss, refocusing on just one job, and the holidays. Sure, there has been some stressed reintroduced into my life with the new boss, but I did have an opportunity to take my first trip to Las Vegas! The neon lights, the Cirque Du Soleil shows, Zombie Burlesque, and the shows at the Bellagio Fountains were some of the highlights. I'm definitely hoping to return to Las Vegas at some point. Hell, I'm hoping to work with some male models while I'm in Las Vegas next time!
I haven't really had a lot of time for my photography these last couple of months, but I'm hoping to get back to it in 2017. Yeah, I'm definitely looking forward to holding several photo shoots throughout 2017 starting in January. Of course, I'm wanting to work with several of the guys that I have photographed before, but I'm also looking forward to working with some new guys. Particularly, I'm planning to go on some trips in 2017 and working with some guys in those locations. It would be interesting to say the least! But yeah, I'm hoping to hold more photo shoots in 2017 and share those images with all of you!
Anyway, on to the reason that you guys are here.
Rex Rider
When Rex answered my call for models, I was definitely interested in his overall look. His boyish smile and dimples instantly charmed me. However, it was the personality that showed through his email that drew me in. Sure, I may have been reading into the email, but the text carried a sense of confidence and a hint of his sense of humor. Furthermore, from that initial communication, he was bringing forward his own ideas for the photo shoot. It definitely intrigued me and filled me with excitement about the images that we could create together.
Rex was a professional and suggested ideas and potential poses throughout the photo shoot. When he arrived at my place, he brought several changes of clothes that we had agreed upon. I definitely enjoyed photographing him dressed in his construction worker gear, including the hard hat and tool belt. I also was able to photograph him in the clothing that he used when he engaged in domination activities - black leather chaps and a cat-of-nine tail whip. It was definitely an interesting photo shoot, but I loved the images that came from it!
Street Clothes
Rex works in the construction industry around town. When he mentioned that he could pull off the "sexy construction worker", I definitely jumped at the chance to photograph him in that gear. In the Rex Rider Gallery, I have several images of him dressed in his jeans, bandana, tool belt, and even his white hard hat. I will definitely agree with him in stating that he definitely can pull off the look. However, it's the image below that turned out to be my favorite from the set.
I definitely love the pose in the image. The slight turn of his body, as evident in his shoulders and chest, gives the image some visual depth. Additionally, I love the downward tilt of his head and the relaxed facial expression. Overall, I love the simple pose because of how beautifully it displays the strength and power evident in his body. I also like how the tool belt and the large pouch seems to counter balance his body and create some visual weight on the right side of the image.
And in discussing the pose, it's also important to talk about the lighting in the image. Like in most photo shoots, I'm using a two light set-up in the image below. I do like the softness of the light and how it caresses his body. Unlike my other images, there is a soft gradual transition from the highlights to the shadows across his body. In fact, that are few true dark shadowed areas in the image. However, the light still highlights the muscles in in chest as well as his abs. I also like how the light highlights the muscles and veins in his biceps, forearms, and the tops of his hands. Overall, I'm very happy with how the lighting and pose came together to create a great image.
Portrait
As I was looking through the finished images, I had some trouble coming up with my favorite portrait from the shoot. So instead of just highlighting one image, I decided to highlight two.
The first image came from the middle of the photo shoot. I ended up choosing the image below because of the overall composition. I am a fan of profiles and seeing how the positive space interacts with the negative space. In this instance, I love how Rex's chiseled features (the shape of the back of his head, his nose, lips, and chin) stand out prominently from the dark backdrop. I also like how the bend of his arm mimics the shape of his nose to create some repetition. As with his facial features, I like how his arms clearly stands out from the dark background.
Overall, I just like the interplay of the positive and negative spaces within the image. To me, it creates a striking image that gives me pause and my eyes trace the lines of his head and upper body. It's definitely one of those images that I pause to take a few moments to look at before moving on.
The second portrait that I ended up liking from the shoot came from the end of the photo shoot. I absolutely love Rex's relaxed pose as he leans against my textured wall. It's a simple portrait, but it definitely stops me in my tracks as I try to remember what Rex was looking at. As with the previous image, I like how his body is set apartment from the background, even if the texture is visible in the highlights and shadows.
I do like the lighting in the image. Specifically, I like how the light shifts from highlights to shadows across his face. Furthermore, I like how the light makes his eyes standout in the image. Overall, I'm very happy with how the relaxed portrait turned out.
Underwear
As you guys know, I photograph my male models posing in a variety of underwear. Of course, Rex was no exception. However, the image that I ended up choosing to highlight for this portion of the photo shoot comes from the beginning of the shoot and is not your traditional male underwear model pose. Well, maybe it is. Either way, the underwear is not necessarily on full display, but it is evident in the image below.
There's a teasing element in the image as Rex is unzipping his jeans and spreading the fly apart. It's classic seduction and teasing at it's finest, and I absolutely wanted to capture it in an image. I absolutely love how the right side of his fly leads the viewer's eye up to the waistband of his boxer briefs and directly to the "Hanes" name. Finally, I love how the black cotton of his boxer briefs contrasts nicely against his pale skin and the tones of his ripped jeans.
Overall, I'm happy with the way that the image turned out. While there are several images of Rex posing in a variety of underwear that I could have chosen from, it was definitely easy to select the image below to highlight here. It's definitely one of my favorite images from the photo shoot with Rex.
Favorite Image from the Photo Shoot
I absolutely loved working with Rex throughout the photo shoot. We were able to create a variety of looks and feelings throughout the shoot. However, when I was going through the images to select my overall favorite image to highlight, I couldn't decide from two very different images. So instead of trying to decide which one to highlight, I decided to share both of them.
The first one comes from the end of the photo shoot. In some of the previous photo shoots, I had been playing with the idea of capturing lifestyle images. Of course, I'm not entirely sure if I am managing to capturing those types of images based on the true definition of the style, but I'm capturing imagined slices of life occasionally. In the image below, I wanted to capture a relaxed Rex lounging completely nude in bed.
I definitely love Rex's pose in the image. I love the implication of Rex's height in the image, but also how his body is displayed in the image. As I first look at the image, I find myself instantly drawn to his lower stomach just above the intersection of his bare right thigh and his sheet-covered left thigh. I'm not sure why eye instantly focuses on that area, but it's a good starting point to explore the rest of Rex's body. Following the line created by the ridges of abs just above his navel, I'm drawn to his slightly shadowed face and his arched arms. Yeah, I definitely love the interplay of the intersecting lines as well as the highlights and shadows crisscrossing Rex's body.
Additionally, I love the soft light that graces Rex's body in the image. While there are highlights and shadows, they are not too extreme. In fact, I love how the majority of his body, and image, is a blanket of soft gray tones. It helps to create a softness in the image as well as a sense of tranquility throughout the image. Overall, between the handling of the compositing, lighting, and editing process, it's easy to see why the image below is one of my favorites from the photo shoot with Rex.
The second image that I loved from Rex's photo shoot is below. It's a completely different from the image above. While I'm definitely fascinated with the overall look of the whip, the black bandana, and the leather riding chaps, there's also a sense of restrained strength present in the image. Moving beyond the elements of a lifestyle, my attention is definitely drawn to the overall composition of the image.
To start off, I love the lighting in the image. In particular, I love the sliver of light present on the right side of his body. For me, I love how it serves to provide some separation of his body from the background and the hanging leather straps of the whip. Additionally, I love how the light highlights the muscle definition throughout his back, shoulders, and arms.
However, I'm mostly drawn to Rex's pose in the image. As with several of the images in this collection, I'm drawn to the interplay of the positive and negative spaces in the image. Particularly, I love how the outline of the left side of his body stands out in stark contrast to the darker background. My eye easily follows that outline from the top of his hand resting on his head down to the bottom edge of the image. It's definitely a beautiful line that is also mirrored in the curve of his spine. Of course, it's that line along his spine that definitely cemented my love for the image.
Overall, it was definitely easily to select the image below as one of my favorite images from the shot. However, I love both the image below and above for completely different reasons based on similar criteria. In the end, I couldn't decide which one I liked better. So instead of choosing, I decided to highlight both of them in this blog post.
Closing
Overall, I loved working with Rex Rider throughout the photo shoot. We definitely went through several looks during the photo shoot. He was definitely a professional and came prepared to go through a variety of looks. He definitely hit all of the looks and the overall feel that I was looking for in each image. Of course, it definitely helped that I was attracted to Rex's overall look (that smile and those dimples!), but it was definitely his personality that made it a pleasure to work with Rex.
As I look forward to 2017, I'm definitely hoping to work with Rex in another photo shoot. While I don't have a specific idea for the shoot, I'm sure that we could come up with several ideas. Either way, I'm definitely looking forward to working with Rex again.
Again, thanks for taking the time to check out the blog entry and the images from my photo shoot with Rex. If you would like to check out some additional images from the shoot, please visit the Rex Rider Gallery. I definitely appreciate it that you guys are taking the time to scope out my work!
If you guys want, you can also check out my Instagram account at http://www.instagram.com/reyj.photography. I tend to post images daily!
If you are interested in setting up a shoot or letting me know what you think about my work, you can email me at [email protected]!