Thought I'd make a post to talk about my latest pictorial periodical (as in this will be a regular thing). "A Year in Review of the Nude: 2011" is my reflection of the models I worked with who shot nudes throughout the 2011 year. I didn't shoot as many models as what I may typically shoot in 12 months. The first two years I was in Vegas, I was probably shooting about 2 models a month, but I've since slightly waned on how many models I shoot. Lately, I've had a propensity to shoot more images with fewer models. Some models you just simply gel with and you tend to end up shooting them again and again without searching out new talent. This last year, I shot 7 models of whom I feel I did some incredible work. Some experimental first time shoots and then others that were simply exploratory while discovering new countrysides and vistas. Some shots are almost overly conservative, even by artistic nude standards. Then again, there are some shots that are bold, daring, and provocative enough to make your pupils dilate a few more millimeters wider than normal. Regardless, I ofttimes take what the model gives me and that becomes my raw material for editing.
I've had a few emails and inquiries asking why I've got the book priced the way I do. A reasonable price might be $30 to $50 and if I wanted to maybe push a little more profit, I could charge upwards of $75. Those are the suggestions. Truthfully, I could have gone that route. I could have made a smaller book, both in size and in quantity of pages and made it paperback. However, that's not exactly the way I want my work to be portrayed. I want it exhibited big and in large fashion. I also want it on good paper, bound well, with excellent print. That's the ONLY way I want my work shown. I am a photographer, make no mistake about that, but I'm an
artist first! This is my artwork and I'd much rather my pieces be viewed as such. I didn't make a "book", per se. I assembled a collection of my artwork. I've sold SINGLE pieces of art for much more than the $149.99, I have this book listed for at about 115 images. I feel like I'm practically giving the book away at that price point. Chances are, YOU'VE paid more than $200 for a single photo or art piece to hang over your couch. Realistically, my first thought was to have it over $500, and this may well be the case in the future. But for now, $149.99 is where I set the option to purchase. This is my art. There's a story behind every single shoot. There is emotion, love, and feelings wrapped up into each image. Time, energy and effort is spent in editing these captures... all done to share and exhibit my wares to you, the general public. So this is more aimed at a specific demographic of people who spend money on artwork and who will generally spend well over that amount for art. Its well made. Its large. And the pictures are friggin' awesome! So if it sells, great. If not so much, then that's okay too!
My main goal had nothing to do with profit generation, oddly enough. I want each book I do to be successful, of course. I desire for it to be in demand, without a doubt. However, I didn't make it for everybody. The majority of people will not desire a book on nudes anyway. Of the ones that do, most won't shell out my asking price. I know this. I am not bothered by it. My goal if anything is to share this with people who see it more as a piece of artwork, as opposed to simply a book to be consumed once, and shelved. I am interested in my work being shown in your homes, no different than the art you hang on your walls with a lamp shining on it or propped up on a pedestal in the corner. Its the same as my single images I create. When I edit and do my final crop, I'm not as concerned with whether or not its been cropped to standard sizes, so you can go to Wal-Mart and purchase a frame for it. How it is, is how it is. I'd prefer it to be custom mounted by a professional and framed accordingly. I've sold to some clients and assist them on choosing how my images will be mounted and framed once I have the print produced. Maybe its just me, but I don't want my artwork in regular frames all the time. If the print size is 13 x 9 3/4, then I don't want it cut down to an 10 x 8 so it can fit a ready made frame! Granted, people will do what they want, but my work is made to be custom hung. Don't fault me for being particular about this.
I think you will love this book. You are going to fall in love with my models and the shots they each contributed to. You will feel the story behind each image and be left wondering about the details. It will definitely pique your interest and you will want to imagine what shooting with Panda,
Mercy, or
Viki Vegas, must have been like. Each have their own different feel. Shooting with Viki was far different from shooting with Mercy and I believe you will sense this as you peruse through the pages. You will get a sense of Panda's willingness to create art and feel how cold Dominique must have been and wonder how she tolerated the temperatures. This is what my book delivers. Its artwork that you can appreciate, but its the experience that will make the hairs stand on end and give you the goose bumps your sympathetic nervous system has been starving for. At the very least, take a chance. Jump!
