"Life is Either a Great Adventure or Nothing"

Art Model, Kristi C., playing in the California mountains ©2013 Terrell Neasley

"Life is either a great adventure or nothing."

~Helen Keller 

And such is the nature of life. Challenges hit us. We make plans. Then Life happens. What do you do? You make a new plan. So that's what I'm doing. I'm sticking to the goals, but just altering how I get there. Setbacks and a few project collapses have cause me to delay my next travel excursion. I'll admit to some disappointment, but at the same time some new opportunities present themselves. New ideas and considerations have me even more excited than I had been previously. I just have to work things out. Okay, so plans change. You're only mad if you're too inflexible to change with them. So I'm just gonna roll with this and keep moving forward trying to make the best decisions I can with the information and opportunities I make for myself.

Art Model, Kristi C.©2013 Terrell Neasley

I think its this way in many of our lives. Things hit us and we stay down, or decide to quit, or sometimes become bitter about the original choice to act on a dream. Excuses of all kinds begin to creep in and layer a coat of sugar on the fact that we've failed. This is a natural human reaction we conjure to help us feel better about quitting. The only problem is that choice will often come back to haunt you later.

Art Model, Kristi C.©2013 Terrell Neasley

As a kid, I frequently had a tendency to sit and listen to the stories of old people. Listening to the elderly garners wisdom. That's not the way I looked at it then, I assure you. Mine was one of curiosity. I had never been anywhere, so I'd listen to stories of people's experiences and go home to pretend that I could visit those places and experiences the adult things they'd tell me about.

Art Model, Kristi C.
©2013 Terrell Neasley

"As you grow older, you'll find the only things you regret are the things you didn't do."

~Zachary Scott

But I can think back to moments where I would also here stories of regret. They would never say they regretted anything openly, but as I replay some of those stories in my adult mind, you can sense it. I remember talk of wishing they were 30 years younger or maybe talk of the benefits of being my age. They'd talk of what they'd do differently given what they know now. You'd here them discuss an ALMOST achievement, but something came up...maybe a death in the family, kids that came along, or a bad economy.

Art Model, Kristi C.©2013 Terrell Neasley

This is one of the things that I want...GREAT STORIES, from now til I'm no more. And then I want people talking about my adventures after I'm gone. I want it evident that I lived life to the fullest. That I maximized my opportunities, and that I was the kind of guy that did whatever he set out to do. This is the legacy that I want to leave for my kids and the rest that come after me. I want my life to be a model of a good example of the kid who made things happen. I've never had any special advantages. No silver spoon here. So if this empty-handed kid from Texas can do it, you can too. I want to die exhausted with no regrets. I can live with bad choices because I tried something new, took chances, or blazed my own trail instead of meandering with the crowd. When I do face my end, I want to face it looking forward. Death should simply be the next adventure.

**By the way...see the girl in the pics? As the captions evidently state, that's art model Kristi C. Know what's cool about her? She's on that same mission..."Life is either an adventure or nothing". I so love that quote!**

Eloquent Nude DVD - Got it!

There are several things I could cover tonight, but I need to limit it. "Shave or Not to Shave" will have to wait one more entry as I plan to cover some different things here tonight. I have also elected to bring back some of my landscape artwork for the next few posts as well.

Today was my first meeting of the Las Vegas Art Model's Group. I didn't have the turnout that was signed up, which was disappointing, but in a way, I was also relieved. The venue I selected could not have accommodated the seating arrangements had everyone who RSVP'd showed up. At the time I selected the venue, I only had 6 or 7 people in the entire group. Well, it ballooned to over 30 within the next week. This was more of a discussion meeting than a group session. So nobody brought easels, cameras, or paint. This was for brainstorming purposes in which case I utilized the opportunity to introduce myself, cover some basics about the group, and solicit suggestions and input from the members.

I plan to grow this group not only in size but also in influence. When you think of the art community in Vegas, you'll think of the Las Vegas Art Model's Group first. I want this to be the "IT" group if you move here and want to make an impact in the local art world. Several group members made outstanding suggestions and we have some valuable contacts to help us get started. I am thinking I may have to run a second blog as well. If this thing goes as I hope, it will not be serving to my current readers (especially overseas) to discuss the non-relevant happenings of the Art Model's Group when they have nothing to do with Vegas. By the first of the year, I will consider publishing a new blog for the LVAMG.

On another note, I just received in the mail the DVD of which I have been searching. Again, I want to give a special thanks to Peter J. Crowley for putting me in contact with Julie Gliniany of NW Documentary, the company which produced the DVD. I have not viewed it yet, but I plan to watch it tomorrow or the next day and then begin my review of it there after. For any new readers who may not have read these specific posts, this DVD is titled, "Eloquent Nude: The Love and Legacy of Edward Weston and Charis Wilson". I am particularly enthralled about this DVD for two reasons. First, I have been a big time fan of Edward Weston. I have not searched out why I identify with his style of photography, but I just know I relate to it. For some reason, I have a sincere appreciation for his methods and techniques. Maybe sometime I will do some self-imposed psychoanalytic inner reflection on why I like it, but its kind of like asking why I like cheesecake? Because it tastes like cheesecake, I guess.

The second reason I was thrilled to find out about this DVD is for the relationship between he and his muse, Charis Wilson. I have had the most affinity for the work of photographers who photograph their own wives. Edward traveled the country side shooting Charis everywhere and anywhere. I recently posted an entry on The Artist's Wife which outlined a NY Times article titled "The Artist's Wife: The Muse Who Never Said No", referencing Eleanor Callahan, the wife of the late photographer Harry Callahan. One thing that made this article so rich to me was the focal point on Eleanor who is 91 at the point of this interview. She was married to Harry for 63 years.

For the Model

I have given some more thought to the resources that I try to provide for models who pose for me, as well as anyone even wanting to give thought to the idea. In my Model Resources section, I believe I have a valuable collection of materials that models can take advantage of. I have been fortunate to have people trust me enough to take off their clothes and allow me to photograph them. I have done my best to never take that trust for granted. What is unfortunate is the experiences of some models whom have misplaced this trust which resulted in some unpleasant experiences.


Aside from bad experiences, this is an endeavor that should not be taken lightly. With a healthy application of wisdom, the experience can prove beneficial. I ask my models to fill out an evaluation form after modeling with me for the first time. I ask questions as to why they choose to model, what the experience was like, as well as how they felt afterwards. Many reasons are given as to why either of them choose to pose, but several seem to agree that the experience has been liberating and gives a dramatic boost to confidence levels. As any woman can attest, an increase in confidence alone is well worth the experience.


I try to make the experience fun and enjoyable, but I warn that there is work involved. Whether under hot lights in a studio or hiking trails in the wilderness, this is not a sit pretty and smile sort of affair. I have a project in mind with specific objectives, but I always like to bring in the model's perspective to the equation. This collaboration is what produces the best work. I don't believe the model is a prop used to create an artist's vision, but rather an integral and necessary partner who helps to create a permanent artistic expression. I have done the same project with different models and the resulting outcomes are no where near similar. I can be verbose at times and do not want to make this a voluminous ordeal, so I will add more on the subject later. Main point...Models or would be models, do your homework. Check out my links.

Included are warnings from 3 photogs that give guidance on what to do if you are considering modeling. There are two articles which detail experiences of first-time models. Also included are tools for getting into becoming and art model, as well as online model portfolio sites that showcase galleries for you. As always, I am available for questions. I have added some of my portraiture studies to this entry.