My Chanteuse, Part Two

Laid out on the bed is an assortment of outfits and lingerie and a small black gym bag. It’s closed but I take a peek anyway and I’m a bit amused to see some leather cuffs and other toys. This is going to be more fun than I thought. I know I shouldn’t have but there was no one watching so I opened the nightstand drawer to see if there was anything inside and I found a pack of condoms and an assortment of scented oils and about half a dozen candles. The drawer below it was empty and so were the drawers on the other side. Now my mind was wandering all over the place and it was hard to think about creating the sets I was previously thinking about. It was obvious she was preparing for the ‘possibility’ of intimacy but I knew there was 1001 ways I could say or do something wrong to change her mind. The more I thought about it the more presumptuous I realized she was being and for some reason this annoyed me. At the same time there was the possibility she was one of the women who had fantasies about taking off her clothes for a photographer, I’d certainly ran across enough of them to know that while most men’s favorite fantasy was a threesome, a woman’s favorite fantasy was either “dangerous” sex doing something forbidden or in a forbidden place, or the doctor/photographer/boss fantasy. I continued setting up and thinking about this at the same time and finally decided I was going to treat this session in a very businesslike manner like I normally do. Because of the night before in the pool I almost made the mistake of making the session too familiar, but now I was convinced keeping it professional was the way to do this.

I’d brought a bag with personal clothes and my shaving kit because these shoots can be very physical and I’d often end up sweating a bit. My professional camera with its RF flash trigger/control, L-bracket, and attached cords for tethered operation could weigh a good 4-5 kilos with the lens, try holding that out in front of you rock steady for a few hours everyday and you’ll soon start to develop some serious guns. Now finished with the setup I took my bag into the smaller bedroom and took a quick shower dressing in some light cotton trousers and a sleeveless black tee-shirt. When I was finished I took out the laptop, booted up into the camera control software, connected the cables, and placed it on the table next to my clipboard. I like my clipboard and have had it for almost 20 years. It’s the metal type doctors use with the spring loaded hinged front cover made of bare aluminum. It’s light and flat and protects the forms and I set it next to the computer and flipped on the television. Almost an hour later Mei-Ling returned from the hair dresser and greeted me with a smile. It was easy to think about being professional when she wasn’t there, but in person with her natural smile and animated eyes it was all I could do to not stumble over a chair.

She asked if we were ready and I told her we should sit down and talk about what was going to happen and agree on limitations. This is important. If a lady feels you’re going to try talking her out of her clothes during a session she’ll never get comfortable and her facial expressions and body language will show it, you’ll never get the desired natural look you’re after. It’s always best to set the ground rules and the conditions for breaking them. We both sat at the table and opening my clipboard to the model release I’d already filled out I explained it to her and showed her the area were we’d either list specific uses or turn over complete control. Normally if I’m paying a model for a clients advertising project or even just exchanging modeling for prints then I’ll insist on a full release. When the lady is the client paying me to produce prints for her own use then I only ask for a limited use release. The second sheet is basically an acknowledgement that the model knows she’ll be posing in various states of undress and she understands what’s going to happen, for instance I might arrange an article of clothing during a pose, or move her hair, place a hand, or something to assist in the shot. I’ve never had any problems, but I’ve heard many horror stories of photographers doing these sort of sessions and then the client for whatever reason gets angry and threatens to call the police or sue you for inappropriate touching or worse. The forms keep everyone honest.

I explain the forms to her and she checks the box giving me full release and signs both of them without hesitation. Placing the forms and clipboard back in my bag I explain to her that this will be a professional shoot and that we both should understand and agree on the limitations prior to starting the shoot. I ask her what kind of poses she wants to limit herself to and ask if she’ll want to pose totally nude or not. She looks at me with a grin and says she’d rather not have limitations, she just wants to see where things lead and do what she feels comfortable doing. I can see she’s not going to make it easy for me to be professional and I start to wonder if I’m carrying the professionalism too far. I decide to play it out so I set the limits myself telling her I’ll ask twice if I think she might not feel comfortable after the fact. By now I can see she’s starting to get a bit annoyed so I know I’ve set the right tone. Next I take her to each set and we talk about the type of poses in the pose book and what I’ll be looking for, how to stay in sync with the pops, and some other techniques. Walking out on the balcony she says she’d like to do some shots nude with the city in the background and we both look around to see if there are any taller buildings where someone might see us. There were none. We agree the first set should be on the balcony and she heads off to the bedroom to prepare.

Placing a table right inside the door frame I place the laptop where I’ll be able to see the images appear and run the cords effectively tethering the camera to the laptop. I mount the proper lens and pre-position a longer tele zoom within easy reach placing it next to a small stack of hand towels I always keep handy. Fortunately this was a rare cloudy day and there’s an even soft light across the entire balcony so I won’t need any lights or reflectors. Hearing her foot steps I turn and find her in a pair of faded jeans, the kind with tears going horizontally across the thighs and right below the cheeks in the rear. She says she wants this one to be sexy and sassy at the same time so her blouse is a lightweight white almost transparent cotton with a black lace push up bra underneath. She’s wearing a set of black heels and the jeans flare out about 10cm’s above the floor. Her hair falls most of the way down her back and she had it teased so it’s still mostly straight with a lot more body and a bit of fluff and some waves. Her makeup is very light and she certainly doesn’t need more. Her most striking feature is her large green eyes. I’m curious how the necessary genes got mixed to produce such a combination knowing now isn’t the time to put her on the spot asking about family.

Asking if she’s ready to start I pick up my camera and take a few test exposures and tell her I’m ready. She’s visibly nervous at this point so I laugh and joke with her and ask her to pose over by the shiny metal guardrails. Facing me she leans back with her hands to her side on the rails and smiles and I start shooting. It didn’t take long to see that she immediately recognized the sound of the shutter as her cue to slightly changer her pose or facial expression. Click (shutter release), slap (mirror), snap (mirror returning) and she changes position and freezes, click-slap-snap and she changes again. I like roughly one exposure every two seconds, it keeps the model engaged and the set fluid and dynamic. If you can keep the model moving while talking to her and suggesting poses they’ll often start to direct their own poses and some of the better ones totally take over with limited direction. More than a few times new models will do this and then get carried away and take off more than they planned and/or strike more risqué poses than they originally thought acceptable.

Click-slap-snap, click-slap-snap, we’ve got a good rhythm going and keeping an eye on the laptop to ensure the exposure and all is going well I keep busy as she strikes pose after pose. At about 50 exposures I suggest a break and call her over to flip through the previews on the laptop. Both of us immediately see she’s very photogenic and with the great light we’re producing some really nice shots. This serves to encourage her and soon we’ve back at it. Now she turns towards the guardrails and leaning forward her butt pushes out and the white blouse reveals bare skin along her back and I see the top of a black thong peeking out. I suggest how to place her legs to accentuate her form and recommend flipping her head back so her long hair is moving as she turns towards the camera smiling. Another 50 exposures and I call for a break and we both take a look at the previews. Looking carefully I remark that we’ve already got great shots with her outfit on and recommend that next she unbutton her shirt and tease the camera a bit.

This time she’s over between two potted trees with her hands stretched out touching the trunks on both sides. Click-slap-snap, she smiles and laughs and I try to keep up. Putting her hands in the middle of her chest she unbuttons a single button, holds the pose, tilts her head and smiles, and pulls the fabric apart a bit more and does it again. She does it while standing sideways in each direction, and then facing me, and then the next button. Soon we’re capturing images totally unbuttoned with the shirt swept back to the sides and the black lace bra pushing forward. 50 more exposures and we’re both close around the laptop leaning in close to the screen checking out the pictures. Her proximity allows me to feel her brushing against me and smell a slight floral scent from her perfume. She’s not holding the shirt closed, instead she’s comfortable and laughing while having a great time. “What next?” she asks and I recommend removing the shirt. Changing the location so she’s now got a white wall behind her she goes through a couple poses, then I stop and walk up to her and arrange her hair across her breasts and suggest she use her hair for effect. 20 images into this we have enough and I ask her to put her hands in her front pockets and push her chest out a bit and it works very well. On her own she gets a really mischievous and cute look on her face and puts her fingers on the top button and stops, click-slap-snap and she rotates and does it again. Soon the button is undone and her fingers are on her zipper and click-slap-snap, click-slap-snap, down it goes as she turns and poses and lowers the zipper at the same time.

Stopping I approach her and ask “may I?” She smiles and moves her hands and I part the fly of her jeans apart revealing the black front triangle of her thong. I reach in and pull it up a bit so it’s plainly visible and she says “ohhhh..” while smiling. I take some more pics and on her own she turns around slightly lowering the rear waistband revealing the rear triangle of her thong. Still with her rear towards me she smiles really big and reaching both hands back to where her bra clasp should be she pretends to unfasten it. Turning she puts her fingers between the two B+ cups and unclasping her bra allows it to spread apart a few inches. Laughing now she’s moving to one side and then the other and I’m keeping the camera busy and then she stops complete, stops laughing, and gets a deadly serous look on her face she pulls the bra cups to the sides revealing her bare breasts and tucking her chin in to her chest she raises her eyes in a splendid look and slowly turns left and then right as I take about 8-9 more images. She removes the bra totally and tosses it to a nearby table and starts striking up more poses. Her nipples are erect and her breasts symmetrical which is rare and she goes through another 20 poses repeating the hands in the pockets, on the fly of her jeans, in her back pockets, all that we did before but this time with bare breasts.

Turning her back to me she puts both hands to the side rear of her jeans and moving her rear back and forth works her jeans down a few inches, turns and poses, a few more poses, and then she turns around and repeats from the front. I set the camera down as she steps out of her shoes removing her jeans and I take the jeans and drape them over the back of a chair at the table where she threw her bra. In a black thong and heels she’s back between the trees for more poses and then against the guardrail for some more. She’s stopped her nervous banter and laughter and knowing the routine and timing she’s now in charge and posing for her own enjoyment. Several hundred exposures into the shoot she’s now got the routine and timing memorized and can move on her own. Her hands go to her thong and turning her rear to me she teases it down for a few images and back up again. Facing me she does the same revealing a naturally trimmed pubic area, at least the top part. Taking her towel she spreads it on the stone tiles and sitting down with her knees in her chest she looks up and smiles and I remember really liking that perspective. 20 more poses and she hesitates just a few seconds before reaching for her thong and sliding it down her legs. I ask her to stop and manually position the thong right as it exits the triangle and then halfway down her thighs.

I stop shooting and ask her if she’d like some staged close-ups of the thong coming off and she asks what I mean. I reach for her hand and help her to her feet and ask her to step back into her heels and then while facing me I ask her to put her hands on the string on the sides and then kneeling in front of her I pull the thong down until it just clears the triangle and then take the camera and shoot the city in the background through the opening. Still kneeling I ask if she’d mind as I move my hands towards her and she tells me to go ahead and I un-mat the hair and ruffle it up a bit so it’s not sticking to her skin. Repeating the poses I then tell her to turn around and put her hands on the guardrail and push her rear out a bit. I pull the thong down so it just reveals her and take some more frames. I move back and ask her to pose on her own and she moves and turns with a natural comfort that couldn’t be feigned. I tell her to drop the thong down around her ankles and framing her black heels, black thong, and smooth white legs and ankles I kneel close and take a few more. Finishing I look up and see moisture has worked its way down her inner thighs so I reach down and help her step out of the thong and then ask her to stand with her legs slightly apart as I capture the glistening from a few different angles. Standing up I move back and she goes through the poses once more but this time totally nude but for the black heels. Her head is back and her eyes are closed and her hips are moving in time as her hands move down her sides to her hips and then around her flanks and across her stomach back up to her chest. Eyes half open now her lips slightly part and her breathing comes heavily and I’m still click, slap, snap, “beautiful”, click-slap-nap, “very sensual”, click-slap-snap “that’s the way, move a bit more” and she makes a noise deep in her throat and then quickly gathers her clothes and moves fast past me and into the room towards the bathroom. I could see the moisture had moved to the backs of her thighs as she disappeared from my sight.

This was a good time to swap out flash memory cards and go through the last 200+ exposures on the laptop. I’d forgot about the computer as she started to get into the session but now as I waited I moved through image after image and could see these would make great prints. I moved my gear inside and to the next set and then helped myself to a juice from the mini-bar. When I first started doing this type of shoot I’d get worked up if the client was especially cute, but it had been years since the last time I’d allowed myself to enjoy a client so much. I’d guess we both got worked up during that last part and I worried that she might call off the shoot out of embarrassment, it certainly wouldn’t be the first time a lady got carried away in the moment while in front of the camera only to be mortified and upset once she regained her composure. Ten more minutes passed without her appearing so I went to the bathroom and softly knocked on the door. The door was slightly ajar and I heard her tell me to come in and when I opened the door I was greeted with the site of her in the whirlpool bath leaning back relaxed with a smile on her face.

She asked me if I’d enjoyed myself and I said I had. Reaching out she touched my upper arm and her fingers came away wet with my sweat and looking right at me she asked if I’d ever posed for nudes. I replied that I was well past the point in my life to pose for anything and she laughed and said she wasn’t so sure. “Try here” she said and her eyes laughed at me as she leaned forward out of the bath and unbuttoned my trousers letting them drop to the floor. She took my hand and gently pulled me towards her and an hour later I was leaning back in the tub and she was facing away from me leaning back against my chest holding my arms across her stomach. We hadn’t said a word for the last 20 minutes, we’d just sat there in the now cold water not moving and not talking. Twisting towards me she pecked me on the cheek and stepped from the tub and into the shower.

Minutes later I joined her as the steam drifted over the glass doors. Inside the shower stall we kissed and remained mostly silent. We washed each other from top to bottom before I rinsed off and taking a towel went to dress while she spent more time in the bath. As I walked to the small bedroom where my bag was I looked out over the balcony and saw we’d probably only have time for one more daytime set. Back in the small bedrooms bath I lathered up my face and when I looked in the mirror with razor in hand I saw that my eyes were blue. My eyes are strange, they change color with my mood. From a grey when angry to a hazel color when thinking to a middle blue when happy. Many women don’t notice this, but when/if the finally do they tell me they like the blue color the best. Blue and tired. Dressing I feel refreshed and wonder if she’ll want to continue with another set or call it a day..

Until next time…

Stickman's thoughts:

I'd love to see those photos!