"I cannot think of anybody who could with
such sublime ease combine the athletic with the erotic and at the same time
preserving so aesthetic an approach" ~ Mark Williams
On
the Creation of Fine Art
This photo was taken by
one of my all time favorite photographers, Pat Barrett. Pat photographed my first
nude photo shoot out in the desert when I first started competing in figure and
bikini shows. He was the first person
that made me feel comfortable in my skin, and allowed me to have my own
creative and artistic license in front of his lens. This photo was taken on only our second photo-shoot
back in 2006, when I was preparing for the Master’s Nationals bodybuilding championships. Looking back on these photos, and there will
be more to come, I am struck by a couple of things. On the day this photo was taken, we did about
a one-hour shoot out at a very exotic, desert location. Getting there was a bit of a ride, but once
we got there, it was perfectly calm and still.
Eventually, the wind started to kick up and dark storm clouds began to
intrude on our magical shoot. We got
what we got, and headed towards his studio to get some indoor shots. This photo is one of them. What stuck me
about the photos, are the poses I got into—and the lighting on just the right
muscle groups. I do not have a dance background, but I did take gymnastics at an early age, and have
always been athletic. Looking back on
these photos on that dry, windy day in June of 2006, Pat and I created
something very special. And, I want to
share that with you, my loyal fans, friends, and lovers of Amber DeLuca.
A good friend of mine, Dave Rogers, a
‘jack-of-all-trades', master of many, came to my home yesterday for a Photoshop
play date. Dave was my editor/web
designer for the Goddess of Fetish in the early days. We would have these jam sessions where we
would talk for hours and hours, then finally get a little work done. During these early jam sessions my vision and
mission was created, and over time, I evolved to where the Goddess of Fetish is
today, and ultimately, myself. Over the
past several years, he has been scarce due to his own creative work, designing
knives for Special Forces, badass mountain men, collectors, and anyone that
appreciates functional beauty. I always
seem to attract like-minded people in my work.
I was sad to lose Dave, and I struggled for a few years after we stopped
working together. After a long hiatus, I found a very creative, intelligent artist, Alexander "Xander" Paul, that stepped in and took over my filming and editing productions in early 2014. Xander is my long cool drink of water in the desert heat!
As I was show casing
my fine art prints to Dave at my home yesterday, I was describing to him the
difference between a good photographer, and a great photographer. The truth is, with today’s technology nearly
anyone can capture good photos, and with Photoshop, make ordinary folks look like
super models. A great photographer has
three key traits. They are: 1) He has the
“eye” for what looks best for that model.
He studies her body type and knows her best angles after only a few
minutes time. 2) He then allows the
model to take on her own persona in front of his lens, giving her positive
feedback, and encouraging her to do as she pleases. This is called chemistry. Just like all good things in life, if the
chemistry is there, the magic happens. 3) He does not pose the model in
cookie-cutter poses that he does for all of his models. Arguably, most photographers’ work is
recognizable, what is known as branding.
Branding is good if you must work in a particular industry where
expectations and defined parameters rule the day. It typically is not good if you are attempting to
create something memorable, lasting, unique, and magical.
To
this day, some of my best photographs are from local photographers, that are
not well known, established physique photographers. In fact, some of my most average work is from well known, very famous photographers, but that was due to the fact that I was like a "deer-in-the headlights" and too awestruck by their work to just relax and be natural--therefore, the natural chemistry never happened, and, they did not have the unique capability of drawing me out. (Sounds like bad sex..LOL). And, that is the very reason why I believe I
have created magical poses, and fine art in the beautiful landscape of New Mexico
over the past decade. My dear friend,
Mark Williams, waxed eloquent upon viewing the photo for the first time, hence,
I was compelled to use his statement which best characterizes my studio shoot
with Pat. This statement could very well
have been inserted into the Ironman Magazine, 2004, featuring Bill Dobbins’
photograph of me posing on a rock, bent over at the hip, exposing glutes and
hamstrings, completely nude. When I
first saw the pose, Mark’s comments are something I think Bill’s photo
captured. It is interesting that a
completely nude model can show so much, yet so little. The implied eroticism of a completely nude,
powerful female physique is something to behold, admire, even worship. It is also interesting to note, the evolution of
the development of my physique and also the creativity in my posing from
Dobbins’ 2003 shoot, to Barrett’s 2006 shoot. In the top Barrett photo, I was 190 pounds, and the Dobbins photo below, I was 155 pounds.
In summation, when there is chemistry between
two people, no matter what the activity, there is always a positive
outcome. Like fine art, it is is rare,
and should always be treasured. Stay
tuned for more fine art by Amber DeLuca and Xander Arts.
