beauty and the hog

These days many new and long standing photographers are dealing with more and more limited work loads. To aid in countering this many continue to hone their skills, update equipment, pay everyday business expenses and more limited income jobs. All the more reason for many at times to conduct "TFP" time for prints or "TFF" time for files. This type of work allows for the photographer, HMUA and models alike to maintain an updated portfolio while keeping the cost down. I say limited because to achieve the results the team is looking to get it still takes a bit of financing, equipment use and materials by all, but not at a cost usually found in a paying job.

​Beauty and the Hog is just one of those types of shoots. I thought about this project after talking with a friend of mind whom mentioned finishing his custom Harley Davidson V-Rod recently. Instantly Kelsey Burnette, a very new model came to mind for the project. The beautiful, 5'11" blonde gal had that "all American" girl look and what more shouts "American" then a beautiful girl on a Harley?

Over a couple weeks, we put together a brief fashion shoot to decide on wardrobe. Once the wardrobe was worked out a location was needed. Well this time of the year in SW Florida, it is not only hot, but humid and can rain at a moments notice. With this in mind I asked the owner if we could use his garage. He was happy to oblige. So now a location was in place. Next thing was time. We decided to shoot at noon time. This time frame was convenient for all. Luck for us the day was overcast with rain threatening clouds above. Funny that helped a bit in limiting the temperature to 90, yet the humidity made up for the lack of sun. Knowing the way things happen in the summer here we decided that the model would do curls which when we started to shoot. Wardrobe started with jacket, jeans, etc. that were selected first because with the humidity the curls would no doubt fall out in a short time and the heat would be more bearable if we removed clothing layers as we went on. After positioning the Harley, setting up the background and lights, we began to shoot. We shot 3 different looks over a course of 2 hours. For the most part the day went off without a hitch. Final results yeilded numerous looks for all to have. All in all it was a fun and enjoyable afternoon something you always want to achieve when working with others when doing TFP work

My main reason for doing these shoots is to keep myself constantly thinking of new ideas and challenges. In this day and age, TFP seems to help more than it hinders. At least to me. Others have issues with it and I totally get that. For me and the others I work with it's a way for us to continue to do what we love when cost is limited. So if you're a model, HMUA or a photographer looking to collaborate on a project or two and in Florida, look me up at RGM Photography.
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article and photos by Robert Morra