Tag: photography

(Note: “The Housewives” was a term I fondly coined in 2006 after I started getting shoot requests from private, individual women who became my clients. Many of the women who contacted me were married and in their mid 30’s and were doing the shoots as gifts to their husbands. The folder in my archives is still called this and so I’ve stuck to it, in part just for the irony: most of these women are not “housewives” at all, but strong independent and forward thinking women who I have had the honour of documenting.

All are private commissions and the demographic has changed substantially over the years. Some I’m still in contact with, others I’ve totally lost contact with, some have become friends, some may wish not to have their real names used, others don’t mind, some may have their faces obscured for privacy reasons, others have generously shared their experiences of being photographed.)

I met Amiyra (name changed for privacy) during the time I was studying in 2003. She approached me to shoot a few years later and we shot in the photographic studio at Ruth Prowse which I had access to at the time.

I had put together a few reference ideas for the shoot; we went with two quite moody and low-key set-ups; one utilising a designer chair and lingerie as props and the other with only lighting to highlight the form of her body.

I asked her to bring along a selection of her own heels and lingerie. Even though I already had options for her from my own collection I’ve always found it sensible for clients to bring a selection of their own which could cover any gaps in taste preference and fit. Amiyra was also particularly petite; a pair of knee highs stockings worked as thigh-highs on her.

Amiyra was the only woman I’ve ever worked with who had piercings surprisingly. Notably only because this was during a time when genital or nipple piercing was pretty trendy in South Africa.

She struck me as someone who was self-contained, reserved yet uninhibited; with a strong sense of self. Her own perspective was then interesting to learn:

I considered myself to have a very plain appearance and even though I prefer to not stand out I needed a reminder of my sexy / provocative self. To some extent it was a confirmation to myself that this side of me exists.

Not having done a professional shoot prior to this, I do remember it being a very exhausting experience. Leah played a big part in making me feel as comfortable as possible and this discarded any fears I had of bearing myself in the manner in which I did.

Over the years and since the shoot I have grown emotionally and am now very comfortable with both my body and my appearance.

Even though I am pleased with the images it does hold two truths for me. It is not only a reminder of my insecurities at the time but is also a reminder of my personal growth since then and how much happier and confident I am within myself now.

(Note: “The Housewives” was a term I fondly coined in 2006 after I started getting shoot requests from private, individual women who became my clients. Many of the women who contacted me were married and in their mid 30’s and were doing the shoots as gifts to their husbands. The folder in my archives is still called this and so I’ve stuck to it, in part just for the irony: most of these women are not “housewives” at all, but strong independent and forward thinking women who I have had the honour of documenting.

All are private commissions and the demographic has changed substantially over the years. Some I’m still in contact with, others I’ve totally lost contact with, some have become friends, some may wish not to have their real names used, others don’t mind, some may have their faces obscured for privacy reasons, others have generously shared their experiences of being photographed.)

I met and worked with lovely Therese in July 2010. She was on holiday in Cape Town when we did her shoot.
She was clear and decisive about the look and creative orientation of the project from the get-go. I think she may have referenced some of my older commercial and graduate work from which she directed and singled out two specific looks,- two which were more elaborate and one more classic.

I was newly in my own studio and totally independent from all lecturing positions I’d held up till that point. I had stopped producing my own work (for personal reasons at the time) and was focusing almost solely on my commercial photography and private clients like Therese.
These kinds of shoots have always been an education in that there are so many elements which feed into my conceptual work and understanding of South African women and their very varying identities.

You never stop learning (in any industry I suppose) and looking back at older work can be a strange and awkward experience. Naturally I can’t help seeing how much I would now do differently with five more years of experience, but it is also exactly this perspective which is so rewarding.

Therese was self assured about her intentions and all these years later, when I mailed her about working with her images again, she came forward confidently to express her experience.

 This was the first time a posed nude and I was nervous. I’ve always been more reserved and this was completely out of character for me.

For the first time in my life I felt good about my body image and wanted to have photos taken to emulate that. Once into the photo shoot I relaxed.

There are many reasons why I feel the way l do towards nudity: the way one was raised, morals, comfort level with oneself and with others.

I think some people feel as if they are going to be judged or they feel that being nude transfers to something sexual, but it doesn’t really.

I remember my mother bathing in front of us being totally comfortable with her body and I always admired her beautiful breasts.

This photoshoot was my way of celebrating my image as an older woman, after having two boys. The photos are beautiful and it was a really cool experience seeing my body as art.

Most of the women I’ve photographed privately are impressively self-confident  about their bodies, even if they may not necessarily identify with this. The fact that they are in my studio is already a sign of this.

This exact fact is one I find so compelling about women’s identities in our currently very “polished” world.
South Africa, in my experience, is conservative when it comes to any matters linked to the body/sexuality/nudity, and so when you work up close and personal with individuals the findings are surprisingly often the opposite.