Mel Pettit Photography

People photography…and more!

Posts from the ‘NSFW – Not safe For Work’ category

This is a collection of blogs that may contain photos displaying varying degrees of nudity.

The North Yorkshire Moors with Angela Kate Hudson – NSFW

A little bit of Art Nude

Sensual Edge Photography

Having worked with Angela earlier in the year at WindmillArt Studio, I knew I wanted to do some more art nude with her.   That’s a style I like to do outside, as constantly changing backgrounds can add a lot of context to the subject.   The trick with location art nude, as always, is to find somewhere that is photogenic and not busy, something that can be challenging in the UK.   The North Yorkshire moors provided the ideal backdrop though.

I loaded up the car with my equipment and headed north early in the morning.   I had a three hour drive to get to Harrogate, where I had planned to meet Angela.   I had a lot of good memories of Harrogate, it was town to which I had been posted during my time in the RAF, spending a year there before moving down to RAF Wyton in Cambridgeshire, close to where I now live.   I hadn’t been back there for some 23 years.

We started with some fashion and portrait shots in and around Harrogate,  which was still recognisable to me after all of the time that had passed since I had lived there.  A lot of memories were brought back, most good, some not so, but I left the town centre with Angela for the moors with a nice warm feeling about the place.

Angela knew a lovely spot where we could shoot our art nude set and being a hardy northerner the thought of some moody skies and a bit of rain didn’t worry her at all, in fact we were both hoping for the odd shower or two.   Sadly the skies were flat grey and the rain never arrived whilst we were there.   It did as I was on my way home!

Here’s a few shots from the set.  It was as chilly as it looks, but Angela coped with it perfectly.

A day with Angela Kate Hudson

Chic Fashion & Boudoir Photography

Sensual Edge – Glamour & Art Nude Photography

When I got interested in photography as an enthusiast, group shoots and model days provided me easy access to excellent models, so I knew I would get great shots, unless I as the photographer made technical errors.   It was a great way to learn, with each of those type of shoots having their own pros and cons.

It has to be said that group shoots can turn into something akin to a Rugby maul or ruck.   Not all by any means, but it does help to know who your shooting partners are so everyone gets a fair crack of the whip.   Another problem is that you generally work on one set with one costume, which means that the scope to produce a unique image is virtually non-existent as images will be duplicated by your shooting partners.   Add to that the shooting over your shoulder brigade and thing can be very fraught indeed.

Model days are better as you get to choose the model and studio that you want to work with, and you work one to one with her.   There’s no interference, and you can take your time over each set.   If your pre-shoot communications with your model were good you’ll even have her wardrobe sorted out and you can light the set to suit the look.   That’s a much better state if affairs.

Lately, I’ve stopped doing group shoots and cut down on studio days, preferring to organise my own stuff.   As a photographer I believe that I need to take responsibility for all aspects of a shoot and organise it the way that I want it to be.   It forces me to push my limits and to learn new techniques quickly and apply them.   That’s something I’ve recognised I need assistance with, so I’ve asked to be mentored by an expert photographer, to get me to the level that I want to be at.   There will be another blog about that soon!

An opportunity to put some of my knowledge into practice came recently at an outdoor summer shoot.   The event was hosted by Conrad Webb, the owner of WindmillArt Studio in Linton, Cambridgeshire.   Conrad provided the venue, 7.5 acres of beautiful grounds surrounding his lovely house and the windmill.   The rest was down to the participants.   Photographers could choose their models, and vice-versa.   I was lucky to be in a conversation with him at the time and heard Angela Kate Hudson was looking for a photographer.   She had been on my want to work with list for a long time, so I asked and was very pleased to be accepted.  The shoot was on.

The day was gloriously hot and sunny, though did mean that I had to deal with harsh shadows.   We took cover wherever we could and got on taking pictures.   Angela can model excellently across many styles, but I’ve always been a fan of her art nude work, so that is the genre that we shot most.

Here are a selection of shots from the day.  They cover all of the genres we covered during the shoot, hence they sit in the NSFW category.

50 posts in -Ayla Rose and Lizzie Bayliss (NSFW)

Sensual Edge Photography
Ayla Rose & Lizzie Bayliss
Video Slideshow

It would be fair to say that my blogging is not prolific, in some months it’s non-existent.   That’s not because I can’t be bothered, but there are problems with working full time and then shooting a very wide range of photographic genres in my own time.   Nothing would give me greater pleasure than devoting more time to my photography.   It has developed (pardon the pun) from being an interest to a hobby, then semi-serious to where I am now, generating a small income.   There’s still a long way to go, but I’m getting there.

I’ve probably mentioned this a hundred times before, but I love to photograph people, in any and every style.  Weddings, studio, location and environmental portraits, fashion, boudoir, art nude and more, I enjoy photographing them all.   That causes problems for my business as weddings and portraits need to be kept separate from my other more risque work, but my new websites reflect what I do.

For my 50th post, I’m looking back to a shoot that I did with Lizzie Bayliss Ayla Rose & Lizzie Bayliss-1566and Ayla Rose at Lizzie’s studio.   This is very definitely a ‘not safe for work’ post.   The pictures I’ve included here give are taken from the first set of the day, using one of the bedroom sets with lots of lovely window light and just a tiny bit of fill to lift the shadows.

The first image is of Ayla Rose, a lovely model that I’ve worked with on a number of occasions.  You may have noticed other blog posts relating to shoots with Ayla; I have to say it’s my intention to do lots more as I have some new ideas rattling around in my head for her, I’m just waiting for the weather in the UK to improve so we can get outside again.

The second shot is of Lizzie Bayliss, an equally lovely model who I have Ayla Rose & Lizzie Bayliss-1521also worked together with many times and whom I intend to work with again.  This is another window shot, using the same beautiful light, softened a touch by the net curtains.

It has to be said that I have a thing for shots using natural light shining through a window.  I love that light for portraits, on the right day it gives a beautiful soft look on the subject and gorgeous soft shadows.

For my 50th post I’ve added a little video of this shoot which lasts for 2:42.  There’s a link at the top of the page which will take you to my YouTube page, or you can click here.   There’s also links at the top of the page so you can see a selection of stills from the shoot at my Sensual Edge website.

Sensual Edge Photography

Ayla at the River Orwell – Art Nude (NSFW)

Ayla Rose art nude at the River Orwell

Back in the summer I organised a shoot with Ayla Rose on the banks of the River Orwell.  I wanted to go to Nacton foreshore, a place I used to go to on the first moped I ever owned when I was a spotty and pimply youth.   In those days I would make my way, slowly, from Felixstowe and head for a quiet spot away from the bustling and noisy docks in my home town to a point somewhere between them and the smaller and less busy port at Ipswich.   The journey was never without incident, travelling as I was on my little under-powered sports moped, with huge articulated trucks bearing down on me on the A45.

Back then I found a little track that ran alongside the public school that faces out to the river.   It was only a small footpath, just big enough in width to fit one bike and rider.   I would go as far as I could and stop before I got wet to watch the small coasters head towards Ipswich, or out towards the North Sea in the other direction.

A while ago I went back to visit that spot again, only to find it had been developed with a proper road, car park and picnic area leading to the foreshore.  My quiet little place had become very popular indeed, but I decided that I still wanted to shoot there.   That’s where Ayla comes in.   At this point you may wonder why I’ve rambled on with the history above.  It does have a relevance and I’ll get to the point soon.

Both of us headed to the water’s edge with a view to shoot some portraits first before moving to art nude later.   The portrait shoot has already been blogged and you can read that here if you wish.   Having finished the portraits we decided to start on the art nude stuff and began to look for a good location.   I had a place in mind and we started to do some test shots before we got down to the serious work.  It was then the some alarm bells started to ring.

Whilst we were getting ready we had noticed a couple of people walking close to where we had been shooting the test shots, but they hadn’t reappeared where they should have done if they had kept to the path.   We agreed to check them out as neither Ayla or I wanted any spectators whilst we were shooting.  I headed off and found a place with a good field of view, but nobody was visible.  I stayed there for a minute or so, and after staring at a large bush for a while a rather sheepish looking guy stood up, looked at me and started to head away.   That was enough for me, even though he was leaving the other person was still not visible to we decided to head off to a different location on the other side of the river.  Safety first!

Ayla Rose-5930After a short drive we crossed over the Orwell Bridge and found ourselves on the opposite bank of the river.   I hadn’t thought to shoot there originally as there is very little vegetation, the bank of the river is very close to the main road and I didn’t think there was anything of interest to use in our shots.   How wrong I was!

We shot around two wooden piles that had been driven into the river bed, possibly as part of an old jetty or breakwaters.   No matter what they were they provided a focal point for us to shoot against in both directions as the backgrounds were completely different.   In one direction there was a small marina, in the other there was the Orwell Bridge.   This shot shows Ayla and one of the piles looking down towards the mouth of the river and the North Sea.

The second shot I’ve left in colour as it seems to fit better.   I’ve reversed the Ayla Rose-5947direction for this shot so the Orwell Bridge is in the background with the port of Ipswich just a little further on.

There’s another nine shots in this set which you can see by clicking on the link at the top of this blog or using the link here.