Ever go into a Sherwin Williams and ask them if it were safe to throw latex paint on a naked girl? Welcome to my world! Now two years ago not only would have asking a total stranger such a question seemed strange to me, but these days I almost constantly find myself in some type of new and adventurous situation, but back to the story.  So while I was there I asked one of the guy employees, “What’s the best paint to get to throw on a naked body?”

The guy looked at me for a second and asked me to repeat “that last part”. I bet that was the first time he heard that kind of request at work! He regained his composure quickly and helped me select the appropriate brand of paint. To make his decision he asked me questions like “how the paint will be applied” and “how long it will stay on”. He was a big help and I walked out of the store a happy customer with a funny story to share with our fans on our Facebook page. Come to find out that one of our fans knows the guy from the store and had already heard the whole story!

If you’re wondering why I was in the Whidbey Island Sherwin Williams harassing poor innocent employees it’s because we had seen a post by Cat’s Meow magazine advertising that their upcoming issue had a latex and pasties theme and I thought I could kill two birds with one stone, and get to throw paint on someone!  For those that have never heard of Cat’s Meow it’s a very slick publication featuring new and upcoming models, photographers and others in the creative industry, very worth checking out!

This is a little backwards, but the first set we actually did that day was against our new brick Candy Stick Background from Backdrop Outlets. I wanted it to look like she was standing in a dark alley under a street light.  I positioned one of the Einstein lights with a standard 7 inch reflector on a boom right over the models face and an Alienbees with a softbox to the side of her to open up some of the shadows.

 The result was an evenly lit face and chest area, which is what I wanted the viewer to notice first. The rest of the body, though still visible, was in a deep shadow. It was one of the first times I had attempted low key lighting such as this, and while I’m still no expert I did capture the feeling I was trying to impart, and I’d love to hear your thoughts!

 The wardrobe was found when Miss C and I went shopping at Lover’s in Burlington, WA. I always love going there, and the fact that Cold Stone Creamery is right across the street has nothing to do with it! There are always really cute outfits to choose from and anything from leather to lace. We needed a pair of skin tight pants to go with the top that Miss C already had (bought from Lover’s earlier) and of course we found exactly what we were looking for.

Thats all for now dear constant reader, I have to thank Miss C for coming over and letting me splash her with paint, thanks so much! 

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Mary and I have been talking about doing this shoot for a few months. She wanted something different and a bit on a naughty side. As one of the suggestions I mentioned using Marie Antionette as an inspiration and we both liked where it was going right away.

 

Mary started shopping for the outfit and most importantly, the wig. It was one of the main items of the shoot and it took some looking around to find the right one. We didn’t want it to be too big (as was a custom at the time), but still wanted to represent the character. After doing some research Mary found the perfect one at buycostumes.com and for a great price!

Then it was off to find the rest of the outfit. Of course our local Lover’s Package Store came to the rescue yet again. I loved the corset Mary picked out! It is beautifully constructed and has boning for extra shape and support.

 

On the day of the shoot Ashley from Make Up Your Mind was here to apply makeup and help with the wig, and then later change things up for sexy lingerie look Mary picked out. Ashley not only does hair and makeup, but also acts as a style consultant and a huge help in the studio. What would I do without her?

During the shoot I had a bit of a challenge photographing the wig. While Mary was perfect in posing and facial expressions, the wig would just come out as a big white shining spot. It seemed like the thing was taunting me and it took me a bit to get it under control.

Note to self: wigs are a lot different than real hair… duh!

One of the other fun parts of the shoot for me was playing with natural light that was coming in from the two large windows we have in the studio. Living in Washington we don’t get a lot of sunshine, so most of the time I work with studio light. Taking advantage of the great weather I took a couple of great soft shots of Mary on the old antique couch. What a great contrast to a velvet heavy previous set!

Mary has a weakness for beautiful high heel shoes, and those are amazing! I loved them so much I had to bring them into focus. If they were my size I would accept them as payment for the shoot =) … just joking!

 

“My girlfriend had pictures done with Victoria and loved it, so I decided to explore the ONI Studios website and Facebook page. I loved Victoria’s work and decided to get with her on doing some for my husband’s upcoming deployment. Victoria came up with the idea of a Marie Antoinette spin and being a bit of a history buff, I loved the idea. I went to buycostumes.com and ordered a wig, lovers had a corset I liked and then threw odds and ends from my drawers in a bag. I will be honest in saying that as a woman in the military with two children and my own little insecurities I was a bit nervous of how things would go when I got there.
My experience was Amazing to say the least! Victoria put together these looks so well from just whatever I had and Ashley was great at tying everything up with her ideas. You girls are a talented, winning team! Everything felt glamorous and Victoria is great at making it all very comfortable! Leaving her studio I have a new sense of self-confidence and my own sexuality. I can’t wait to surprise my husband with this gift for his upcoming deployment and can’t wait to do another shoot at ONI! Maybe we can do 18th Century next time. Thank you Victoria and Ashley.

Much love,
Mary”