Sarah, Hiawatha National Forest, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula.

Sooner or later a lot of serious artists turn their attention to the artistic portrayal of the human figure. For me that happened when I did some simple figures studies in the studio for a class illustration at the art institute. When you teach at the art institute, it goes with the territory.  It did not occur to me at the time that I would ever do figure studies in the landscape.

So when Sarah, a first class art model, asked me if I was interested in working with her in the beautiful surroundings of Northern Michigan it came as a surprise. Figure studies in the landscape would be a new thing for me.

We spent our time shooting in the area around the Mackinac Bridge in Michigan. Fall color was at its peak and I wanted to showcase that in some of our work. The photo at the top was taken far from everywhere in the Hiawatha National forest.

Sarah, Lake Michigan Sunset

Sunsets at Lake Michigan can be quite beautiful so some kind of artsy sunset image was on our agenda. Well before sunset we hiked to a remote beach and kept our fingers crossed that Mother Nature would cooperate. She did and we made the most of it.

Sarah, Lake Michigan

While we were waiting for the sunset to develop and the sun dropped lower in the sky, it created nice warm light on the land while the water and sky were still blue. It dawned on us that the warm light on Sarah’s body would be a nice contrast against the cool blue tones of the water and sky. We picked a spot where the rocks would complement the overall image. Standing on a rock was a possibility but it would break the connection between her body and its reflection. The rippled reflection of Sarah’s body is the photographic icing on the cake. This is one of my all time favorite images. It also works well in black and white.