BTS – Shibari Self Portrait

Alone in my San Francisco studio on a cold winter’s day, sans model. How it got to that point is a longer story, but the prospect of going home empty handed is disappointing. The hour long drive through traffic and hauling equipment would have been for nothing. 

I tidy up and reorganize the studio. It’s nicer now, but I still want photos. The last minute casting call I posted earlier failed, but is hardly surprising on a Friday afternoon.  

Then an idea comes to mind – why not shoot myself? No one wants to look at photos of me, but I might learn something. 

Rigging myself is a little awkward and time consuming. The more rope I add, the harder it is to move as parts of my body are constrained, but I eventually am done with rope. 

I place the camera on the tripod, set focus using a lighting stand, and set the timer. The timer is a friend of everyone in this IG obsessed world, but a stranger to me.  

I press the button, dash to the shoot position, pose, and wait.

Flash! 

I preview the first pic and… whoa, what is that stuff?! I believe the technical term is “fat”. Sigh.

Then I remember what I tell models: Suck in!

Press button, dash, pose, suck, and wait. The new pic is an improvement, but I still see the dreaded “F”, and I do not mean the sign of respect. F, F, F, F… ok, I need to stop obsessing like a model. 

Then I remember my other words to models: Stretch! 

Press, dash, pose, suck, stretch and wait. Flash! A little better, but all the stress makes my neck look like a dehydrated prune. 

Thinking back, I tell models to relax their face. I practice a little before shooting again. It’s an odd feeling, sucking in while keeping the face relaxed, but a model’s gotta do what a model’s gotta do. 

Back to press-dash-pose-suck-stretch-relax-wait. Repeat a few dozen times. Running back and forth and sucking in is tiring. It’s late now, so I go home to see the results on a larger screen.   

Here’s the unedited pic (no photoshop or retouch).