Instant wins

Instant wins

I’ve realised, lately, that there seem to be some models who provide me with instant votes, and often awards. They are striking in appearance, and capable models – but there seem to be some who gather quite disproportionate votes.

And there are other models who have impressed me, but don’t seem to bring instant success to the images, although I’ve found them to be quite excellent, often bringing diverse and unusual skills to the images.

So here’s Eleonora, who has appeared in my portfolio a few times over quite a lot of years. I met her through my friend Fred Whisker, who ran the Dance Group at The Camera Club in Kennington for many years, and is still active in his mid-nineties. That’s him, on the violin. Eleonora trained in contemporary dance at the Laban Conservatoire in London, and one thing led to another, photographically.



She’s lively, intelligent, flexible and creative, and physically very strong. That all made for great pictures, and I’m glad to say that I photographed her several times, often sharing the studio and time with Fred. And most of my images of her have fared less well than average here at Ephotozine. OK: many of them were posted a good while ago, when I was relatively new here, but I keep wondering about some sort of X Factor in modelling.

Or do I mean sex appeal? Three models who have garnered lots of votes for me lately – Black Beauty, Lottii Rose and That_Model_Jasmine – each have a simmering sexuality about them, and Eleonora doesn’t have that, I think. Her modelling ability lies in slightly different areas. Another model I’ve worked with, Rachelle Summers, is always very beautiful, and perhaps the most perfectly beautiful person I’ve photographed – but like Eleonora, is thoroughly wholesome.

I’m left with a conundrum – any insights are welcome: this blog’s more question than statement!