NUDE PHOTOGRAPHER (no, not me... you)
Art - Fashion - Glam - Indoor - Outdoor -
Rural - Urban - Public - Fetish - Erotic
Read further down how I define "Full Nude" vs "Erotic"

Chicago Based Photographer
I've shot all over the world from Prague to Dubai to New Zealand, even Afghanistan as a Combat Photographer (25V) for an Army PsyOp Battalion.

God forbid, communication has broken-down with a new model, and now she's mad at me. She said she's making it a mission to sabotage me and "warn" other models about me. Knock yourself out, kid. I don't know if she'll go through my friends list and I have no idea what she might say, but if she contacts you, please take it with a grain of salt, okay? Yes, sometimes my language is more direct or assertive than some young models are used to, and admittedly, I can become exasperated trying to communicate with so many models and resolve all the variety of concerns & requirements some of you have for a shoot (and I actually have a few requirements of my own - low ink is one of them, preferrably no ink); but I *am* honest, and I've found that ALWAYS works out better for everyone in the long run. Maybe it's a generational thing? I'm seeing more & more people who think they can go through life without ever having to hear anyone say anything that they disagree with; which seems really cowardly and boring, to me. Look, if you have any questions about me, my character, or my conduct, please contact the quality models that I've shot with - I have links to dang near every one of them - and take the word of people who actually know me, not the word of a young, emotionally unstable submissive I've never worked with... and never will, now.

With regard to my low-ink and no-ink comment, above, please understand that if you have tattoos, I absolutely DO NOT hate you! On the contrary! Most people I know with tattoos are great people! I just wish they didn't have them. In my very personal artistic opinion, they distract from the model's beauty rather than enhance it. It's fine if you want to use your skin to make a personal statement, I just don't want that same personal statement bombing-through in every photo I take of you. Tattoos are very limiting in that regard, so I don't want them dominating my photos. Now, if you want to pay ME for the photos, I'll shoot anything and everything you want. But I can't/won't pay for photos that have your art distracting from mine. Does that make sense? No hate. I'll still shoot with you. I just won't pay for the shoot. If they can be covered with a shirt or something, or easily photoshopped out... I'm in! Or get me drunk and see what happens, lol! Which would be easy because I rarely drink, if ever! Anyway...

I need to start a list of loose general themes to shoot:
1) The One-Shirt Flirt - I've seen lots of good sets like this!
2) Golf Course Nudes - either sneaking onto a green, or playing a round if you golf!
3) Glam Gloves & Thigh-Highs with Heels - nothing else.
4) Anything with Chokers - I like a good Helmut Newton look with tight hair & a choker.
5) White Athletic Socks in Bed - nothing else! Add energy by using your legs to show-off the socks! (kind of a mild fetish that a friend had & it sort of wore-off on me, lol!)
6) - - - more to come - - -

ABOUT MY PHOTOGRPHY:
The greatest influences on my work are
1) First & foremest, Edward Weston for his classic framing, composition, camera orientation, and paying attention to the edges of the frame instead of the center of the frame;
2) Ansel Adams for perspective, immaculate editing with regard to dodging, burning, the way he used to "burn-through" hershey-bar negatives because he knew the detail was still in the emulsion, how to "view" a photo by paying attention to the highlight & shadow details, and the Zone System from The Camera, The Negative (capturing necessary information & detail, he would have loved histograms!) through the final Image and/or The Print (if you know these books, you know what I'm talking about);
3) Helmut Newton for his sexy fashions, his fun and deliberate "oops!" looks, and his bold urban nude styles, and his rich Hollywood locations; and finally...
4) Combat Photography, itself, also known ans ENG (Electronic News Gathering) where you don't always have time to compose the perfect scene and capture the perfect shot, but the images are still more powerful than anything I've ever shot; some of the awful things I've shot for the Army are a direct influence on the beauty I'm trying to creare, now. None of those military images are mine; I shot them for DoD missions, and they're sitting in a government archive, hopefully with the proper VIRIN on them so I might get credit if they're ever published (I didn't catalog them. I turned over my storage cards to the leadership when I returned from every mission).

I have to add, as much as I love the guy's work - and he's probably a great guy who I'd love to meet - I feel like I have to respond to him and say that I'm tired of hearing that urban nude guy from New York telling models that I'm shooting "his style." I won't say his name because I'm not trying to call him out, start a war, or get into a pissing contest; like I said, I'm sure I'd like the guy if we ever met, but I'm definitely NOT shooting "his style" and he hasn't influenced my work. I've referred models to him when they travel to NY because he does do great work, but they come back and tell me that he says I'm shooting "his style." I've been shooting urban nudes since the mid 1990s, via the influence of Helmut Newton (and I still have ideas I want to shoot, inspired by him), long before I'd ever heard of OMP, MM, or the guy from New York who thinks everyone is copying him. His style is a "dead doll" guerilla nude look that works for him, and works great! The style I'm looking for is "feminine grace & elegant composure under fire." It's not easy to pose nude in an active city of 3 million or 7 million people and still get great shots in less than a minute. I honestly don't think models should shoot this genre with just anybody. I've heard horror stories of photographers leaving models exposed, nude, and vulnerable for more than 15 minutes at a time! That's crazy! The photographer definitely has to know what he's doing in order to limit your "exposure time," and in this regard the guy from NY definitely knows what he's doing. He calls them "Guerilla Nudes." I don't like to call them that because a shoot with me is much more calm & patient than any exaggerated reference to combat (which I've shot). I wait for the right moment to shoot, it's my understanding he'll have you jump from a cab (which sounds exciting as hell, to me! Just not my style). There's another guy in New York, Kenn L (I never remember how to spell his last name, Lichtmanwalter?... something like that... I always mix it up with Lichtenstein, sorry Kenn) who does outstanding work! His wide angle style is absolutely his own, I've corresponded with him, he seems like a super nice guy, and his ego isn't so easily bruised by other photographers doing photography. We're not the only ones doing this. David J in Chicago does great work! I've seen some nice shots from David April, as well! In my opinion, we're all doing nice work, exciting, and beautiful art. I've taught workshops on how I do what I do, to share the knowledge, methods, and concepts I've learned & developed over the years; with great results! There's no rivalry, here; no pissing contest, unless you make it one. Time to stop trying to lay claim to an entire genre that you absolutely did not invent. I still highly recommend all of them... and others!

As of May, 2022, I'm adopting a policy that models who want to shoot with me should post some thoughtful comments on my photos, as that is what I'm more likely to respond to. Please, no comments, like, "Dope," "Love it," or "Yummy." I put too much money & effort into my imagery to have it reduced to "Dope" or "Yummy." Tell me why an image speaks to you. If none speak to you and you only want my money (the rates I pay are listed down below), then we shouldn't shoot, right? If some of them do, then take a moment to share your thoughts and let me and others know. It's not much to ask considering that I spend more time editing one photo than it took to shoot the entire session. I'll spend that much time on your images, too, if we shoot. The truth is, we all do this to make others say, "Wow!" and I'm tired of one-sided friendships where I give all the public attention and get none in return. People DO notice, and I DO care what other people think. It's like models are afraid to admit that they like your work, out of fear that giving others accolades and attention somehow diminishes their own worth or value. It doesn't. The greatest stars you'll ever know absolutely shower others with compliments and praise! So don't hold back! Don't worry, you'll still get paid... and will likely get more work.

Published in Maxim and FHM - no, not on their websites or their "vote for me" contests, but printed and published in the actual hardcopy Magazines. The FHM set was the model telling men "how to date me," when she already had a boyfriend, and the Maxim set was a little off-putting for the model because it appeared next to an "article" on how to give the perfect BJ. Nice, huh? lol! So maybe I should direct my work more toward arousal than art? That's always the question, right? Or is there a happy medium of both? "Publishing" in the digital age just isn't what it used to be when there were more barriers to entry into the analog field. Anyone can start a digital magazine. Playboy has completely collapsed, any model can buy her way onto an international Playboy cover, and why not? It's kind of cool and still an iconic brand and logo.

Artistically though, hundreds - if not thousands - of independent freelance photographers are producing far better artwork than Playboy ever dreamed of. So please don't let "being published" steer you away from the great independent artists out here. Personally, I'm no longer trying to monetize my art (I do I hope you think some of my images qualify as "art"), mainly because I've always been a terrible businessman, and today there's just no money in it for photographers, anymore. Models are making all the money they need shooting selfies for Instagram, Patreon, and OnlyFans (and yet, I still pay models; go figure. See? Terrible businessman, lol!).

Nowadays, when I have the money, I'm just shooting local and travelling nude models as they come, simply for the sheer joy of seeing what we can create together. Sometimes the magic strikes, sometimes it doesn't. As I've said, I do pay models for their time. The rates I pay and MY definitions of "Full Nude" vs "Erotic" are listed, below.

If you have a fully developed, artistic portfolio, my pay scale for full nudes/erotic/fetish, is below. Note: if you DON'T have a fully developed artistic portfolio, I will gladly help you develop one by adding marketable value to your work, in which case, these rates don't apply. That is definitely a fair trade since you'll eventually be making a lot more money off of my time, talent, and experience than I ever will from yours. I'm tired of seeing models drive up to shoots in luxury SUVs and Mercedes-Benz's while I'm working overtime at a strenuous job that I hate, and putzing around in a 2004 minivan, just to create some art that doesn't sell because no one jerks off to art, lol. Stupid, right?

Below is the scale I pay for full nudes based on $20-bill increments.
(if you only do sheer or see-thru lingerie/wet-t, subtract $20 from each hour, if you do erotic, add $20 to each hour):
$140 for the 1st hour
$100 for the 2nd hour
$80 for every hour after that

So for full nudes, the totals play-out, as follows:
1 hour > $140 (impled/see-thru $120 - Erotic $160)
2 hours > $240 (implied/see-thru $200 - Erotic $280)
3 hours > $320 (implied/see-thru $260 - Erotic $400)
4 hours > $400 (implied/see-thru $320 - Erotic $480)
etc (I rarely shoot more than 3 hours, though)
These rates fit MY budget and are commensurate first & foremost with how much money *I* make at my job, again, doing work I hate (warehousing), and also with the time and effort I put into arranging our shoot (mainly communication and convincing models I'm legit), as well as the time I put in after a shoot to make the images of you look nice (I won't post images that aren't up to quality standards).

I know you want to make your money when you come to town, but so does every other model who contacts me, and I get contacted by A LOT of models! Which is wonderful! I love all of you! But I have to be judicious with my selections and my income. I pay quality artistic models for quality artistic collaborations. So put on your game face, get yourself photo-ready, and convince me I should shoot with you instead of them!

I define "Full Nudes" for a woman the same way I would define full nudes for a man. In the normal course of posing, sometimes "certain areas" (genitals) will show more than others. Just because some vag might be showing in an image, doesn't automatically make it erotic. What I don't want are awkwardly clamped legs that don't look casual or natural with the pose. To me, that looks just as awkward as unnaturally spread legs, wide-open.

Erotic, on the other hand, which I also like, would have a more sexual tone to the image, and I'm still not talking about the pulled-open spreads. I'm talking about, maybe a lower camera angle, closer in, legs a little more wide, a deeper, more intense look of passion, and maybe a touching hand, intimately caressing. Not talking about insertions or gynecological spreads, though; that cross into a whole different genre.

Does that make sense? Or at least give you a better understanding of my meaning, when I say "Full Nudes" vs "Erotic Nudes?"

One of my favorite sayings:
This work is a lot like Rocket Science.
Except there aren't any Rockets,
and you don't need Science!

You do need passion & practice, though! Lots of passion & practice! EXPERIENCE!
You have to learn what works and what doesn't work. There's no substitute for experience, and you'll never acquire experience without trying, failing, and improving on your mistakes. Emulate greatness.

Another favorite saying:
You don't have to be weird to be an artist.
And you especially shouldn't be creepy.
I'm often stunned when I meet other pglhotographers at workshops.
Some of you guys make me wish I wasn't a photographer, and you really make all our jobs a lot harder. I'll just leave it at that. Anyway... moving on...

As the master of my medium, I reserve the artistic right to photoshop anything I choose in an image; in exactly the same manner as painters and sculptors who exert complete control over the manipulation of their medium to evoke a mood or message they want to convey. I will remove distractions, create balance, and adjust tones, etc, to make an image look how I want it to.

My List. The photos I list are intended more for inspiration than promotion, but it definitely serves both purposes. They are a celebration of art and artists as much as an encouragement - a stand of solidarity - to keep doing what we do! Don't judge, just enjoy! It's gett8jg harder and harder to find mature outlets willing to display our work. I *defy* you to scroll through my list without finding something that speaks to you, deeply, and leaves you feeling excited about art and inspired to shoot! None of it is my work, but I guarantee you'll love it!

Thank you for your time & interest.
- Matthew

Beautiful Models I've shot with:
(the list has really grown! Not all are listed at the moment!)
Nini_6979 - 4530062 (St Louis, MO)
Danielle Lynn Scott - 806166 (Cedar Rapids, IA)
Marissa M Chavez - 4449289 (listed in Chicago, now in Puerto Rico)
Hello Jewels - 3953367
Artistic Physique - 1793485 (Columbus, OH)
LilMizzUnique - 3339096
Brit Zentz - 2965912
Model Mila Rose - 3010174 (North Aurora, IL)
St Merrique - 772043
Blondieee - 3751480
K Y L I E - 2294526
D E V I - 2686156
Bailey Daniels -
Kayla_Ann_90 - 4451682
Paper Doll - 703682
Tiffany Helms - 2904260
Natasha Nafrini - 92964
Emmy Elle - 2821103
Vassanta (retired)
Heather Carden - Not on MM
Karly Salinas - 3229981
Katlyn Lacoste - 1227596
BrittniWalker - 4109323 (aka: @knockoutkitten)

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