In my entry about my 4th shoot with Stacie Snow, John Egan asked…
“Looking at these pictures made me think of something. Just how do you manage to keep it professional during a shoot? If I had a lady who looked that good and dressed as she is and was trying to tie her up, I think I’d be so turned on I’d be tripping over my own feet. My hands would probably be shaking so bad, I’d never be able to tie a knot. How do keep your mind on your work and off the fact that you have a lovely, incompletely dressed and tightly tied lady right in front of you?”
Good question. There’s a few things I wanted to touch on with this question, which is why I made it it’s own entry. Let’s take this step by step…
It’s a bit like you describe when you first start out as a producer…somewhat. One thing you viewers don’t get when you just download the pics is that these women are real people as well, with thoughts, feelings, and lives their own. That’s one of the reasons I do the “Model Profile” entries…so you get the “human” aspect as well. Oftentimes before a shoot, you spend time talking about life in general, and you get the connection that you might get with a friend…some of the models I HAVE befriended in real life as well. Heck, Stacie and I just yesterday spent about an hour talking by text about what she was currently doing…picking apples at a local orchard, then off for some wine tasting.
Point I’m trying to make is, yes, they’re all very highly desirable, young, attractive women…but they’re PEOPLE as well, and you remember that when you’re wrapping the ropes around them, and it becomes easy to just forget about the sexual aspects of the situation. You just throw yourself at the work and allow it to BECOME work (while keeping the “fun” aspect alive with witty banter with the model), and you’re able to keep focused on the situation.
That said, I am human and I did have a “reaction” at a shoot once, early on in the game. When I felt it beginning, I gave myself a sound mental bitchslap (lol), and was able to keep focused on the work…thankfully, it hasn’t happened since. This is the factor that seperates the professionals from the ones who aren’t…if you can’t keep your mind focused off the model and on the ropework, you’re probably going to do crappy bondage…so learn to stay focused.
On top of all this, after you’ve tied your first dozen or so ladies (yeesh…my count is officially at 43 now with Stacie…), it becomes familliar territory. Believe it or not, the ropework can actually be boring to apply at times, and feel like you’ve just punched the clock for the thousandth time. Yes, I’m serious! It rarely happens, but it does…that’s one of the reasons I never book a shoot out more than 2 weeks in advance…if I have a shoot coming up a month away, I start to get the “dreads” and almost want to cancel because it feels like “work”. In that 2 week period, I can get all psyched up for the shoot, do what little planning I do (I don’t plan things out to a whole…I hate making a plan then having to change it…that infuriates me), and be fresh and ready for all the “action”.
Another thing that keeps you on point is the timing. Models generally get paid by the hour, so if you have a limited budget (which I almost always do), you have to keep moving so you’re able to get everything in to the money you’ve alloted to spend. I hate owing models money (and I’m sure they hate BEING owed), so I’m focused on getting the job done and done RIGHT.
In closing, how do I keep from being a “walking woody” during my shoots? By being a professional, and respecting the models. I think that’s why they all love me so…;)
Thanks for the question, John…haven’t had so much fun writing something in a long time!!
“Tolstoy”