Erotic Photography

[127]

If you like it it's erotic. If you don't like it, it's porn...

Ian

[Ole]

Saudek is a crazy, crazy man.
I don't find the pictures erotic, humoristic and weird though.

Are we thinking of the same photographer? Saudek, not Sudek?

[Thomassauerwein]

I find Mapplethorpes "flower" pictures very erotic. Strange, more erotic than his nudes. photographing an erotic moment has got to be really tough. I think they can be clothed or unclothed and be just as erotic. One of my favorite erotic moments is from a movie. "Sharky's machine". When Rachel Ward was in a knee length skirt backlit in a doorway. Or in Flash Dance when Jennifer Beals was eating shrimp. The look in her eyes peeled away all my better judgements. I don't know if I've ever seen a photograph with a nude in it that truley was erotic. I know I've tried to create that eviron in my images and failed more than once. something about the immediate gratification of physical exposure that ruins the promise of further entisements. I don't have any idea what the answer is but my wife, well she seems to better understand (if you know what I mean)

[eatfrog]

Are we thinking of the same photographer? Saudek, not Sudek?

Jan Saudek, yes.

With pictures like, 1, 2, 3.

Somehow I love that guys stuff, but man... it's not normal photography. ;-)

[blansky]

For me a basic element of eroticism is lighting. Generally soft sensuous lighting of nudes and body parts is erotic. But I agree that the hint or promise of what is to come next, is also an element.

When women took a hand in the so called xxx or porno movie business, due to the proliferation of VCRs they started directing a lot of eroticism, because women are probably more erotic than men. Previously xxx had been basic suck and **** movies and not much more. With women being a big renter and buyer of videotapes the whole genre moved more towards foreplay and eroticism and less about the money shot. Any xxx directed by a woman is far more sensuous and far more about the journey and less about the destination.

I believe still photography that is erotic is much the same way. But not always.

Different people on different days want different things. Sometimes you feel like a nut and sometimes you don't.

The books I listed earlier have hundreds of pictures in them, in varying degrees of eroticism. Everyones opinion of what is erotic is probably a bit different as it should be.

Michael

[Ed Sukach]

The most erotic Motion Picture scene I can remember was the "Oyster Banquet" in Tom Jones.

[Quinten]

There are too little women in this thread, they usually are masters in leaving out the hormones and bringing the feel to the surfcase and use that as a basis for the hormones instead of the other way around.

The picture I placed earlier is shot by a woman, and that didn't amaze me.

[Ara Ghajanian]

REVENGE is a GREAT series of shots. All in the neat B&W style.

Arigram,
I have to agree with Morten on Revenge. It is an excellent book and in my opinion I think it is a great example of what you are looking for.

Morten,
Is she using Rodinal? By the way, you got me into Rodinal and now I'm totally hooked.
Ara

[arigram]

Ara, even though Revenge is not what I consider erotic (I would call it playfull), I started the thread not to look for something specific but to investigate what there is.

[Ara Ghajanian]

I have to also add that lighting is a key element (as Michael mentioned). Lighting in porn (e.g. Hustler is a perfect example) is very literal and it is usually so harsh that you can see every detail so clearly that it looks like a medical record. Shadows tend to give the impression of suggestiveness and create an air of mystery. You can almost compare it to the difference between a hollywood erotic film and an erotic novel. Whereas a Hollywood film has to spell everything out and be literal so that toothless Clevis in West Virginia can understand, an erotic novel leaves so much to the imagination that it leads you to draw your own interpretation.

While we're on the subject of films... one film that I find erotic even though it has almost no sex in it is Blade Runner. The cinematography and lighting is masterful. It creates such a lush sensual mood. Also, a film my girlfriend and I watched last night: High Art. The lighting in this film is so warm and lush. There is almost no nudity, but it turned her on like crazy. Goes to show that women do have the expert view when it comes to eroticism. What do I know? I idolize Bob Crane. I'm such a perv.
Ara