Monday's Shoot - Melani
Today... talk about a day that is hard to categorize! So many things went wrong, but some awesome things did result from the efforts. Still, I sit here drained and ready for bed. Still, I'm going to write this blog about the sets I shot with Melani about nine hours ago.
The day began when I picked up Melani around 10 a.m. Knowing the amount of time it would take to drive to our location of Rehoboth Beach in Delaware, there was no need to go super early. The sun wouldn't be in a good position to do anything on the beach looking out over the ocean, although it did kind of screw us over on our first shoot, which I'll get to below.
First however, let's talk about my back being super tight when I woke up. For some reason my lower back muscles were inflamed and sitting in the car wasn't helping. With a two hour and a half hour drive ahead, I ended up having to stop at a rest stop to get some pain relievers. I could barely keep up with Melani walking through the parking lot when we arrived. After a few minutes of being upright, however, my back felt fine. Still, I got the pain relievers and took a few. I'm never one to take any kind of medicine, but I didn't want to waste a day at the beach with Melani. We had some awesome ideas to put on camera.
Next on the "blah" list of today was when we arrived at Rehoboth Beach. We needed to pick up a couple of clothing items, so I headed down to the main drag and we hit up some stores. We were looking for either a watermelon themed bikini, or a cute pink or green one for one of the beach sets. We were also looking for one of those lifeguard themed swimsuits for the other. Well, we struck out time and time again, going into more than a dozen stores. We actually ended up going back into a few of them, one even three times, where we bought the final item needed for the lifeguard set, which wasn't a bikini because none of the stores sold them.
Oh yeah, I almost forgot... In one of the stores, this ultra feminine older man bitched out loud at Melani and I. We were looking at the lifeguard themed clothing and I guess Melani didn't exactly fold the shirt back the way they had it. I thought it felt off onto the floor or something and apologized. He was like, "It didn't fall. It was thrown back on the shelf."
Umm, that wasn't the case, so I apologized again anyhow and said, "Wow, really, asshole?" on the way out of the store.
Anyhow, with the shopping now done, we were finally able to shoot. It was a little later than I had hoped, but I didn't think anything of it at the time. We drove down to the area I had planned on using, but were met with some more obstacles. The location I wanted was the very end of the boardwalk. I figured less people would be down there and we were going to do a jogging theme. Thankfully Melani had all those clothing items covered, looking back on that now! Ha ha!
Naturally this wouldn't be easy. There was nowhere to park when we arrived! We had to drive around for a while as everything was permit only. When we finally did find a spot, with a meter, it took only quarters. Thankfully, I keep change in my car for this sort of thing. And my quarters got me... seven minutes each! Seriously? Who comes up with that number? I had to feed a bunch of quarters in just to get enough time where I wouldn't have to worry about coming back to a ticket. Oh well, it was paid for and we were finally going to shoot.
When we got up to the boardwalk for this first set, the sun was not in an ideal spot. If benches had been on the other side of the boardwalk also, it would have worked. Already being so frustrated, I forced the set anyhow. It worked, but the color isn't up to my standards in every shot. Nevertheless, the set wasn't a waste and I should be able to bump some levels, exposures, and contrasts here and there to make the salvage some of the shots I'm not keen on due to the shadows and sunlight.
We shot this quickly and didn't even do a video clip. I wanted to get it over with and get down on the beach. The second set was one I had been looking forward to for a while and was the biggest reason we made the trip anyhow.
I drove down the road a bit to find a spot where not many people would be on the beach. I found one and was feeling really good about things. Finally, we caught a break. We got our stuff together, went down to the beach, but half way there, I realized I forgot one of the major props and had to run back to the car. This run included the sand (naturally), a large dune that meant an uphill climb, and then back over it again on the return. Why not? Today was going so well for me. Luckily I had Melani and her pretty little feet to look forward to. To top it off, she'd be in a bikini in this one, for the first time, and looking amazing. I soldiered on!
As you can see by the sample shot above, the theme of this set was watermelons. I found a bunch of little props to use in this set over the last few weeks, but the one I had to run back to the car for was the watermelon pieces themselves. And oh yeah, we had to drive around to a couple stores to find that too, before we shot. Forgot to mention that!
Anyhow, I set things up and loved the sight of Melani before me. I knew this set was going to be good and was hands down the best one of the day, and one of the better ones I've taken in 2017. That's saying quite a bit because I've had some that I just adore already. This ranks up there for sure though!
If you want to see her in a couple of other shots from this set, I posted two more to Instagram (@SolesofSilk) before I began this blog. I didn't want my phone full of sand so I didn't take it out on the beach. I ended up posting shots from this actual series, along with the others, from the day instead.
This set I also got a video clip. I couldn't resist her squishing those pink watermelon pieces in the bowl. Lots of juice was squeezed out under her little feet for that one. Once that was done, however, it was time for our final set. We wanted to do four sets, but during this one we decided to just do the lifeguard theme here on the beach too and call it a day.
After a trip back through the sand, up and over that dune (twice), we realized something that I had predicted would happen earlier. I had bought Melani two toe rings to wear for the day and we forgot to use them up until this point. It's happened before with other models and I said it would probably happen again. We put them in one of the bags with the outfits and forgot about them until we got to the lifeguard set below. More of this day just being amazing!
With her toe rings, lifeguard attire, and little red shoes on, Melani and I went back down to the beach and began shooting again. She looked great and the colors were again vibrant. Another great set was coming out of this difficult day. It didn't go off without a hitch, however.
During this set the salt water must have been reaching my camera. We weren't in the surf, but I noticed my camera lens getting a little cloudy. I tried my best to keep it wiped and dry, but it started to be a losing effort by the end. A couple of the photos from this set are a little hazy, but for the most part, the set also looks pretty good. Because of this, I also skipped on the clip here. I just wanted to relax and go eat at this point. So did Melani.
Since I'm really tired and want to get to bed, let me briefly say after this shoot, we got caught apparently not paying for parking at the beach here. We were just about to leave when a park ranger knocked on the door. It was an honor system sort of thing and I missed the sign for it. Being Maryland residents, it cost us more too. Oh well, fuck it. I paid it and we left to go find food, which was the a big ordeal too.
We drove to several locations to eat, but found 40 minute waits for tables when we arrived, or more seven minute per quarter parking meters. How could I figure out how much time it would take us to be sat and eat? We found a diner instead.
After we ate I felt like the day needed something else to feel like we went to the beach. I saw a miniature golf spot close by and we decided to go. When we got there, we paid, walked out into the course (which looked awesome), and there was a line of almost 30 people waiting to start playing. People were literally taking forever and by time we got to the first hole (about half an hour after arrival), we both hit our balls, finished the first hole, and got back in line for hole two. After five minutes we looked at the 15 or more people waiting to go and then at each other. We decided to just turn our clubs and balls in and leave. I didn't even try to see if I could get a refund. I just wanted to go. That was our awesome day at the beach nightcap. I shouldn't have been surprised, in all honesty.
From there, we got back in my car and headed home. Today was just not our day, but we still managed to get some photos I know you'll enjoy - especially that watermelon set. Oh well, I'm sure Melani and I will do some more awesome shoots and have much better days shooting ahead. Thanks for spending the day with me regardless, Melani. Hope you're fast asleep by this point. I'm about to join you in la-la land here soon! Sweet dreams!
The day began when I picked up Melani around 10 a.m. Knowing the amount of time it would take to drive to our location of Rehoboth Beach in Delaware, there was no need to go super early. The sun wouldn't be in a good position to do anything on the beach looking out over the ocean, although it did kind of screw us over on our first shoot, which I'll get to below.
First however, let's talk about my back being super tight when I woke up. For some reason my lower back muscles were inflamed and sitting in the car wasn't helping. With a two hour and a half hour drive ahead, I ended up having to stop at a rest stop to get some pain relievers. I could barely keep up with Melani walking through the parking lot when we arrived. After a few minutes of being upright, however, my back felt fine. Still, I got the pain relievers and took a few. I'm never one to take any kind of medicine, but I didn't want to waste a day at the beach with Melani. We had some awesome ideas to put on camera.
Next on the "blah" list of today was when we arrived at Rehoboth Beach. We needed to pick up a couple of clothing items, so I headed down to the main drag and we hit up some stores. We were looking for either a watermelon themed bikini, or a cute pink or green one for one of the beach sets. We were also looking for one of those lifeguard themed swimsuits for the other. Well, we struck out time and time again, going into more than a dozen stores. We actually ended up going back into a few of them, one even three times, where we bought the final item needed for the lifeguard set, which wasn't a bikini because none of the stores sold them.
Oh yeah, I almost forgot... In one of the stores, this ultra feminine older man bitched out loud at Melani and I. We were looking at the lifeguard themed clothing and I guess Melani didn't exactly fold the shirt back the way they had it. I thought it felt off onto the floor or something and apologized. He was like, "It didn't fall. It was thrown back on the shelf."
Umm, that wasn't the case, so I apologized again anyhow and said, "Wow, really, asshole?" on the way out of the store.
Anyhow, with the shopping now done, we were finally able to shoot. It was a little later than I had hoped, but I didn't think anything of it at the time. We drove down to the area I had planned on using, but were met with some more obstacles. The location I wanted was the very end of the boardwalk. I figured less people would be down there and we were going to do a jogging theme. Thankfully Melani had all those clothing items covered, looking back on that now! Ha ha!
Naturally this wouldn't be easy. There was nowhere to park when we arrived! We had to drive around for a while as everything was permit only. When we finally did find a spot, with a meter, it took only quarters. Thankfully, I keep change in my car for this sort of thing. And my quarters got me... seven minutes each! Seriously? Who comes up with that number? I had to feed a bunch of quarters in just to get enough time where I wouldn't have to worry about coming back to a ticket. Oh well, it was paid for and we were finally going to shoot.
 |
| Melani's first set was themed to jogging - something she does regularly. |
When we got up to the boardwalk for this first set, the sun was not in an ideal spot. If benches had been on the other side of the boardwalk also, it would have worked. Already being so frustrated, I forced the set anyhow. It worked, but the color isn't up to my standards in every shot. Nevertheless, the set wasn't a waste and I should be able to bump some levels, exposures, and contrasts here and there to make the salvage some of the shots I'm not keen on due to the shadows and sunlight.
We shot this quickly and didn't even do a video clip. I wanted to get it over with and get down on the beach. The second set was one I had been looking forward to for a while and was the biggest reason we made the trip anyhow.
I drove down the road a bit to find a spot where not many people would be on the beach. I found one and was feeling really good about things. Finally, we caught a break. We got our stuff together, went down to the beach, but half way there, I realized I forgot one of the major props and had to run back to the car. This run included the sand (naturally), a large dune that meant an uphill climb, and then back over it again on the return. Why not? Today was going so well for me. Luckily I had Melani and her pretty little feet to look forward to. To top it off, she'd be in a bikini in this one, for the first time, and looking amazing. I soldiered on!
 |
| Melani looking so adorable in this watermelon themed set, which saw her smash some too. |
As you can see by the sample shot above, the theme of this set was watermelons. I found a bunch of little props to use in this set over the last few weeks, but the one I had to run back to the car for was the watermelon pieces themselves. And oh yeah, we had to drive around to a couple stores to find that too, before we shot. Forgot to mention that!
Anyhow, I set things up and loved the sight of Melani before me. I knew this set was going to be good and was hands down the best one of the day, and one of the better ones I've taken in 2017. That's saying quite a bit because I've had some that I just adore already. This ranks up there for sure though!
If you want to see her in a couple of other shots from this set, I posted two more to Instagram (@SolesofSilk) before I began this blog. I didn't want my phone full of sand so I didn't take it out on the beach. I ended up posting shots from this actual series, along with the others, from the day instead.
This set I also got a video clip. I couldn't resist her squishing those pink watermelon pieces in the bowl. Lots of juice was squeezed out under her little feet for that one. Once that was done, however, it was time for our final set. We wanted to do four sets, but during this one we decided to just do the lifeguard theme here on the beach too and call it a day.
After a trip back through the sand, up and over that dune (twice), we realized something that I had predicted would happen earlier. I had bought Melani two toe rings to wear for the day and we forgot to use them up until this point. It's happened before with other models and I said it would probably happen again. We put them in one of the bags with the outfits and forgot about them until we got to the lifeguard set below. More of this day just being amazing!
 |
| Melani's little feet were totally covered in sand in this final set of the day. |
With her toe rings, lifeguard attire, and little red shoes on, Melani and I went back down to the beach and began shooting again. She looked great and the colors were again vibrant. Another great set was coming out of this difficult day. It didn't go off without a hitch, however.
During this set the salt water must have been reaching my camera. We weren't in the surf, but I noticed my camera lens getting a little cloudy. I tried my best to keep it wiped and dry, but it started to be a losing effort by the end. A couple of the photos from this set are a little hazy, but for the most part, the set also looks pretty good. Because of this, I also skipped on the clip here. I just wanted to relax and go eat at this point. So did Melani.
Since I'm really tired and want to get to bed, let me briefly say after this shoot, we got caught apparently not paying for parking at the beach here. We were just about to leave when a park ranger knocked on the door. It was an honor system sort of thing and I missed the sign for it. Being Maryland residents, it cost us more too. Oh well, fuck it. I paid it and we left to go find food, which was the a big ordeal too.
We drove to several locations to eat, but found 40 minute waits for tables when we arrived, or more seven minute per quarter parking meters. How could I figure out how much time it would take us to be sat and eat? We found a diner instead.
After we ate I felt like the day needed something else to feel like we went to the beach. I saw a miniature golf spot close by and we decided to go. When we got there, we paid, walked out into the course (which looked awesome), and there was a line of almost 30 people waiting to start playing. People were literally taking forever and by time we got to the first hole (about half an hour after arrival), we both hit our balls, finished the first hole, and got back in line for hole two. After five minutes we looked at the 15 or more people waiting to go and then at each other. We decided to just turn our clubs and balls in and leave. I didn't even try to see if I could get a refund. I just wanted to go. That was our awesome day at the beach nightcap. I shouldn't have been surprised, in all honesty.
From there, we got back in my car and headed home. Today was just not our day, but we still managed to get some photos I know you'll enjoy - especially that watermelon set. Oh well, I'm sure Melani and I will do some more awesome shoots and have much better days shooting ahead. Thanks for spending the day with me regardless, Melani. Hope you're fast asleep by this point. I'm about to join you in la-la land here soon! Sweet dreams!
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