Day 35 of the 90 Days of Awesome is in the bank! What made today awesome? I got to do a photoshoot with Ben Stadler-Ammon, including some bodyscaping work.

I have friends who are amazing photographers. They’ve shot amazing photos of me over the years at Ignite Phoenix and doing flash mobs with Improv AZ. At the last Ignite Phoenix event, Ben asked if I’d be interested in doing a photo shoot with him. I jumped at the chance.

One of the types of photo work Ben does is called bodyscaping. It’s a type of photography that is usually in black and white that focuses on shapes made with lighting and the curves of the body. (Yes, since this type of art focuses on the body, the photographer needs to see your body; therefore, most bodyscaping is done in the nude. And in case you were wondering, when you’re working with a professional photographer – like Ben – there’s nothing sexual about the shoot. It’s just about taking beautiful photos.) When done well, the resulting photos are absolutely gorgeous. Ben does an excellent job of capturing your best angles and making your eyes sparkle. We met for a shoot a few weeks ago and it was so much fun – and the photos were beautiful. Here’s my favorite one from that shoot:

We did another shoot today. What made this one special was my friend and fellow model Sara Santiago was there to do some modeling and also learn about taking these types of photos to better understand how to take a good photo. It gave me a chance to learn about what makes a good photo and I got to take some shots with her so I got to see another artist’s perspective. Working with her was different because since this was her first time shooting, setting up shots took longer, which presented me with the challenge of holding still longer.

Here’s something no one tells you about modeling – the most beautiful pictures involve contorting your body into poses that no normal person would use in their daily life. There’s a lot of twisting, back arching, and leaning in ways that no one does naturally. It’s funny at the time and the pictures that come from it are fantastic.

Ben did some “organic” photos of me today too – just me being me. I can’t wait to see the results.

In case you missed it: Day 34 of the 90 Days of Awesome – I finally hung my wall art.