Ali Lancrae used her full range of interviewing skills on him on one of her mirable posts on Porn Star Confidential, providing quite the eyecandy (the pic below is just a sample)! This one will be more wordy, but the pictures from Igor himself and his pleasant and insightful comments will make it not completely boring!
- How did you learn about The Sexiest Pornstars group?
" Partee told me. She has been so helpful to me in helping me learn how to network and where. I had already posted some to Flickr and she was always interacting on my page, although quite busy herself, so I reached out to say thanks. We've been friends ever since."
Igor photographing Partee, from the set 'Beach Partee Bingo'
- Your flickr begins with your first unedited shots, then goes on as you begin playing with filters, etc. What catches your interest the most about SL photography?
" Well I left those early shots up, because the do tell the story about how it evolved. It began simply to show people something about me on my profile if they did not meet me in world. Then I got addicted to snapping pics..."
- You do more than 'just' snapping pics, tho. Even if you do get great 'instant' captures. i think you have a real talent for the party photos. Maybe it's not very stimulating to hear for a photographer who puts a lot of effort in scenarios and such but i think you had excellent results those times you did it.
" The lighting at Emily's club really inspired me, so that helps and I probably walked in with the right default windlight, and just looked around."
A great capture of Stacy at a Pornstars party
- But from your beginnings, your flickr documents a growth as photographer in many aspects. It's always refreshing to me and interesting for many readers and 'newcomers' to hear about the learning process. I know you have examples of the tools you acquire that you can share.
" Well, I am neither a photographer in RL or a graphic designer by trade. I know little about using tools such as Photoshop prior to SL photography. I had to learn as I went.
I had to learn how to patch up necklines and arms that got twisted up in a pose, etc.
For the bartender story, then was the scene where I was doing body shots off of Rachel's tunny, as she lay naked on the counter. That was actually an animation that came with the bar. I will admit that I'm not a tequila drinker, and being busy capturing the shot, realized later that a shot glass should've been in my hand, but never made it there that night. So I had to learn how to do a layer mask in order to include a graphic of a genuine shot of tequila into my hand. "
'Before and after' in one of the shots (no pun intended) of 'The naked bartender', with Rachel and Ali Avro-Fox
- And the technical aspect is just one part of the photographer's work. In fact....You mentioned to me that you get a lot a certain question...and that question is, more or less, "How much of what I am seeing is staged or is it "in the heat of the moment." . Well well, what about that?
"Haha. That is always an interesting and complicated question to answer. Methods of capture vary from shot to shot, shoot to shoot. The workflow of one shoot may go smoother in one instance over another. But I can say this: I don't post "personal memories" of that sort. In other words, I'm a private person who doesn't "kiss and tell." Anyone in the shot knows at the time they are being captured. I guess the real question is (and the reason I'm proud to be asked about this) is, "Does it look and make you feel like you caught us in the heat of the moment?" If so, then I succeeded.
A couple of memorable shots from Igor's latest, The Ultimate Workout, with Lacey Nora
- I love your stories that go with the photoshoots. When do they take shape? You have already an idea of where the story will go and how it will end before you shoot the pics, or does it come later? do you write every 'chapter' as you release the pics, or...? Feel free to take one shoot as example, or more. I realize it's not like that -every- time .
" Yes, it varies. Many times it the past, I would know how I wanted the shoot to progress from start to finish and the story took shape after I reviewed the shots. Sometimes I just have way more hot pics that I can use and not drag out the set so far that the casual viewer gets bored. In those cases I have to whittle it down to 6-8. This immediate release with Lacey Nora is going to be one such project.
The pictures are my babies and I love them all. Usually during review is when the characters in the play start taking shape. As with the Visiting Chanel shoot, I ended up passing off the great outtakes for her to post on her page. "
- There's also one series that gets my attention, the 'Cuddle Where you Are' series. What's the idea behind it?
"Well, (blush) I'm a romantic at heart. A sensualist. I'm a touch guy. It's very different from the raw tension of much of my recent work. It's sweet and I like that. Lately when I've run into friends, I ask them to do a quick cuddle pose. I hope to add more to this ongoing gallery. It's all about tender affectionate moments, no matter where you might be. Much like the sexual encounters in the stories, I'm challenging myself with unusual locations. We've all seen the couple behind closed door in bed scene and they are lovely. I've just wanted to do something a bit different."
Above, Igor with Lacey and Katita80.
- Not that I want to give all aspiring models the straight way to your heart but....what do you find most stimulating in a model, if anything in particular, and what do you think are the most important qualities for someone who wants to work with you?
" Hmmmm.....what does a young model need to know?
Last week I had an unplanned shoot and immediately went searching my friends list. It was late in the afternoon here and one of the pornstar parties was just getting underway. I was a bit frustrated at how many models, who have far less of a following than even I, turned down work, in order to attend a party that was designed to help them----drum up work.
From two really well put together sets with well laid out stories: 'Naughty Neighbors' and 'Stolen Clothes'
I am not a vindictive person, but if you are serious about working with certain people, you need to be serious about communicating. That means returning messages if you're away when messaged. Personal relationship is important to me with the people I want to work with. If you fail to communicate, eventually I will stop trying and pass you over. On the opposite end, I have projects that include people who were really interested in me as a friend (or maybe just interested in me as a man) and what I do.
Lara Sands-Dieterle and Bette Paige each enjoyed hot erotic photoshoots too!
They went out of their way to be available, jumped at the opportunity given, and maybe even introduced me to a venue or theme for us to shoot. Those kinds of people tend to bypass any line there might be and move right to the front.
We mentioned the shoot with Partee before. I hope she doesn't mind me mentioning this, but when discussing where and what she might like to shoot, she mentioned how moved she was by a single oral shower picture I had posted. So I then went hunting for the right venue to make it more personal.
Kind of fun to make fantasies come true."
- Is there something in the SL adult arts that you'd like to achieve and hope to in the next , or even distant future? Can be anything from ...... well, i don't want to lead you on!
" I think whether with an adult shot or something quite benign, as an "artist" (I don't take that so seriously with myself) I love realism. I'm really trying (and I'm not there like I'd like to be) to cause people to forget for one brief moment that they are looking at avatars and not a real photo. In that regard especially Laura Richards has been my photography idol."
The good thing with the porn world: you get to meet your idols face to face!
Thank you SO much to Igor for his patience answering my questions, and I hope to see plenty more of his efforts as photographer, wordsmith and man-candy in the months to come, as an active part of the community, enjoying all the various 'meme' that we all know and like! Showcasing gorgeous models like Racheal Rexen and Jesse Jane below, all the others seen in this post, and plenty more!
And if you have ideas about this blog and something to offer, please let me hear it! I love to feature you!
