A Day in the Life of Miu

Hey, It's the Naked Tourist!

2012-01-22T17:06:00.008+01:00

I so had to share this series. It was actually taken at the "Near Horsham" group shoot on 28 August 2012. The photographer was Maidstone-based British photographer Paul Crusier. Initially I was to pose in a skimpy red bikini and matching red stilettos donning a Red Star Mao Tse-tung cap for a "Chairman Miu" theme. The venue was a beautiful vast garden of this huge private estate of some wealthy people near Horsham, West Sussex. So vast it was we even had to hop onto Paul's 4x4 to get around!

So what is there to do on this beautiful day in the beautiful English countryside? Strip off of course! Paul had this ingenious idea of doing a nude shoot after I was done with the bikini. How could I refuse? We grabbed my small rolling luggage and off I went with nothing on but my red stilettos meandering around the path pretending not to notice the camera...

And what a hit it was! I uploaded the image on Flickr and within minutes, favorites and comments started pouring in. A lot of viewers thought the scenery was a park! And I must say I loved the way Paul captured my strutting very well. The composition is also well thought out. Well done, Paul! You're an awesome photographer with crazy ideas. I love crazy people...! Thank you so much, and I look forward to working with you soon!!

You can see more of these crazy pictures on my Flickr Page!

Last Summer...

2012-01-17T13:45:00.012+01:00

Well...it wasn't much of a summer in Amsterdam if you remember. Nevertheless, it was still warm enough to shoot outside when it wasn't horrible and raining as it had been much of the summer. Though not as much as we had hoped, there were quite a few sunny days when I jumped at the chance to sunbathe (naked too!) in our private garden and show off my tan. On August 15 2011, I had the opportunity to shoot with Bart Sluiter again. Remember him? He was the in-house photographer for Dutch clubwear brand Unzipped based in Amsterdam with which I had been featured in their website catalog.

When I visited the shop last Spring, I was offered to model their bikini bottoms for their catalog Apparently, I had the perfect backside for it! The part when to someone else however, some female body builder from the U.S., which I was disappointed about. It turned out for the better though as I got to shoot in even nicer outfits which would certainly enhance my portfolio. I also learned, too, that Bart used to design latex clothing for some years which he does now from time to time. Once I save up some money, it may be an idea to have some custom-made latex stuff as I find the pret-à-porter stuff never fit me correctly. Plus many designers ask for such obscene mark up!

And if I couldn't be featured this time in a catalog in bikini bottoms (albeit faceless), at least Unzipped saved for me the BEST outfit of all. Their exclusive Swarovski crystal bikini!!! It was designed by Artur, the partner behind Unzipped. I love it. Thankfully, I managed to maintain my tan which was perfect for the outfit. This beautiful and delicate "bikini" fit me quite well too I must admit. Shame I didn't get to keep it though! We shot in a black background after discovering that a white background wouldn't work. There were some grey fabric being suspended from the ceiling from which I was to twist and tug to give some "bondage" effect.

I was as such pleasantly surprised to notice that Bart's photography interest lies in fetish-style. Requested to bring a corset with me, I changed into a cheap and cheerful gold one I had purchased some time ago at Amsterdam's red light district and paired it with fishnet tights, black shorts and pair of black platform boots. Cheap and cheerful the corset was, but it certainly looked a million dollars on the pictures, as Bart chose a white background and shoot it quite high key.

Another highlight was being captured in one of the latex corsets Bart had designed! A black and red one (first pic). And people are right about latex being like a second skin. It sure felt so! I again paired that with fishnet tights and matching latex shorts with the same boots. Then came the matching latex headgear! At first we shot indoors but we found the images turned out better outside in the bushy veranda with all the greenery. Then we noticed that my tights ripped as I sat on the ground. Well what better way to deal with it than pretend that I was ripping them myself? I think Bart sensed how attached I was to the corset and how it fitted me so well that he let me keep it! I think I may well wear that to some fetish events in Tokyo when am there at the end of the month...

Finally we thought about doing something summery. You guessed, a skimpy swimwear shoot. And on the rooftop of his apartment! Bart loaned me an aubergine bikini from Unzipped. The rooftops in his neighbourhood are quite open but then being Amsterdam, everyone seems to mind their own business so it didn't seem so odd getting pictures taken out in public half-dressed. I borrowed Bart's sunglasses and pretended I was sunbathing on the rooftop. Whilst I was to look stern and scary in the first three sets of today's shoot, I quickly changed to happy and smiling. I love working with variety.

I was very pleased to work with Bart again and look forward to working with him more. Being a single father of two kids, I realise how busy he is at times. I also need to visit Unzipped more and say hi to everyone, now that I'll be able to spend more time out in Amsterdam and feel better settled. I love their outfits and being photographed in them. If only I could get a chance to go out in them soon! Thanks, Bart, for all your time and wonderful corset, and thanks too, Unzipped, for providing me with the sexy outfits!!

More pictures from this shoot can be seen on Flickr!!

ENTER THE YEAR OF THE DRAGON!!

2012-01-10T21:27:00.004+01:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! But oh no, what a way to start the year. I meant to be wishing everyone a happy new year and before I know it, it's 10 January already! My excuse? We were in the UK throughout New Year, as we finally closed the sale to our house there. My home for the last 13 lucky years. But it was all the last minute clearing up. contacting utility and insurance companies and generally doing the finishing touches to our final exodus out of Horsham! I'm glad to get it all off my shoulders. So less time now spent in planes, trains and long car rides, no more figuring out where I left what outfit and no more living in suitcases... but still I can't help feel a little sad and sentimental. We gotta move on though!

I had quite a lot of shoots in December which I have yet to blog about. There's one from Leon Schroeder from whom I've got the complete set of pics from our shoot, then Gerd Jan whom I really need to poke and prod as I haven't even got ONE pic from him (!) and Rene Elger from whom I'm still awaiting more pics too. He's sent me a few beautiful ones though. Oh and don't forget Chris Morley with whom I had the honour to be featured in his Xmas greetings card! Well with the Xmas and New Years going on am sure we've all been pre-occupied. But it's almost the middle of the month so no more excuses!!

I'm also pleased to announce that a few changes have taken place. I was able to maintain my Flickr account despite cancelling my BT Broadband with whom I had a free Pro account. I now have to pay like $24 a year for it, but it's worth it!!! So now to adding more and more pics. I also revamped my Official Website by changing the design and adding quality stuff. Added a section on published work. I decided to change my URL to minimiumodel.com as I don't like that name miuportfolio.com anymore. And I have just launched my FB Fan Page to promote my image without having to divulge my personal life!

So it's the Year of the Dragon. I was born on the Year of the Dragon myself so it damn well better be a good year for me. Given that 2011 was mediocre in namely the first half, I'm looking forward to seeing some improvements in health, wealth and luck. Hope it will be the same for all of you... HAVE A HEALTHY PROSPEROUS 2012!!!

Swept by the Arashi with Robin de Goede

2011-12-27T19:23:00.031+01:00

Now that I've moved permanently to the Netherlands, I've increasingly discovered a wonderful network of great local photographers. One of them is Robin de Goede who is based in den Haag (The Hague). Hooking up on Model Mayhem during the summer, we became friends on Facebook and began corresponding and chasing each other for doing a shoot together. After months of either one of us traveling to Japan in different times, we decided on 14 December 2011.

Armed with a degree from the prestigious Royal Academy of Fine Arts, Robin is not just a photographer but also an artist. He has produced quite a few beautiful drawings as seen in his website, whilst gradually progressing into photography to develop his talents. Like his artwork, his photography work clearly reflects profound appreciation of places, objects and people whilst managing to touch our minds and emotions. Not surprising!

Also not surprising Robin's fascination for tatoos. And we're not talking about the small odd one on the arm but an extensive masterpiece on practically the whole body! Over the years, Robin has come to know quite a few good tattoo artists and spends time in Japan every year, photographing this body art, even getting acquainted with the Yakuza who are famous for their elaborate tatoos. Thus, when I saw his images, I was not sure how to react when he offered to work with me! If he were brave enough to hang out with the Yakuza, one can only imagine that he must be a pretty scary guy, right? Wrong!

When Robin picked me up from Den Haag HS station, he was quite the opposite of what I had imagined. So mild-mannered with a kind face and speaking with a gentletone of voice despite his muscular build that you'd find it hard to believe he's also a bouncer at a local nightclub! Having a keen interest in Japanese culture, Robin adapts a more "zen" approach towards dealing with trouble makers, he told me. It was a five minute or so walk to his apartment in which he converted his living room into a studio.... equipped with a tatami mat!!

Over coffee, he showed me his work and shared his experience during his Japan trip. Many were fascinating, others were quite sad as he showed me some photos during his trip to tsunami-stricken Fukushima as a volunteer. The photos of the orphaned children nearly brought tears in my eyes. Had I not been there for a photoshoot, I think I would've burst out crying. On a more happier scale, the photos he took of the Yakuza in tatoos were fascinating. Am not so keen on tatoos myself but the patterns were just amazing.

Robin is involved in a sort of project on nude women he calls "Anomie". Anomie is a sociological term used to describe lack of social norms or breakdown between individual and social norms. Thus, the concept of nudity being a disconnection from what is expected from "normal" society. Quite profound! I was more than happy to volunteer. His work of nude women was quite unique, even abstract I must say. He focuses on the eyes of the model rather than the body. Or focuses on one part of the body. The use of various lenses such as wide angled ones and capturing the subject from unusual angles make the images look quite surreal. I couldn't wait to become involved!

We began with a warm-up shoot. I brought over with me a green kimono which I had purchased at a charity shop when I was last in Japan. Slipped it on and as I'm rather clueless about how to properly fasten it all on properly with an Obi, I disguised my embarrassing ignorance and just let it hang open while I sat demurely on the tatami mat. Gradually, I lay down on the mat. I decided that as it's an "anomie" theme, I am not to smile or pout (who the hell pouts wearing a kimono anyway!) but look quite subservient and vulnerable. Thought it would also be "cute" to add that doe-eyed vacant but frightened stare for a more "manga" effect without looking silly!

Then off went the Kimono and we moved to nudes. From the charity shop in Japan, I also bought an assortment of Japanese-silk strips of cloths which were scraps produced during the making of various Kimono. I had the idea to scatter it all over my nude body whilst lying down on the tatami. Robin himself had this cool idea of wetting my hair with a water spray and making my hair all stringy and randomly settling on my face,. Then I had my body oiled with baby oil for the extra sheen. First thing that came to mind for this look was being swept by a vicious rain storm which in Japanese is known as Arashi (嵐).

I like experimenting with props too. Great way to add some vavavoom to nude images! Robin produced a small round convexed mirror he put on the floor for me to look into while I am kneeling on the mat. This time I wanted to add a little humour in it by making faces to the mirror. And I love the scary one Robin produced in which I am going nuts, tearing my hair out!

Next, Robin placed another mirror on the floor. It was a rectangle one on which I was to stand on the sides of it with my legs apart! However, there is a logo or printed pattern in the middle of the mirror so my "bits" are concealed. Then we used a mini Noh mask (Japanese theatrical mask). I sat on the tatami with my legs apart but having the mask in front of me so you can't see. The sky's the limit when it comes to props! The next time I shoot with him, I would like to bring along some simple Japanese ornament or object. In fact for a while, I did regret bringing along a Hello Kitty soft toy, thinking it would be quite Japanese... clutching it like a lost child.

We called it a day, but we were both happy with the shoot. It was very relaxed, no rushing and I got to also see the results on screen. They were beautiful! As Robin is a skilled photographer, not much editing was necessary except for the odd cropping. He even holds the record for turning all the images around and sending them to me the very next day! Unfortunately I was very busy those weeks and couldn't share them sooner. I am in the middle of uploading them on Flickr and will be adding much more as soon as possible.

Thank you so much, Robin, for this enjoyable shoot. I would definitely like to work with you again when I'm back from Japan in mid-March. By then, we'll have more inspiration when I'm freshly back from there. Look forward to it!!

For more beautiful work of Robin de Goede, click onto his website!!
More pics available on Flickr

"Open White" Shoot with Antonio Taccone

2011-12-15T20:32:00.013+01:00

I still do visit the U.K. from time to time since shifting my residence to the Netherlands. Becoming exhausted with traveling extensively around the country like I used to (getting too old!), I now shoot in London only, where I go every month to visit my mother. I was therefore very lucky that my schedule happened to coincide with that of Antonio Taccone, a professional photographer visiting from Italy for work! Antonio contacted me out of the blue on Model Mayhem and invited me to shoot with him. Apart from capturing beautiful images with the most gorgeous models, he also works for the world's major photo and press agencies. Impressed with his credentials and his wonderful work, I was most chuffed he wanted to collaborate with me!

The main thrust of the shoot was his project called Open White. Involving the use of high-key lighting and infinite white background, the images would all be in black and white but with soft textures. Antonio's inspiration evolved from a film called "Open Water" in which two submarines were abandoned in the middle of a sea. Just as the subs themselves were lost in the blue, the models were to be lost in the white. He imaginatively described the project as: "the body is present, visible but there is only a feeling; the most important is the look and the face of the model. An elegant, intimate portrait." The Open White theme was to be primarily nude but involving one item with which we could use as a prop. Taking a look at some of his samples, I couldn't wait to pursue this! We agreed to shoot on 2 December 2011.

Prior to the shoot, Antonio briefed me on the preparation. I was instructed to bring a favorite item with which we could use as prop as well as some black lingerie. I chose a long string of pearls which would blend perfectly with the soft mood. As we were doing a high-key lit B&W shoot, I was advised to wear light make-up, more precisely sky-blue or crystal-violet eyeshadow and magenta lipstick. No reds or yellows, I was told, as this would make it difficult to adjust the color tones of the images without affecting the skin tone during the editing process. Even as a trained make-up artist, I never knew this. Wow, you do learn a new thing everyday!

Antonio picked me up from Wembley Park tube station in London. Despite his professional experience, he was a very unassuming, hospitable and a warm-hearted gentleman and I immediately felt at ease. We chatted about Italy as I shared some of my travelling experience there. We walked to his hotel, whilst shopping by Tesco's on the way to pick up some snacks. Once we arrived there, we had some bite to eat whilst preparing the set. We used the two single beds which we pushed together to make a big one, all covered with white sheets and scattered with huge white pillows. Then Antonio initiated an "introductory" warm-up shoot to help me loosen up as well as for him to get an idea of of my natural expressions and from which angle to best capture me.

I admired the way in which Antonio was direct and precise in his directions. It shows he knows what he wants out of the images and his determination to create the best quality. Whilst shooting we also experimented on me posing from various angles from the light and different distances from the camera. Antonio, in the middle of a set, also downloaded the images on his laptop from which we would assess what sort of images worked and how we could improve on them. Plus I get to see how well the results turn out! I also had a lot of fun observing how he cropped the images and manipulated the lighting on photoshop which didn't need much doing anyhow. Most importantly, he emphasized on blurring out the "explicit bits" to create a subtly erotic mood with facial expressions being the main focus.

We worked on various nude images with single props being used to add some accent. The feeling of being "lost" in the white and clutching onto the one item we treasure. First was the pearl necklace. Then I had a pair of stilettos which I used to take on and off, as if I were "undressing" in the nude. I also had a black faux-fur scarf which I cuddled in. We even worked with my mobile phone (along with the bling-bling Hello Kitty cover) with which I had to pretend to be taking photos of myself whilst pulling my panties to one side and teasingly exposing myself little.

It was very ingenious of Antonio to suggest doing the lingerie sets at the end of the shoots. Most of the time, it is the other way around as we feel the need to build comfort and rapport covered up initially before stripping off. However the disadvantage is that tighter clothing, especially bras or fishnet hosiery, leave pressed marks onto the skin, taking hours to fade.

We called it a day after 3 productive hours. Although the shoot was so intense which left me exhausted, it was worth every minute. We hit it off really well and, in fact, I must've made quite an impression on him as he text me the following day and asked me if I wanted to shoot with him on Sunday too! It was of course an offer I couldn't refuse so I went along. As I was already accustomed to Antonio already, I felt more relaxed for this second shoot. This time, I brought a pretty Japanese folding fan. Although he asked me to bring a corset, I didn't have one with me in London, so I brought along a pair of stockings with suspenders.

On both occasions, I thoroughly enjoyed working with Antonio. From what he had shown me, I am very pleased with the results. He has given me a couple of edited images right after the shoot, and I look forward to receiving more. I hope to be working with him again when he is visiting London next. Thanks so much, Antonio, for your time and for creating some beautiful images!

For more of Antonio's work, have a look at his website!

Kinbaku Experience in Tokyo

2011-12-03T10:05:00.013+01:00

As they say, when in Rome do as the Romans do. So I took the opportunity whilst in Japan in October to indulge in the ultimate Kinbaku experience. I'm not always certain whether Kinbaku or Shibari would be more appropriate to use, but Wikipedia suggests that Kinbaku literally means "tight binding" and that Kinbaku-bi means "the beauty/art of tight binding", whereas Shibari was a word coined in the West in the 1990s to merely mean "(to) tie". Thus from now on, I should really be referring Japanese rope bondage as "Kinbaku".

I got in touch with the rigger from Fetlife. He is known as Nuitdetokyo, a very well-mannered and intelligent Frenchman who has been living in Japan for decades. We got in touch through Fetlife when I was announcing my arrival to Tokyo to seek social events and make some new friends. Nuitdetokyo practises Kinbaku as a pastime and works closely with well-known Kinbaku-shi (riggers) in Japan.

With the Kinbaku experience of course came the photoshoot. Nuitdetokyo was very kind to arrange one with a young but experienced German photographer called Thomas who was living in Tokyo, and the date was set for Sunday 2 October 2011 at Nuitdetokyo's studio. He picked me up at Akebonobashi subway station. Just as in our correspondence on Fetlife, he was a very pleasant gentleman. He even bought us all some delicious take-away sushi

and Japanese sweets (wa-gashi) we can all have for lunch which was most generous of him.

Arriving at his place, which was a spacious Japanese-style house, I was introduced to his friend who helped me. I was to choose an outfit from the closet, and naturally I chose a yukata. We had some coffee and some food and was ready to roll!

After discussions over lighting and scenery, we found a perfect spot. It was the tokonoma, or an alcove few inches above ground typically found in Japanese rooms to display ornaments and scrolls of caligraphy paintings. Nuitdetokyo proceeded in tying me up with the rope. I was most impressed at his skill at doing it at quick succession with one frame of tying after another, while Thomas captured the images from various angles.

I have to say I noticed a difference how things are done in Japan. For instance, I was surprised to see how in Japan the ropework looks more haphazard and uneven at times whereas in say Europe it tends to be more symetrical, some involving meticulous weaving or coloured ropes! I believe this is because in Japan, focus is made more on the bondage rather than trying to create effect through pretty patterns or the artwork of the tying. In Japan, it's more about the bondage itself and the whole picture which creates the art.

We did about three sets in total. After the tokonoma set, we did a floor series where I'd be sitting down and getting tied up on the floor and then ending up lying down (first picture) with my hands bound from behind and gagged with both knees bent and tied up which is known as futo-momo (thick thighs).

The final one was me eventually getting suspended. It was a bit of a challenge for me as I was being suspended from behind whilst still standing and with one leg further being further bound in futo-momo style. In the past, much of the suspension involved me lying down either on my back or my side which tends to even out the weight and hence be more comfortable. At some point, I might have moved my right arm which caused the rope to get displaced and poke into my radial nerve and cause it to numb.

A few sessions with the local accupunturist and positive attitude helped heal the trapped nerve. In fact,

when I clicked my hand suddenly whilst practicing with a whip for fun, the nerve somewhat "snapped into place" accelerating the healing. It only took a few weeks for the hand to recover completely but this is the risk one takes when doing rope bondage. Nuitdetokyo was very kind and sympathetic when I voiced my concerns and in fact took his time to analyse the injury through the pictures taken. The next time I become involved in Kinbaku, we need to be more observant!

Despite this, I was very pleased with the results of the photoshoot. Thomas captured the images so effectively by shooting from different and the correct angles. He knew exactly what is expected from a Kinbaku session in which he must get the lighting right from the start and be very quick to snap the photos. All the photos he processed came out so beautifully. Many thanks to both of them for this challenging experience!

Although Thomas has returned to Germany, I do look forward to catching up with Nuitdetokyo again when I'm in Tokyo next.

For more photos of this wonderful shoot, please click on to my Flickr page

A Day in Nagoya with Shogunmaster

2011-11-19T01:32:00.026+01:00

Oops sorry for this long break again! I was ill with a nasty cold the last couple of weeks. Then got busy with stuff I had put off doing as was too ill to bother. Still got a few more shoots in Japan to blog about which am sure you're all dying to read! This time, I'll be writing about my shoot in Nagoya, where I arranged to stop by on my way back from a family visit in Osaka. Jeffrey Johnson, otherwise known as "Shogunmaster" is an American photographer based there with whom I connected through Fetlife and then began corresponding on Facebook. Whilst an expert on event photography, such as car and fashion shows, he also photographs models. I really like his outdoors work especially as he takes advantage of the typically "Japanese metropolis" be it all the tall buildings or the street. Before leaving for Japan, we scheduled our shoot for 28 September 2011.
I took a shinkansen (Bullet Train), a smooth one hour journey, from Osaka to Nagoya, where Jeff picked me up. He was just as friendly, gregarious and funny as his conversations were on Facebook and we both hit it off immediately. Lugging all our bags on this warm sunny day, we took the metro to the city centre for some coffee. It was well over 20°C which was unusually warm for late September and I was still in my shorts and tank-top! I myself have been to Nagoya once when I was a kid but don't remember much of it. Still it was a friendly city, much like Tokyo in terms of scenery though on a smaller scale.

After coffee, we walked to an office block where I got changed in the public toilet. I disappeared in my scruffy sweaty backpacker attire and reappeared looking like a princess in a hot-pink strapless body-con evening dress with sequined ruffles in the front. I felt like Cinderella! The dress was designed and made Farzana Warasta, one of my closest friends in Amsterdam. Then we wandered off to a parking lot in one of the smaller streets, where there were some grafitti on the walls. We did quite a few fashion shoots there whilst adding some humour with me posing with a "No Parking" cone in Japanese.

Next was another Love Hotel shoot! We arrived to the one that Jeff had in mind but discovered that it was temporarily shut down for refurbishment. So we walked further and found another place. Once in there, we proceeded doing quite a few sets of some goodies Jeff had brought with him. One of them was a cute T-shirt that said "Don't take my photos!!" which we used as a warm-up shoot. Then was a chongsam Chinese dress and a cute frilly lingerie set.

I was dying to do a Uniform Fetish as well. Knowing that Jeff had served in the U.S. Army in Korea prior to coming to Japan, I coaxed him into bringing some of his old uniforms along. The trousers though were just too big for me so we improvised by throwing on the shirt with the cap and combining this with the same blue fishnet hold-ups with matching blue knickers I had worn with the previous set. Now that's sexy! Then Jeff produced an American flag he had kept from his army days, all neatly folded up. I posed behind it in nude although I was initially reluctant to as I didn't want to show any disrespect, but Jeff didn't seem to mind. Living in Europe and hence more exposed to things British, doing something "American" was such a great change!

We called it a day at the hotel. Then we roamed around to look for a hotel for me to stay in that evening and finally found one at reasonable rates. It was approaching sunset and we thought it would be a great idea to shoot at Oasis 21. This building is a huge recreational and commercial complex right in downtown, providing a massive view of modern Nagoya. Still a very warm evening, I was still dressed in my denim shorts and tank top and decided that a "casual fashion" shoot would be an idea. Personally, I thought this set was the best of the day's shoot most likely because I felt more at ease as the weather was cooling down and I was enjoying the fresh air and space around me. Plus, the lighting and the composition of the resulting images were perfect.

It was approaching dinner time and we were getting hungry. Jeff knew the guy who worked at this bar so we proceeded there for some snacks. After having been introduced to the owner, who was very friendly and accommodating, I quickly got changed in the toilet to that pretty pink evening dress I had worn earlier. I have to admit I was a little self-conscious when people were watching me get shot but as soon as I got to the bar and laid across it, I felt more myself! Naughty me...
Our final destination was a karaoke bar! Only this was quite different. It specialised in Cosplay. The bar had a closet full of funky costumes from which customers can pick and choose to wear, ranging from animé to sexy body-con clubwear to of course seira-fuku schoolgirl outfits. The place was even equipped with a tiny changing room with lockers! I wanted to see if they had a Hello Kitty outfit but alas they didn't. Still there were quite a few pretty costumes to choose from but unfortunately, I am not as slim and slightly-built like the average Japanese woman. I nevertheless managed to squeeze into a hot-looking red body-con dress for a femme-fatale look. We went out in the hallway where Jeff took some shots, then I got changed into another sexy outfit, this time with me as a Budweiser Girl in another body-con number. As I write this, I have yet to see how those photos turned out!

It has been a long but fun day of shooting in Nagoya. It is not often that I get to go there and rare for Jeff to have a visiting model from abroad, so we wanted to make the most of it. I very much enjoyed it, am well pleased with the results and look forward to working with him again when I am there next. Thank you so much for your time, Jeff, and Otsukaré-sama!

You can see more photos on this shoot on my Flickr page!

More of Jeff's awesome work can be seen on his Website...

Summertime in Amsterdam

2011-11-07T10:50:00.004+01:00

Summertime in Amsterdam, originally uploaded by Mini Miu.

Going back to 6 months ago. Just a quick recap of my shoot last late spring in Amsterdam with Charles van Trappen on 8 May 2011. I worked with him once before 2 years ago and was so pleased with his work that I decided to go for another! Wow two years and how my style has changed. Last time, it was just swimwear, lingerie and "art nude" but this time we decided to go for something more crazy and quirky, even more daring in the nude....

And you gotta love his ideas. iPhone in front of my private bits and adding the eye on the touch screen, a straw coming out of my boobs as if I'm feeding myself milk, and brandishing a rifle half dressed in the middle of a skyscraper. Those were a few of Charles cool ideas. Yep am up for em!

At the time, I also needed some swimwear shots for my portfolio. It was a very warm spring we had, it felt like summer already. But alas, the warmth wasn't too last as a wet summer followed with days, weeks and months of rain and below-20℃ temperatures. On the day, I managed to pose in two swimwear, one green and another in teal.

I also had a make-up artist with me. Kudos to Yachar Dabboussi who was recommended by Charles. A friendly and gifted artist, she also did my hair. And I loved how she did my eyes! I normally do my own make-up and hair but I was getting in a rut with the same look so decided to try something different.

I look forward to working with Charles again soon. Though it took some weeks to get the images, I was pleased with the results, including the post-production. Worth the wait! We now need to get our thinking caps on for the next shoot and come up with some more quirky ideas. We hope to shoot again once the weather warms up. And hopefully it will be a much better summer than the last one!

Thanks, Charles and Yachar!

For more pics on this awesome shoot, please click on my Flickr page!

More of Charles' work could be seen on his Website.

"Erotic Japan" Home Shoot with David & Jordi

2011-10-27T00:58:00.023+02:00

I had further opportunities to do erotic shoots in Japan which I've been dying to do. After all, Japan is the home for erotica in the Eastern hemisphere! This time, it was to be entirely "Japanese", so to speak, at the comfort of my family's apartment in Tokyo. Enter Spanish professional photographer David Rodriguez Toro who resides in Japan. We managed to connect through mutual friends on Facebook and been corresponding for a few months. Observing his work, I noticed he focuses a lot on creativity with a slight surreal twist which makes it all the more interesting. He was accompanied by another budding photographer, Jordi Olaria Jané, whom David has been taking under his wing. And what wonderful guys they were!

Initially I wanted to do a shoot in a forest nearby where David lives, in the outskirts of Tokyo. He has done a few in the past there and thought I would be daring enough as well myself to try it. In Japan, it is forbidden to be nude in public so it would've been the ultimate thrill for me. However, David expressed his preference to come over to our apartment in Tokyo and shoot, especially as we have a Japanese room equipped with tatami mat floor, windows with shoji doors, oshiire sliding closet and a tokonoma corner. I must admit I was a little gutted not being able to do a nude shoot outdoors but it turned out for even better!

I had a few yukata's I purchased from a local charity shop. At this point, I was unsure about using my family heirloom kimonos mum kept very carefully, especially for something as explicit as an erotic shoot. Perhaps one day I'd like to a proper traditional kimono shoot, complete with hair and make-up, when I find someone that could give me a hand...

I picked up David and Jordi at Meguro train station and took a short bus ride to our apartment. Interestingly enough both felt more confident speaking in Japanese than English, and even with my limited Spanish which I had learnt at night school years ago, they still preferred to communiate in Japanese. Both were initially quite shy but eventually we all became comfortable with one another. And very polite and professionally-mannered they were!

We started with a warm-up shoot. I would be hidden behind the net curtains sitting on the window ledge, almost nude but partly covered up with a white and blue yukata. After David had taken a few shots, it was Jordi's turn. He had this ingenious idea of me fiddling around with my clothes on the washing line, namely my bra and panties. It added to the contrast of Western-style lingerie with the traditional Japanese attire I was wearing. David then developed this idea of throwing the white bra on the floor and photographing it amidst the reflected lines from shadows of the curtains. It was the only image during our shoot that would be permissible on Facebook!

Once we all felt comfortable, we got down to business! Whilst semi-dressed in the same yukata, I got tied shibari-style with a rope in the form of a chest harness. David is not a professional rigger so it was of course quite loosely done and clearly for effect. We naturally chose the tatami room as our set, close to the window for the light and of course because we wanted to display also the shoji, which are the traditional inner doors with latticed wooden frames covered in white paper. I lay on the tatami floor looking serene yet sensual despite being bound in rope. Am I to enjoy it? Or am I to accept in despair? That's open to the viewer's interpretation.

Next set, I changed into a more formal-looking yukata. A colourfully reddish pretty one. Still using the same tatami room, we abandoned the shibari-style bondage and continued with erotic poses as we aimed to focus on the beauty of the outfit. At one point we also shot some POV (point of view) shoots where David would be my "partner" and putting his hand on me. I don't normally let photographers touch me at all, but we agreed that this was for merely for effect and considering David's status as a professional photographer in Japan and with Jordi in the room, I knew I could trust the guy completely. And I must say the images turned out beautifully!

Now to the the third set. We decided to take advantage of the apartment balcony overlooking the residential neighbourhood. I changed into another outfit, and this time it was the under-garment of a kimono, a lightweight flowery pink cotton gown. In the old days, we didn't wear knickers & bras under our outfits! We wore instead these under-garments for warmth in the winter and for protecting our clothes from perspiration in the summer. I gather that David read my mind as we decided to shoot me discreetly flashing with my back to the outside world. And boy was that fun! I was in fact determined to do at least one naughty outdoors nude shoot before leaving Japan. My disappointment at not being able to shoot nude in the forest immediately disappeared. This was even better! I've done plenty of nude forest shoots in the past anyways so it was a great change to do one with the scene of Tokyo behind me.

And the final set. Naked me standing inside a closet full of clothes! Being in Japan, it was a rather small closet, so small in fact that even I had to bend over and get into it. The floor of the closet was made of thin wood so I had to be extra careful treading inside it in case my big foot went through it made a big hole. Nevertheless, the image turned out rather well although all the clothes were in plastic garment covers.

By then we decided to call it a day. I thoroughly enjoyed working with David and Jordi. Though David was mainly shooting, I was more than happy to have Jordi shoot me as well as he wishes to gain experience working with models and expand his portfolio. Much of his work has been focused on events and places. All the best to him! David has a good eye for artistic photography so I was very excited to work with him as he has brilliant ideas and captures them beautifully. When I'm in Tokyo again next year, I would definitely work with them again! Thank you so much for your time and I look forward to the next one!!

For more pics from this beatiful shoot, please click onto my Flickr page!

More of David's work can be seen on his website.
Jordi's work can also be seen on his Flickr page

Going Underground in Tokyo with James Drew

2011-10-16T23:22:00.020+02:00

So my first two photoshoots in Tokyo involved street fashion, both daytime and evening. For the third shoot, though, I decided to exploit the wild and wicked side of me by entering into Japan's erotica realm. Interestingly, Japan keeps pornography under wraps as seen in all the "pixilated bits" in magazines and films, and even I, the uber-exhibitionist I am, was not prepared to risk taking my kit off in public as I otherwise would in Europe and UK. That said, with love hotels casually scattered even in the most upscale residential areas, and places like the lively Kabuki-cho curiously managing to avoid oozing the sort of sleaze seen in Europe's red light districts, I must say the country is an interesting paradox.

For that reason, I couldn't wait to do some erotic shoots in Japan. And what setting could be more perfect than those love hotels! So what is a "love hotel", you ask. Almost comparable to motels in the U.S., it is where couples can cheaply rent a room for either a few hours (or overnight) when one's own home is not possible. Enough said! Having shot in a luxurious 5-star Hilton in Brussels as well as a 70s-style decor Travelodge in Gloucester, I figured love hotels would the Japanese alternative to a "sleazy motel" set. Seedy yet luxurious, and the gaudier the better. One such photographer who made this possible was James Drew (known as Kakko-eroi), an American living in Tokyo.

We somewhat connected throug h Flickr a few years ago when I came across his work. Edgy yet sensual, his photos somewhat portray a mysterious underground vibe through clever use of lens and angles and light-handed post-production manipulation like cropping and colour. As such, he successfully manages to capture traditional Japanese eroticism whilst introducing the modern Westernised ideals of "hot and sexy". So is it glamour? Is it fetish? Or erotica? I think it's hard to pigeon hole his work into one category. Whatever it was, I just couldn't wait to work with the guy!

After having put off my trip to Japan for years and hence procrastinating my shoot with James, I finally made the decision to go. Few emails exchanged, and it was as soon as I arrived in Tokyo that I contacted him. Out of courtesy, he was kind enough to invite me for lunch to introduce himself, put me at ease and discuss ideas. He was just as pleasant and friendly as he has been in his e-mails with a professional yet casual approach. So we set the shoot for that Friday, 23 September 2o11.

James picked me up at the hotel I was staying for a few days. After selecting the outfits to take along to the set, we took a taxi to a rather famous and fancy love hotel in the upmarket Azabu Juban area. Knowing his style, I grabbed some thigh high boots, heels, fishnet and PVC clothes and lingerie and slapped on some heavy eye-make up to look as bitchy as possible. And boy was I ready for some bitchy action!

Like a lot of love hotels, the place had rooms each of it's own theme and character. We were pleased to discover that the BDSM "dungeon" was available. Apart from a big bed, the room had a bondage bench and the grey concerete wall was adorned with ropes, chains, collars and whips hanging from it. We were expecting James' friend to join us later to assist with the lighting so meanwhile we decided to do a warm-up shoot with me wearing a PVC one piece micro-dress with fishnet stockings. At one point, I grabbed a ballgag from the wall but in the interest of hygiene, pretended to be biting into it rather than wear one.

As soon as his assistant arrived, I changed into another outfit. A fishnet top with attached suspender fasteners and matching fishnet knickers I had purchased earlier on at a sexshop in Shibuya. I have to say I have been amazed at the number of outrageous lingerie and abundant variety of hosiery available in Japan, though many are imported from the U.S. Either Japan has changed, or I have. We went around the hallway looking for ideal areas to shoot such as the staircase and finally landed in a narrow elevator! The glowing buttons on the wall amid the dark lighting made such an ideal background.

We went back to the room and proceeded to the next set. Now, in every hotel shoot, the toilet should never be missed! What made this one unique to the others I had done in the past was that it was a Japanese-style toilet (benjo), the one where you squat down over the hole on the floor. By then I was clad in a pair of black PVC shorts and a studded open PVC bra. And not to forget the hot-looking thigh high boots to elongate my pins! It was to be a rather voyeuristic shoot from James' viewpoint. Mockingly teasing him while I have my shorts pulled down halfway. Or giving him the "what the f*** you looking at" eyes. And I have to agree with him that the pics from this series came out the best, although I found the other sets also stunning.

And finally, we experimented with James' laser pens. Room lights would be out and a reddish filtered light for effect. James got his assistant to carefully trace the pen around me while I was being captured with a slow shutter speed. This meant staying very still for 15-30 seconds or so. Having been a life model before, I know what staying "very still" is like so it was no difficult task for me! After a few attempts, we finally nailed a few awesome ones. The chain curtains in the background added to the effect as did the sink basin behind me, giving that seedy motel vibe with the green laser light acting as a neon sign around my half-naked body. This would certainly make a great advertisement!

We decided to call it a day and walked to a nearby Teppanyaki restaurant for some dinner. With a lot of ideas brewing, we have been planning more shoots during my stay. But alas, our busy schedules clashing and his catching a flu towards the end of my short prevented this from happening. Such a shame but then again, I will have my next trip to Tokyo in the course of early 2012 to look forward to! By then, ideas will develop further, we'll be more at ease working again together and I'd be better prepared with outfits and being organised with schedules. I have yet to do a naughty Roppongi evening shoot. What I'll be up to will be a surprise so stay tuned!

Thank you so much, James for your collaboration as well as your hospitality. The pictures you have sent me are awesome, and I can't wait to receive more. You're a pleasure to work with and I look forward to the next time!

For more pictures from this saucy shoot, hit me up on my Flickr page.

And more of James' work can be seen on his Flickr page too!

It's Shibuya Chic with Asian Impressions Photography

2011-10-09T06:41:00.011+02:00

Another coincidence! One other photographer happened to be in Tokyo on business during my stay. This time, it was American photographer Teban from Asian Impressions Photography, who is based in Seattle. We had connected some time ago through Twitter and began corresponding. Such a talented photographer with great character and witty sense of humour, I couldn't wait to work with him!

And what is it I like about his work? I really adored that he mainly specialises in photographing Asian women, whether models or the girl next door, and as such knows how to capture their natural beauty. And their beauty radiates not only from the outside but also from within. Teban clearly manages to combine the Western and Asian ideals of beauty and enhances elegance with understated sultriness.

Our schedules closely coincided and in fact, we even barely made it. Teban had already been in Tokyo for a week before I arrived. While I landed in the morning from London, his flight back to Seattle was leaving that midnight. And how crazy was I. So keen was I to shoot with him that I volunteered to work the evening of my arrival, despite an 11-hour flight and 8 time zones later! That evening, though, we had a heavy Typhoon and had to cancel. We were both gutted. But it was a blessing. His midnight flight got postponed till the following afternoon which meant I was able to catch up with some sleep and shoot the next morning! So we decided to meet at the famous Shibuya diagonal crossing on Thursday 22 September 2011.

We only had a couple of hours but it was worth every minute. Good thing about working with Teban is that minimal preparation was needed. Just turn up the way you are with natural make-up, well-groomed and wearing a smile. He likes the natural and fresh-faced. Plus no teetering around town with a rolling luggage full of clothes to change into. So I showed up in a pair of denim shorts and a floral purple hippy-chic top with diamante on the collar area. And shhhhh.... I purchased that for €10 at an Amsterdam's Albert Cuyp flea market! Finally also a pair of comfy platform wedges.

It was only 10 am, and the shops were just about to open. The streets were only half full with some people on their way to work. We walked around the main and backstreets and spontaneously shot. First the bar district, which is street leading to DIY shop "Tokyu Hands", followed by Shibuya's "Sentaa-gai" the infamous shopping street and finally the aforementioned famous Shibuya crossing. It was important that we captured the "typical Shibuya" character as background to make it as "modern Japan" as possible. Being close to 11 am and being a very sunny day, it was at times difficult to find a suitable spot with good natural light but nevertheless we managed to capture a number of beautiful images.

Although the shoot this time was rather brief, Teban travels quite a lot on business. He is expecting to be in Holland during the warmer months of next year so we intend to meet up again and shoot in Amsterdam. It will be fun! And hopefully we'll have more time then to collaborate. Thank you so much Teban for squeezing me in your tight schedule! I look forward to the next time.

For more photos on this shoot, please hit me up on my Flickr pages.

And please also feel free to check out Teban's website

Raising the Red Lantern with Sean O'Malley

2011-09-30T15:35:00.009+02:00

So Tokyo here I am!! After 3 years of putting it all off, I finally decided it was time to visit my hometown, the place I was born, raised and left 17 years ago. During my absence, though, I began modeling and over the years gained ample experience, building my portfolio and reputation in the industry in UK and Holland. So now's the time to expand in Japan!! How strange it feels... I now beam with pride yet blush with embarrassment being referred to "Miu, that model visiting from Europe". But I have to say, I'm enjoying this 3 weeks of fame!

During my journey, there were a couple of photographers though who happened to be in Japan on business. It was sheer coincidence that London-based photographer, Sean O'Malley, happened to be in town, which I discovered when looking at the casting calls on Model Mayhem before I had left. I had the pleasure of shooting with him two years ago at the Bunker group shoot near North London and remember him to be a polite and professionally-mannered photographer. In fact, it was the first time I wore a corset back then ,and I recall how sweet he was, being very concerned as I couldn't breathe and felt I was going to faint! This time, though, we decided to do a pure fashion shoot incorporating the Tokyo nightlife. The date was set for Thursday, 22 September 2011.

Initially, Sean suggested that we shoot near his hotel along the water front and then in his room. However we decided we wanted to take advantage of being in Tokyo and thought it would be an idea to include a "typical" Japanese setting such as street signs in Japanese and all the bright neon signs. He came up with Akasaka-mitsuke, an upscale street lined with bars and restaurants, as well as Japanese entertainment establishments like pachinko parlours and "hostess" bars, which are somewhat unique to Japan.

Despite the rain following the typhoon the night before, we went ahead with the plan. After all, we're both from the UK so accustomed to "a little rain won't hurt us"! We met at Akasaka-mitsuke subway station, and as Sean had only a couple of hours, we paced up and down the bar district searching for perfect spots and shooting whenever a suitable one came by. I loved the way Sean would occasionally twist his camera sideways to "blur" the background and create some quirkiness in the image. Through manipulating the settings, though, the subject (me) would still stay in focus.

During the shoot I had two outfit changes. Both of the evening wear were designed and made by my friend in Holland, Farzana Warasta. I have previously shot quite a number of times with her dresses because I love how they flatter my build and of course, the colours are so beautiful! The first outfit was a black tube dress with gold specks on it fastened with a thick gold chain to add some bling-bling to it. The second outfit was a vibrant cobalt blue halter dress with frills, one of my favourites. They certainly went very well with Tokyo's colourful nightlife!

Sean was so kind to invite me for a bite to eat. We had some Taiwanese food, which is spicy and delicious. Intelligent and articulate, he was very interesting to speak to and he seems to enjoy his day job involving computer games. After the shoot, we hopped onto a taxi to Shinagawa station near where his hotel was. We even continued shooting during the ride! Now that was quite cool. I was to be sitting relaxed with the background of Tokyo city passing by among the neon lights while the cab was moving.

This was the first time I've done an outdoors shoot in the evening. And in Tokyo of all places! I have never even done one in London! Perhaps when am back there, it would be something to consider about doing, perhaps in Soho or by the Thames. Amsterdam would be good too, in where else but the Red Light District!

Sean was very quick at producing the results. He said he was too impatient! Considering only 36 hours or so passed since stepping off the plane from London with an 8-hour time difference from Tokyo, I must say I was quite amazed how much better the pictures turned out than I had expected. Thank you so much Sean for this wonderful opportunity. It's always wonderful to do shoot something different, especially abroad!

For more pics on this shoot, please click on my FLICKR PAGE!

Elegantly Erotic with Helyos Photography

2011-09-25T05:02:00.006+02:00

Again my apologies for not updating my whatabouts. A lot of preparation for my present Tokyo Tour! Just before leaving, I had the pleasure of working with the photographer behind Helyos Photography, an Italian living in Hengelo, Holland, near the German border. He found me on Deviant Art, where I have a profile, and asked if we could work together. I was most chuffed as his work is most outstanding and so well thought out. Much of his work involves fine art nudity focussing on the beauty of the female form which very few photographers manage to capture. We set the date for Saturday 10 September 2011.

The train ride from Amsterdam was two hours but it was well worth the trip. When picked up at Hengelo station, I was rather surprised to notice how much younger the photographer was than I had imagined. Yet he was certainly very pleasant and intelligent with a very mature and professional attitude towards his work. I immediately felt at ease with him. We walked to his flat about 10 minutes walk where the "studio" was.

The set was a simple yet effective one. A futon bed was plonked in the corner of his lounge by the balcony which gave ample natural light. With white as the intended background, the futon was covered by a soft white sheet and scattered with a couple of big white fluffy cushions to add more structure and dimension. The whiteness gave a crispy edge to the images especially amid my tanned complexion and black cloth used as a prop. We started with a warm up shoot, typically in which I wore some lingerie. The bulk of the shoot though was all nude. I also asked if I could do some "anonymous" close ups of body parts which he was happy to do.

The photographer was a perfectionist and very meticulous in his work. Knowing exactly what he wanted, he gave me detailed directions on where exactly to lie down or place my hands or feet. I was more than happy to oblige because I too wanted to have perfect results! We also experimented with various poses which we got inspired through other people's work we saw on Deviant Art. We realised that some didn't work but also modified them to suit my stature. We shot for a few good hours...

I have been receiving the results bit by bit as he edits them. So far I've been extremely elated with the images! His post-production skills are also to be commended. I love how he softens the black/white contrast to give a more velvet feel to the image. It really makes the explicit poses look so much more sophisticated.

We plan on working together again soon. I can't wait! For this shoot, I do recall him asking me to bring some Japanese kimono which I didn't have so I may pick up a yukata or a cloth on my way back to Amsterdam. I thoroughly enjoy working with creative photographers and exchanging ideas. That's a true Artiste! Thank you so much for your time and for producing such beautiful work of art.

For more images from this shoot, please browse through my Flickr page!

Miu is in Uniform in Antwerp!

2011-09-11T20:25:00.018+02:00

What a pleasant change to go back to fetish shoots! It's nice to get my creative self back on the track. For the third time, I had the pleasure of shooting with Joris Bruyninkcx over in Antwerp on 24 August 2011. A year has passed since we worked together for the first time! Since then, we also shot in Brussels, if you recall some of the daring ones I had done at the train station and the hallway and lifts at the Hilton Hotel!

Joris picked me up at Antwerp Berchem station and this time, took us to a derelict school building. How he finds these places is a complete mystery to me but I hear that derelict buildings in Belgium are, unlike Holland and the UK, not as difficult to come by. All I was instructed was to bring a long were two pairs of shoes, one black & one white, along with black and white lingerie sets with matching stockings & suspenders. I was very curious to find out what Joris had in his goody bag this time!

There were to be three scenarios. The first two were with me in a nurse's uniform, while the last one with me as a schoolgirl. Unlike these cheesy imitiations one gets at "Fancy Dress" shops, these are genuine uniforms sourced through Joris' connections with the theatre industry. The only thing he did was make the nurse's caps by white cardboard!

And wow, the venue was so perfect! An old school building complete with grafitti and even the blackboard still had writing on it! So eerie and scary indeed. When we entered, there was another photographer shooting at one of the classrooms so it must be a popular spot as well! The ground though was rather wet and muddy, and I was secretly cringing as the only pair of white shoes I have in Amsterdam is a brand-new designer one! But oh well, they can be wiped after use, and besides, it's worth the wear for this photoshoot!

For the first nurse outfit, I was to be cute, sweet and glamour-like. So underneath the uniform was a pair of white stockings and suspenders for added naughtiness. Later on, I was to get my hands tied up on the doorknob with some rope, looking helpless.

The second nurse's set wast to be the complete opposite! Joris had already prepared the nurse's tunic by painting some red spots on them to make them look like blood. The tunic was then tied from the back revealing my backside. With the outfit came a pair of white over-the-knee socks with a Red Cross on the base. I was then handed over with a chainsaw, pretending I've just about killed someone. So psycho nurse I was!

The final set was of me in a schoolgirl uniform! In the past, Joris' shoot of me dressed in a Japanese seira-fuku and in a Belgian private-school uniform was a real hit. I apparently play the role of a naughty schoolgirl quite well. That's because I was naughty when I was a schoolgirl, that's why! Joris provided me with an American Catholic School uniform which he found on eBay. And what to wear underneath it? A pair of white panties of course! What fun that was. I think it was my favourite set, as it not only brought back childhood memories, but having gone to a strict snotty Catholic school myself, helped released all the repression and smack in the middle of a classroom!

We continued this school uniform set at a construction site where Joris drove us. The next venue was a hut which looked like it was built from a huge container. Funnily enough, we were able to see trucks driving in and out from a distance, and despite shooting at visible locations, all were quite oblivious to what was going on, even during the scene where I was to sit on the floor and mischievously pull my knickers off. We recalled that the first time we shot at a derelict site a year, the police walked in on us!

To conclude the day, we did some topless lingerie shots. From fetish to glamour! I wore a pair of black/red knickers that had suspenders attached, along with a pair of black stockings. Unfortunately, we couldn't take our time over this set as Joris had to pick his children up and I had a train to catch. But we know there's always going to be a next time!

The train ride back to Amsterdam took 4 hours, about twice as long as going to Antwerp. Due to technical problems, we had to hop on a slow train and change near the border and wait for 45 minutes for the connecting train back home. I must say I was miraculously not even stressed as I thought about what a fun shoot I had and how it was worth this adventurous journey! Thank you, Joris, for making it enjoyable again! Can't wait to shoot with you yet again soon!!!

For more of Miu's images for this shoot, please go to Flickr:

Naughty Nurse
Psycho Nurse
Naughty Schoolgirl

"Near Horsham" Group Shoot

2011-08-31T20:22:00.012+02:00

It was good coming back to the UK for the August Bank Holiday Weekend. Our last ditch attempt to fit in as many swimwear and poolside shots as this dreary summer of 2011 allowed us to. This time, it was at a huge privately-owned estate which was quite local to our soon-to-be old home in Horsham, and kudos go to Barney Douglas for arranging it for Sunday 28 August 2011. About 3-4 cars were arranged for this shoot as was unlimited access to the poolside and the surrounding vast estate owned by a wonderful family who was so kind and hospitable.

There were about 12 models and photographers each. I had the opportunity to shoot with 7 amazing photographers for a 50-minute slot each, including

Andy Thomas (Black swimwear & boots around poolside and cars. See above pic)

David Elliot (Lingerie around the gardens and even abandoned tractor)

Fabio Sceac (Orange leopard print then blue bikini by the pool and in greenhouse)

Barney Douglas (Domme look, followed by purple lingerie and then nude in the forest!)

Paul Crusier (Mao cap with red bikini, then art nude, followed by pink tights around the estate)

Joe Kay (black cocktail dress fashion followed by duo shoot in black shorts & basque)

Doug Waghorn (Red PVC dress fetish fashion in gardens and snooker room)

The final shoot was what Barney calls "Daft Group Shoot". Prior to the day the models were all instructed to bring an old tight T-shirt and some kitchen scissors. It was to be a surprise so when the moment came, we were all instructed to jump in the pool in our "wet T-shirts", form a line and bob up and down while the photographers snapped away. Initially I was rather apprehensive about it as I am sensitive to chlorine but I thought a few minutes won't hurt. And I'm glad I did it! In fact it was the highlight of the day!!

Though I have yet to see all the results from the shoot, I thought I'd share this day with you. As I get the edited copies, I will be posting them up on Flickr so keep your eyes open for them! Thanks to Barney and also all the photographers I worked with. It was also great to meet some new faces, including all the young and budding models. Wish em all the best! Also many thanks to the wonderful car owners and the family who kindly let their beautiful property for the day!

Red Light District Shoot with Kat & Phil

2011-08-23T17:31:00.008+02:00

I had one of the funnest shoots in Amsterdam, smack in the middle of the infamous Red Light District! I somehow discovered photographer Philip Romeyn (Philostar) through another model called Kat (known as "Dame Noire"). Funny thing is, Kat works at a fetish shop which my friends and I frequent, but she had no idea that I was a model until she found me on Model Mayhem! I saw one of the pictures of her I liked and immediately contacted Phil to see if we could shoot together.

Luckily, Phil got in touch soon and suggested we do a shoot with Kat. She would be a dominatrix while I am a pet-girl sub. Now I'm quite picky with which models I work with, especially when it comes to role-playing, but I was honoured to shoot with her. With her long jet-black hair and striking features, Kat, from Slovakia but living in Holland, has the ideal looks of a domme. Besides, it's also nice to make some friends out here so I thought why not? Although the shooting date had been set for 28 May 2011, I visited her shop for some coffee and a chat. And what I sweetie she is! I was initially quite intimidated by her but once we got talking, I discovered what a good laugh she was, gregarious and bubbly. I couldn't wait to work with her!

We decided to shoot in the upstairs area of Kat's shop where she worked. Upstairs is a playroom/dungeon furnished with pulleys and a bondage chair with a huge window which was an ideal setting. I met up with Phil downstairs. I must say I was rather surprised to notice how much younger he was than I had imagined! Although serious about his photography, he was just as bubbly and funny with plenty of joie de vie. All three of us hit it off immediately.

After some coffee, chit chat and applying make-up, we got started. Phil created a sort of chest harness on me using some white industrial cellophane. With the spring being warm and sunny, I managed to get some tan which went really well with the white! Then I was to be tied to it from the back with my hands tied behind to a pulley suspension. Initially, I had my white knickers on but eventually removed it. Kat on the other hand, was clad all in black latex and a pair of amazing platform thigh high boots. I was to look oppressed while she was to look mean! We also did a few shots of me on all fours like a pet-dog and gagged as well as handcuffed with the tape, where Kat was to be tugging me from behind as if the tape were a leash.

We also had some time later to do some solo sets each. Kat some "Ooze Girl" shorts she wanted to shoot with for a friend. After she was done, it was my go but his time, I was to turn my cowering sub act off and replace it with the scary bitchy domme look. Kat was very sweet and kind enough to lend me her latex gear consisting of bra, underbust and suspenders. They fit perfectly! Luckily I had a pair of fishnet stockings and black stilettos at hand. Then it was climbing on the huge windowsill and looking down to the camera looking mean. And not to forget turning around and facing the window with my back towards the camera to show off my backside! From this time on, Phil would now jokingly refer to me as "Hiney Girl".

This was the few of many shoots where I had so much fun! It was very casual and chilled and despite that we churned out some seriously great images. Though I have been busy, I plan to make more time to meet up with Kat more often and drop by her store. It's just a 10 minute walk there! As with me and Phil, we were scheduled to shoot in July outdoors but with the rainy summer had to postpone it. We are due to shoot in October-end. Though it will be colder, I am up for shooting with Phil whatever the weather any day! Thanks guys for all your time. I look forward to seeing you all soon!

Getting All Shirty with Adi Dewey

2011-08-16T19:27:00.005+02:00

In another one of my UK trips, I travelled to Peterborough too. There I had the opportunity to shoot with commercial photographer Adi Dewey who discovered me on Purestorm. His words were: "Gutted you're so far away" and after having looked at his work, I must say I was quite chuffed. Much of Adi's work is based around combining sexy and sultry fashion with the more edgy and classy side of glamour. I also have to add he works with the most beautiful models so I was pleasantly surprised he even contacted me! It certainly was going to be worth the one hour journey from London. The date was set for 7 June 2011.

Adi picked me up from the station. Despite his top talent as photographer, he is such a polite and gentle down-to-earth guy. We got along very well! He has a two-room studio in a building also shared with another photographer and a hairdresser, the place all spacious, tidy and looking very professional. Throughout the shoot, Adi was extremely pleasant and knew exactly what he was doing especially with the lighting and positioning of camera.

We spent the afternoon shooting me in various outfits. It was such a pleasant change not to have to be tied up or gagged or clad in boots and whip, let alone to take my kit off! It was all very clean and vanilla or better described as "Facebook friendly". As seen in the above photo, the most daring was of me in black underwear, no bra and an open black shirt! I also posed in lingerie, swimwear and also with a pair of emerald green tights and necklace. As I post this blog, I am still waiting for those images. I realise that Adi is busy with his paid work and prefers to take his time to produce top quality images. I do look forward to them and am sure it'll be worth the wait!

Thanks, Adi, for setting some time aside for me. Can't wait for more stuff from you!!!

Shooting in Germany

2011-08-06T12:20:00.007+02:00

The good thing about living in Holland is being able to travel quite easily to nearby countries abroad. I've had the pleasure of working in Belgium and now in early May, also in Germany for the first time. Out of the blue, Dusseldorf-based Udo Schulte contacted me through my website after having discovered me through Flickr or a modeling site. It was quite spontaneous as we scheduled the shoot for the coming Friday, 6 May 2011. I was very much looking forward to it!

The venue was at a quite unique setting. A hotel in Wuppertal, a town near Dusseldorf, called Art Fabrik. Each room has been designed free-style by a different artist. Some had a classic European theme, while another had an Oriental theme. Several had the absract modern look. We went for a room with a Middle Eastern decor. It was beautiful.

The shoot was a combination of glamour and erotica. I was asked to bring some see-thru outfits and lingerie, though Udo provided some sexy outfits too. So some of my sets included one with me with nothing on but crotchless tights and a pair of stilettos. I also did some sets wearing a few sexy dress, including one which a visiting friend gave to me, a pink tight mini-dress with holes in them. I have plenty of see-through lingerie so was able to use them too!

I thoroughly enjoyed my shoot with Udo. A pleasant down-to-earth guy with an unassuming attitude and great ideas. Although we have both been busy, he has produced some hot-looking images which I am pleased with. There are more to come which I look forward to getting, but I nevertheless like to share what I've seen so far.

By the way, Udo has also been most helpful too. He has been kind enough to offer helping me set up my portfolio in a German modelling site so I could get some work out there, even volunteering to translate my profile. Once I am less occupied with moving home, I would like to set one up. So hopefully you'll see more of me out in Germany too!

Thank you, Udo, for your time and help, I will most certainly take up your offer once things are less hectic at home!

Apologies for the Long Absence

2011-08-05T17:37:00.004+02:00

OMG it's been almost 5 weeks since I last had a blog entry! Where has time disappeared to? I haven been extremely busy with preparing for putting out UK home on the market. Lots of stuff to be cleared: thrown away, kept in storage, sold on E-bay and paring down more stuff to bring to Amsterdam! About 50 pairs of shoes along with some handbags are being auctioned on E-bay. Amazing how much one accumulates for the last 12 years! Oh and not to forget my 2-week intensive Dutch language courses which finished last week...

I have rarely been shooting as a result as I've been putting my moving as priority. But not to worry, once I'm better settled, I shall be up and running. I am for the time being putting UK shoots on hold especially ones that require long-distance travelling. I will be doing the occasional ones closer to home in Horsham and London. In Holland, I am lucky that the country is not as large and that travel to Belgium or Germany isn't so bad by train. There are quite a lot of good photographers out there, especially in the fetish and "artistic" field.

I also have a huge backlog of shoot from the past few months I'd like to share on my blog so intend to promise myself to keep you all updated!

Meanwhile, do keep yourselves entertained with more pictures I have been uploading on FLICKR. Much more to come!!!

Dare to Bare with Dave Hare

2011-06-30T21:49:00.011+02:00

For a change, it's good to have close-up images that enhance your best assets. And this is one of the reasons I was very keen to work with Dave Hare whose beautiful work I came across on Fetlife. We both travel quite a lot and spend weeks at a time abroad so pencilling in a date was a challenge. After a year or so of corresponding with each other we finally nailed Wednesday 8 June 2011 to shoot.

Thankfully Dave is based in London which made it easy for me to travel there from my mother's place. I took the tube to Archway and walked to his place where he greeted me warmly. Despite his decades of experience as photographer and the incredible creativity and talent he has, he is very approachable and unassuming. Also an easy-going guy who made me feel comfortable. So comfortable in fact that we went straight into shooting nudes without the initial "warm up" lingerie shoot I normally have with other photographers! So there we shot together with me wearing nothing but my high heel pumps and the canvas background.

Well am not exactly that well endowed but it's nice to discover that I got other assets to flaunt which I had never noticed before. Dave lent me a pair of skin-coloured lace boy-shorts from his collection of lingerie he lends to models. And away we started taking "bum shots"! I love how the lacy flower texture of the underpants compliment the skintone as well against the curves. A clever creation thought of by Dave!

The next set was wearing my favourite black corset. It was the one I bought from Nikita Sablier, and yup, the one I also wore

in Jonny Blaze's Final Seduction series. We did a few images under the studio lights then went around the house searching for suitable settings from which to shoot such as the staircase, doorway, hallway and lounge. Am actually pleased how it all turned out considering that with one simple outfit, we can create different moods. Sexy, sultry, cheeky (excuse the pun), elegant or serene. Oh and not to forget, we also managed to throw in a bondage image where I'm tied from the back with a rope harness from the ceiling!

For the final set, I wanted to show off my red suspenders and matching red fishnet stockings. No knickers and no bra, just suspenders & stockings! And not black but red! I thought Dave would be the perfect photographer to capture some beautiful images with his immaculate lighting techniques and comfort with close-ups. And yes, it worked! Just look at the first image of this blog and see for yourself!

I think the few hours we shot together went well though quickly as we were able to churn out quite a number of beautiful images. I enjoy working with creative photographers that are not only skillfull but share and are open to ideas and not afraid of trying something different. In addition, Dave was quite quick at getting back to me with the edited images after I had chosen which ones I liked. Now that's another plus!

Thank you Dave, for the opportunity to work with you the other day! You were such a pleasure to work with, and I certainly look forward to working with you again in the near future.

For more images from this shoot, please check out my Flickr Page!!!

Blue and Vintage...

2011-06-29T17:59:00.003+02:00

Blue and Vintage, originally uploaded by Mini Miu.

Yep this is one of the excerpts from the Pony Rescue Group Shoot arranged by Jason Wright in Hastings on 11 June 2011.

This Blue & Vintage theme is taken by Martin Blunt and shot alongside a beautiful vintage car. Silly me, I forgot to take down the make of the car but it's from c.a. 1920s if I am correct. I myself am wearing a sheer blue body stockings by Mary Quant... how 60s!

Once I compile the pics, I'll introduce you to the togs that shot me at the Group Shoopt along with the best of their pics!

Coming up soon: Artistic erotic/nude photoshoot in London with Dave Hare...

Pretty in Pink!

2011-06-21T23:26:00.003+02:00

Pink Clubwear, originally uploaded by Mini Miu.

One of my crazy pics at the Bodyline groups shoot in Nottingham on 5 June 2011. A lot of the Pink outfit pics didn't turn out that well but I love this one! Thank you, Les Pearson!

BTW, this outfit? It's from Dutch clubwear, Unzipped. (www.unzipped.n l)

Miu's Non-stop Crazy UK Tour

2011-06-19T22:45:00.009+02:00

Apologies again for being so slow in updating my blog once again! So many going on!!! I was in the UK early this month and in a space of just over a week, I had SEVEN shoots, two of them group shoots and one studio day. It brought me from London to Gloucester to Nottingham then back to London again then off to Peterborough then Horsham and finally Hastings.

Yep I need to slow down but I enjoyed every moment of it. Knackered? You bet! But it was well worth it, seeing old friends and meeting new faces. Then of course there are the pictures of course, a huge variety of them ranging from fetish, bondage, quirky fashion, swimwear, lingerie, and of course nudes! Heck I can't even remember whom I shot with, I need to keep track but just to be a show off, this is what I been up to:

Fri 3 June: Fetish bondage shoot with Silkgag in Gloucester.

Sat 4 June: Studio Day by Martin Russell in Gloucester with 5-6 photographers

Sun 5 June: Bodyline Studio Group Shoot organised by JD Rose in Nottingham

Mon 6 June: DAY OFF!

Tue 7 June: Fashion-glamour shoot with Adi Dewey in Peterborough

Wed 8 June: Art & nude with Dave Hare in London

Thu 9 June: Fetish bondage with James Delta at Horsham Home

Fri 10 June: DAY OFF!

Sat 11 June: Pony Rescue Group Shoot organised by Jason Wright in Hastings

In the course of the next few days or so, I'll be posting up some edited pictures from these shoots as they come in. And of course do my blog. I also got a huuuge backlog of stuff to write up about from the past shoots!

Keep your eyes peeled guys!!!

Miu Gets Cute and Happy Again!

2011-06-10T00:03:00.011+02:00

So for the past many shoots I've been doing quite a bit of art and fetish work. Beautiful and profound. Yet serene and in deep thoughts. Or edgy and even shocking at times. Many are in B&W. Everybody loved that pic of me pointing the gun at the camera! And when was the last time you saw me smiling? When I first started off as a glamour model in 2008 much of my images were perky and quite "girl next door". Then I somewhat got interested in fetish and the creative side to modeling so out went the smile and in came the many other facets of me. The mean bitch with the don't f*** with me attitude. Or the vulnerable victim pleading for her life.

Well now that the warmer months have approached, I figured I would lighten up! I was not looking to do any cheesy glamour stuff. Instead, I wanted something elegant and classy yet fun and simple. In short I wanted to relive the cute and happy side to me. It was through Twitter that Drew Hart and I discovered each other. Drew has done a lot of photography for famous people as well as for theatres so has a knack for capturing models well. This was the perfect opportunity for me to get a few decent headshots which I've recently been lacking. Furthermore, donning some colourful outfits would be another change to my otherwise sombre black or white I typically wear nowadays. The date was set for 14 May 2011.

Drew picked me up from Willesden Junction station and we walked to his house. He was just as friendly and unassuming as I expected and was a jovial person. Apart from his wonderful personality, he's a very talented photographer who clearly knew all about lighting as he was meticulously directing me. The studio was set up in his lounge, and after a cup of coffee, we began. I thought we'd warm up by doing a couple of shots in the outfit I wore.

It didn't take long to warm up as Drew was extremely pleasant to work with. I changed into a banana yellow lingerie set from Agent Provocateur. As the bra was quite see-thru, I initially wore a black sleeveless blouse to cover the areas, so as to make it less "over-18", ie suitable for FB! We also came up with a few sexy shots of me lying down. In between shots, Drew took some headshots of me. One of the most remarkable one was of me in profile which is quite useful to have in my portfolio, quite a change from posing straight in front of the camera.

The next set was swimwear. A change from a skimpy number, I got into a pretty colourful bikini with which I wore some pearls for added elegance. Apart from the usual glamour girl poses, we came up with a lot of unconventional images as Drew would go out of his way to shoot from various angles. One of them was of me shot from above but still being able to see what I'm wearing. That's very unusual especially for a swimwear shot!

The final set was of me in my long black lacy dress from of all places, Ann Summers! I liked it not only because it was sheer but also because it has a slit in the side. Very sexy! We got a lot of wonderful images from this, especially with the headshots. I also liked Drew's ingenious idea of having me shake my head side to side and flicking my hair about as he captured my hair is flowing mid-air.

As we called it a day, we promised each other to shoot again soon when I'm back in the UK. Drew is also London based so it's not a big deal to get to his place, after having discovered that I could take an overground from Shepherd's Bush! After having chosen my images, Drew was very quick to edit them. I was very pleased with the results and look forward to working with him again soon. Thanks, Drew, for the successful shoot!

For more beautiful pictures from this shoot, please have a look at my Flickr page! Further work of Drew's can be seen on his website too.

Emotional Moments: 日本の夢を見ました

2011-06-03T20:33:00.007+02:00

It's been over 2 months since the tragic tsunami in Japan. Regretting I had to cancel my trip in the midst of the post-traumatic upheaval, I donated some few hundred pounds to the Tsunami Relief Fund via the British Red Cross. It's not a very large amount, and no amount of money will ever recover the priceless losses and bring back the dead, but it's the only way I can express that my thoughts are with them. It is also wonderful to have friends that share this sort of gesture too. I am proud and wish to share my appreciation of some of my dear friends, Shibari artist/rigger Wykd Dave and his partner model/photographer Clover Fibbs.

Neither Clover nor Dave has ever been to Japan before, but both hold a great fascination for Japan and anything Japanese. Hence Dave's great passion for Shibari and interest in the Japanese language evidenced in practising his hiragana! In view of their grief towards the tsunami victims, they decided to auction one of their prints in which I modelled when I had shot with them a few months ago. It is a limited edition which they named "I dreamed of Japan" or 日本の夢を見ました。(pronounced "Nihon no yume o mimashita")

The auction took place at the Shibaricon in Chicago at the end of May. Apparently well received, the winning bid went to a gentleman known as "The Hammer" and his wife from Baltimore, Maryland for $500. Not only was I chuffed that our print is worth as much as that, but how many went out of their way to bid for a good cause. Proceeds have been donated to the Japanese Embassy in London.

As a sweetener, it was Dave's bright idea that I write a little letter addressing Shibaricon participants in Japanese. Even better gesture was that I handwrite it! It has been a long while since I wrote something as long as that in my own language. However, modern technology has saved me from manually rummaging through my kanji-jiten (a dictionary to help us with the Chinese kanji characters), as I typed it all up on Word and copied it on paper by hand. And thanks to my strict mother for pushing me to calligraphy classes as a kid; I loathed attending it but am so grateful now as it proved useful for the years to come for something as important as this.

I sincerely wish to thank all the bidders for their generousity and compassion. And my hugs and thanks to Clover and Dave for initiating this kind gesture. I am very honoured to have them as my friends.

Getting Naughty in Nottingham: The Final Seduction

2011-05-25T19:56:00.013+02:00

Yes I am actually back to shooting again more and more! Some of you may remember the Fetish Group Shoot II at the Blue Carrot Studio back in November (blog) which Jonny Blaze had organised. Well I was so impressed with his work and regretting that we only had a short time to shoot during that group shoot, we kept in touch and decided to do a one-to-one session!

Jonny is also a photographer who is also an artist. Rather than just click away while the model just sits and looks pretty, he has his ideas well thought out and goes for it with gusto. Shooting at a hotel was his idea, in which he initially suggested a vintage lingerie theme. To be honest, I have very little of such outfits so panicked as I started improvising with stuff I

already have, ie. polka dots, lace, corsets... Then during our chats, he changed it to the "stockings and suspenders slut" image. Well that made life easier! The shooting date was set for 15 May 2011. I couldn't wait!

Jonny picked me up at the tram stop at Nottingham Station. What started as a warm sunny start in London turned out to be a cold cloudy day in the Midlands. I should've known! We reached the hotel by the tram, where we were greeted by hospitable staff . The rooms were

a tad smaller than as seen on the website but still adequate enough to shoot Plus, at least the decor was quite pleasant and good enough to use as backdrop with the beds beautifully made.

Jonny brought with him an air pistol (known as a BB gun in the U.S.)

which we thought we'd use as a prop. I would be a femme fatale brandishing the gun wearing nothing but suspenders and stockings looking menancing. Actually, that started reminding me of that controversial French film, "Baise Moi", a Thelma and Louise type film but more violent and sexually explicit. I had so much fun pretending to be one of the girls but a lot nicer of course!

I certainly admire Jonny's spontaneity. During getting changed to the next set, Jonny had this brilliant idea ofme getting behind the sheer net curtain in nude and sticking my body out as much as possible to reveal the curves. After a few play with the lights and my posing, we nailed one good one which we are proud of.

We then proceeded to the next set which I named The Final Seduction. I got changed into a beautiful black corset by Nikita Sablier, also run by a friend who is also a model. The session involved a POV (point of view) shoot where I was supposed to be seducing the photographer as he holds the camera in front of him. There, he used a fish-eye lens to give it a more voyeuristic feel. First, Jonny held the gun to my head and snapped away. It was a sharp contrast to the last set where I was now to look afraid and paralyzed with utmost fear.

This is the part of the job I enjoy most. I love exploring different expressions through the various scenarios. After having the gun in my head, I was then to try and wrangle out of the situation by seducing the attacker so it was jumping from fearful to fearless. From vulnerable to being in control. In fact, the entire set turned out so well, as what helped was Jonny being so easy going and non-threatening with me not feeling a least bit uncomfortable as I would have done had it been another photographer

We were just about to call it a day until Jonny asked me if there was anything else I'd

like to shoot. Well I've come all the way from London to Nottingham on a 2-hour train journey with a night over there so I was certainly determined to make it worth the while! I mentioned a stunning picture of Dita von Tesse in one of her sleazy motel shoots where she is standing on a bedside table in her underwear along with her stockings. So I pulled out a pair of

polka-dotted B&W lingerie and black holdups. Finding the lighting on the bedside table unsuitable, we chose a nearby table. Luckily it had a wall mirror behind it so plenty to improvise with!

It was good I suggested continuing earlier on. As ideas developed, Jonny suggested doing some lying on the bed shots firstly in my outfit which eventually led to shooting nudes later. It was interesting how we managed to capture various moods. Some were dreamy, some edgy, others "come hither". It's wonderful to work with someone that appreciates versatility rather than making images look all somewhat same and stuck in a rut. The post-production was just as impressive. Most were B&W but with the coloured ones, he cleverly manipulated the tones to make them look quite 1970s retro as the nude picture below illustrates.

After the shoot was over and I dressed to warmer clothes, Jonny walked me up to the shops where I could buy some food. We gave each other big hugs and look forward to seeing each other again at another group shoot next month in Nottingham organised by another photographer, James Rose. Mind you, I was so exhausted after this successful and fun shoot, I stayed in the hotel snuggled up watching a string of CSI series. Thanks Jonny for this wonderful day, can't wait to work with you again next month!

For more captivating images from this shoot, please click onto my Flickr page!

A Room with a View with Teemu

2011-05-18T00:04:00.020+02:00

It's so exciting to meet and work with various photographers from all over the world. Though I have yet to have the honour to shoot with a Japanese photographer, I have already worked with those from at least 10 different countries in Europe and the Americas living out here. Now added to my list is Teemu R. from Finland who was visiting Amsterdam on business but thought he'd spend his evenings by shooting.

Teemu contacted me out of the blue on MM announcing his visit and interest to work with me. When I perused his work I was well impressed! He manages to capture mesmerising

images by making themsomewhat abstract and certainly artisitic through clever angles, lens type and immaculate lighting. His interest to experiment and create clearly reflects in his work. Of course I wasn't going to pass this opportunity! I was curious as to what sort of images we'd come up with. After exchanging e-mails, we decided to shoot on the evening of 15 March 2o11.

I met Teemu at his hotel in the West part of Amsterdam. Just as I expected, he was very friendly and polite, immediately making me feel at ease. We had already discussed what sort of images we were aiming at so I was able to travel minimally and there was no faffing about. Some black lingerie and simple outfits and a pair each of very high stilettos and knee boots as

well as gloves and collars were all that was needed. The hotel room was very modern and simple which provided a perfect background for edgy images.

We started out first set on the bed. I had a black top and a lingerie "skirt"

which I gradually stripped off. Then the lights were dimmed and we proceeded with shooting some bodyscapes. It's been ages since I done bodyscapes! We were going to do some sets in which I would be standing in front of the big windows but unfortunately the light wasn't right. That said, we captured with a wide-angle lens a really cool image where I'm sitting with legs sprawled apart holding a vintage Ikoflex camera in front of me!

The theme for the next set was fetish. It was so fun having to play role of both domme and sub by wearing nothing but just one item plus shoes. I donned a pair of gloves and a super-high platform knee boots for the domme role, looking mean. Then switched to a sub role by wearing a simple pvc mini skirt and heels, kneeling down with hands tied to the back looking distressed.

We also took advantage of the spacious beautifully-decorated bathroom as a setting. It had black tiles with modern and angular facilities which

provided a perfect backdrop for edgy images. Wearing my boots, I went in nude in the huge empty bathtub sticking my legs out to enhance the monstrosity of the boots. And of course we managed not to miss the crucial "toilet" shot!

The final set was the "shower scene". And what fun that was! I've done shower shots before so it wasn't a big deal but this time, I decided not to get my hair and face wet as I had done in previous ones such as with Thunder UK or for Suite 301. The point was to create sensuality by focussing on facial expressions. Also, I wasn't in the mood to go home in the cold in wet hair

and smudged make-up! The results were intriguing... I loved how Teemu captured the water spraying on me. I think those were my favorite images as they were unusual. You will find more images on the row of images on the right hand side.

I thoroughly enjoyed my shoot with Teemu. He knows exactly what he wants out of the images and sees to it that it's achieved with perfection through meticulous lighting, choice of lens and directing me. He was also very easy to get along with and was interesting to talk to as we exchanged stuff about our own countries. He was very pleased to hear I've been to Helsinki, and I was impressed that he could say "My name is Teemu" in Japanese!

Thank you so much, Teemu, for such a fruitful shoot. Though it took a few months to get the edited pics as he has been busy with work, it was certainly worth waiting for! He plans on visiting Amsterdam again in June, and he has expressed interest to work with me again which am honoured to accept. Fingers crossed, it won't coincide with my travels. Hope to shoot with you soon again!

For more beautiful pictures from this shoot, please check out my Flickr page!

Getting Amsterdamned Outdoors with Kris

2011-05-10T19:32:00.021+02:00

Finally getting back to the hang of shooting again! I had 3-days in a row of posing in front of the cameras last weekend: Friday in Germany then back in Amsterdam shooting with a visiting tog from Belgium and finally Sunday in Amsterdam with a local tog. Then this Wednesday, am off to the UK to shoot more next weekend! Wow, am really starting to feel like an international model...

Today's entry will be about my shoot on Saturday. A tog called Kris, known as NDHW Photography from Gent, Belgium contacted me on Fetlife and asked if I'd like to shoot. A lot of his work is dark-toned and subdued, quite moody. And this time, it's rather focussing on composition and story rather than being just about the model which is quite different from what I am accustomed to. Sort of like comparing the paintings of Van Gogh (mellow) with Monet (vibrant). So I thought I'd give it a go. It's always nice to work with photographers of different styles! Kris volunteered to visit Amsterdam on 8 May 2011, hoping to work with another model afterwards which unfortunately fell through.

Kris arrived our house around 9:30am. A very pleasant and laid back guy with hair even longer than mine tied in a ponytail, a true artist with creative ideas. After some coffee and choosing outfits, we ventured off to Westerpark, a park which is about a 15 minute or so walk and much quieter and a more varied venue than the infamous Vondel Park.

It was a very warm day and very sunny, and with no reflectors at hand and no additional lighting equipment, we had to be selective about the ideal place to start shooting.

We had a warm up shoot with me in the green dress I already wearing. I think that was a good idea, rather than jumping straight into a shoot. By then I was comfortable with Kris. He is also very intelligent and quite worldly not to include the fact that his girlfriend is also Asian (a graduate in Gent University from China) which really made conversation stimulating! We strolled around the park and found a building with a fence which made interesting patterns. I quickly changed into a plain black American Apparel black bikini top and hotpants and a small red collar for a fetish twist.

Then was the switch from a domme look to a sub. Previous to our shoot, we discussed the possibility of me crouching helplessly in the bushes in ripped clothes clutching a teddy bear like a lost child. The only problem was, I had no teddy bear but being an avid Hello Kitty collector, I hastily grabbed one of her dressed as a snowman which I thought we could use. The whiteness of Hello Kitty, though, proved too bright on the images and totally distracted everything else from the whole picture so we had to abandon that idea and resort to having me looking lost initially followed by frustration and going mad. And hence the ripped yellow shirt!

We left the park to fetch a bottle of water and proceeded to try out some alleyways underneath the railway bridge. Despite a few passerby's on bikes, we were quite comfortable to shoot there though a little dubious about me going nude. Yes, even I was! I quickly changed into a red PVC bikini top with matching miniskirt with zippers on the side (from Unzippped). Whilst shooting, a couple of guys on a motorcycle stopped by and watched but they were so funny it didn't bother us a least bit. A classic shot was when Kris captured one of me posing with a passing cyclist (see first picture above). In hindsight, it would've been so cool if I had been nude but oh well! Too many passer by's anyway, and it is my neighbourhood in case I'd bump into someone I know...

We searched for the next place to shoot and came across the car-park. Also underneath the railway bridge, the lighting was just as dark. I changed into my pink lingerie set and covered

myself up with a white trench coat. And there I went flashing away. I know, why we didn't think of me doing that in nude makes me wonder... perhaps too many passerbys or I was holding back cuz it was near my house? Nevertheless, we managed to nail some outrageous shots with the naughty element. Perhaps next time I do daring nude shots outdoors we be in another area of Amsterdam? Maybe in the snotty Zuid area which would most certainly uplift those uptight residents!

We then walked home, hoping to capture a few shots in our garden. However, when we got there, the sun was a tad too bright. Although we managed to take a few images there, we had to cut it short and proceed indoors. We did a few images on the bed and intended to make it a fetish scene but unfortunately due to misunderstandings neither of us had any "equip

ment" such as handcuffs and whips which I had left in the UK. Ropes and gags are normally supplied by the photographer. Perhaps in future, it may be wise for me to invest in some as I will increasingly be doing fetish/bondage shoots. Nevertheless, we were able to capture some wonderful nude images combining fetish and erotica, using the bedside lamps as additional lighting! Now that's what I call improvising...

It was about 4pm by the time we decided to call it a day. The day went by so fast! As the model with whom Kris was to shoot that afternoon was a no-show, we were able to extend our schedule. Though the no-show is unfortunate, it goes without saying that it's her loss, our gain! Kris was so fun to work with, and I was very pleased about such a quick turn-around of the pics he edited. He has indicated he would also post me the non-edited ones from which I could choose any other ones I like. Not only is he quick, but he's also generous and fair. I wish other togs would be like him!

We plan on shooting again this summer in the woods. Next time it will be my turn to visit Gent which I've never been. It will be a change, from city to countryside! Also, I will be shooting with another model which should be fun. I very much look forward to that. So thank you so much Kris, I can't wait for this, and look forward to getting the rest of the images!

For more images please check out my Flickr Page!

It's All Black & White with Edwin van Wier

2011-05-03T18:20:00.007+02:00

I apologise again for this long gap in my blog. The past few weeks or so I have been busy with personal matters such as visits from family and friends and sorting out our new house. So busy I was that I had to put my modelling on hold as my mind too was not with it. April saw a wave of visitors from the UK but luckily I managed to squeeze in a shoot in one of the days between the visits. After all, I also needed a break and figured a shoot would be a good distraction!

I shot for the first time in about a month last week. Amsterdam-based photographer Edwin van Wier (known as Wierdeu on Model Mayhem) and I were speaking of a shoot for a few years when I was travelling back and forth UK and NL. Somehow, the shoot never happened but since I moved here, we finally managed to find the time on 27 April 2011.

Finding a venue was easy. As opposed to the UK, it is not unusual for togs in Holland to have their own studios. Most British togs for instance shoot on location, at the model's place or their own place where they make a makeshift studio in their own garage or lounge. In Holland, togs take advantage of the "anti-squatters" scheme in which they rent cheaply empty offices from the council in exchange for occupying them to deter squatters. Edwin had his studio in the west part of Amsterdam.

It was a 20-minute tram ride and a 10 minute or so walk to the studio. Edwin greeted me outside the building, and despite me being slightly delayed, he was just as funny and friendly as he was during our correspondence by e-mail and Facebook. However, I did not quite expect him to be 2 metres tall! He led me to his studio which quite spacious and we had a cup of tea whilst chatting. We talked about how well I'm adapting to life in Holland (I also lived here in the mid-90's) and how familiar he was with Japan as he worked with the Japanese. Edwin does some underwater photography but unfortunately we need a swimming pool for this either by renting one for a few hours or being rich enough to afford one at home!

We began the shoot by doing portraits and headshots. In hindsight, it would've been better had we done a warm up shoot first or leaving them till the last set. It was my first time shooting for a month, let alone with a new tog, and with anyone I

shoot for the first time, I need time till I felt at ease. I couldn't figure out what kind of mood he wanted, and my nervousness showed in the pictures. Oh well, next time we'll know!

Edwin and I were intending to churn out black & white images this time. Thus, all I brought were black or white outfits or outfits that had black and white patterns. So in the next set

where he suggested a white brickwall background, I put on some black lingerie and a sheer black blouse with a pearl choker and matching earings and bracelets. By then, I was more relaxed and in my comfort zone because as Edwin rightly suggested, I was back to my "own style". The mood was rather semi-lowkey with a bright light on one side.

For the next set, I thought I'd switch to a white outfit. White bra and sheer knickers with a fishnet top. Thanks for these last few sunny days, I was able to get a little colour so took the opportunity to show it off by wearing white. Though I prefer the set with the black outfit, I was still pleased to see how this set turned out. Even with the white background, the lighting was perfect as it greyed out the background and enhanced the white of the outfit and my tan!

It was good two hour or so of shooting. As we are both local, though, it's very likely we will meet again and shoot. Perhaps next time, I'll be better prepared and more at ease so we could exchange more ideas. So after quickly packing up, we left together but went our seperate ways. He had his own scooter while I was taking the tram back from Lelyland station. While I was walking half a block, Edwin beckoned me to hop on his scooter as he was concerned about my safety. It was getting a tad dark and rather eerie, and the west part of Amsterdam is not the most affluent, though I have to say even the roughest areas are not as life-threatening than parts of UK. Still the offer was appreciated, and I was pleased to find that the first tram that was coming was the one heading for home.

Thank you so much Edwin for this short and sweet shoot! I hope I wasn't too awkward with you, and I would definitely like to work with you again. For more amazing work by Edwin, please click onto his website.

Skoolz Out for Miu with Karma Monero

2011-04-09T12:33:00.009+02:00

Hah, for change, I actually kept my kit on throughout a shoot! And for the first time this year, I shot outside too. Despite being mid-March when it's still expected to still be chilly in the UK, we were lucky. On 20 March 2011, I had the opportunity to work with Karma Monero who looked me up on Model Mayhem some time ago, and we began corresponding on Facebook.

I really liked his style. Very "street cred", a tad edgy and mischievous yet youthful and innocent, even bringing out the rebellious teenager in me! It's totally different from the stuff I've been doing so I thought yes, this would be a pleasant change to add in my work. I also wanted to work with Karma as he's also a model when he's not taking photos so knows what to look for in his images in terms of posing, style and composition.

After a few exchanges on Facebook, we set up a date during one of my UK visits. We were to meet at noon at Valentine Park in Gant's Hill in East London. Unfortunately, due to "signal problems" on the tube, I was a tad late despite giving myself enough time which was rather embarrassing as I never like to keep people waiting. Plus, Karma had another shoot after ours so I realised we would be pressed for time. Nevertheless, Karma was rather nice about it (well at least showed it) and accompanied by his "boss" Becky, we were ready to roll!

Despite the condensed time, we managed to get the images we wanted. Luckily am an experienced model and came prepared with the outfit and make-up so all I needed to do was to quickly change in their car. Also, Karma is an skilled photographer and model so there was no awkwardness and we carried on with our business. Plus the natural light at the park was perfect so there was no need to faff about with lighting...

So there I was, dressed in a tartan micro-miniskirt, boots and long black socks. Plus a not-so-matching tartan tie I found in my husband's closet and "borrowed". We strolled around the park randomly and stopped to shoot where the location suited us. This time, the occasional flashing of my white panties was as far as I dared. Then a bunch of boisterious pre-puberty schoolboys, who should actually be attending classes rather than loitering in the park, appeared agog with excitement as they went to check out this "new girl" in school. "Can I have a picture taken with her?", the bravest of the lot asked. Another one asked Karma, "What can I do to be like you?" to which the smart response was, "Get yourself a camera first"!

After we were satisfied with the school girl set, I got into some "Karma" tee-shirts. Karma has designed a few T-shirts with logos on them to promote his work and gets his models to pose in them. I should've asked him if I get to keep any! Still in my tartan micro-mini and changing into a pair of high heels, we shot around the woods and on trees. The shirts were so baggy that I had to pull them down so the logo could be read properly on the images! The shoot lasted just under an hour and we walked back towards the car. Still strutting in that micro-mini and heels, I had a giggle as I passed a group of schoolgirls hanging around the park bench sniggering and whispering at this "new girl in school", reminiscent of my school days. If only they knew!

Despite the short time we shot, we managed to get a lot of good images. Unlike a lot of the togs, Karma was very quick in processing them. I was very pleased with them all but the only thing I am disappointed about is the huge watermark across the images which I'm sorry to say, does ruin them. Still I'm sure Karma has his own reasons for it such a copyright and promoting his work. Nevertheless, some of them still look good despite it.

Besides, it was also a fun hour of shooting and meeting more togs. Karma seems rather ambitious and expressive on Facebook but he's actually down-to-earth, gentle and even shy, more pleasant than I expected, with a genuine personality. We plan on working together again soon in my future visits to the UK. And next time, I'll see to it that I'm more punctual! Thank you Karma for your patience...

More images from this shoot can be found on my Flickr page. Enjoy the browse!

"No Face" Shoot with Steve Hayward

2011-04-02T15:36:00.006+02:00

It's kinda strange having to do a shoot where your face is not shown. But then again, this time, the focus was on "body parts". More concentrating on the beauty of the female form through shade and light to enhance curves. Back in January, Steve Hayward, if you recall from the Naked at Yours home shoot, got in touch with me again to do a few experimental shoots doing close ups of the naked form such as bodyscapes.

I was more than happy to accept. Not only do I lack any such images, I was so chuffed that Steve chose me as he said I had the "right" sort of figure for it, and because I had a "perfect" skin tone for it as it's also looks smooth. The shooting date was set for Saturday 19 March 2011. Steve emailed me over some samples of what he was looking to do which all looked so challenging. Yet beautiful and inspirational. I was so excited!!

So Steve arrived around 10 in the morning. I had my hair and make-up done "just in case" but it turned out I didnt' need it in the end. Still, it's good to be prepared! The only outfit I really needed was white knickers. We experimented with a lot of poses and played with the lights to get the right effect. Some were more "raunchy" than others but in a subtle way. It's all about stimulating the imagination without being cheap and in your face.

The day went very well, and we had such a fun shoot. Unfortunately though, Steve came back to me a few days later, sounding rather unhappy and expressing how disappointed he was only being able to come up with a few good images. I told him not to dispair and that we could always redo it, even improve on it. Besides, it's about quality not quantity, and with the few edited pics he produced, I think they came out great! I can't wait to share it here.

I look forward to working with Steve again soon. I feel very comfortable working with him, and it's pleasant to work with someone who is serious and critical about his work. Once I get my schedule sorted, we plan on having another go. Maybe with even more ideas! Thanks, Steve, we'll keep in touch!

Paying My Respects to the Victims of the Japan Disaster

2011-03-23T16:44:00.005+01:00

The day after my last blog, the earthquake struck Sendai, a city in the northeast of Japan. The hugest in history, measuring 9.0 on the Richter Scale. Then there were aftershocks even hitting Tokyo as far as hundreds of kilometers away from the epicenter. This was followed by a colossal tsunami that wiped out whole villages and towns, killing tens of thousands and leaving at least half-million homeless. These people lost EVERYTHING. But the only thing that's left of them is their dignity and the spirit to fight, and I see it in them.

But that's not the end of it. Now Japan is faced with the uncertainty of the radiation resulting from explosions of nuclear plants in Fukushima caused by the disaster. Radiation is an invisible enemy...

For this reason, I have not been contributing to my blog for which I apologise. I did not feel it appropriate to post up blogs in respect of my people. It has been a rather depressing few weeks and my mind was not in it. Though still numb with shock I'm gradually getting out of it. I've since cancelled my trip to Japan which I had booked months ago. I was due to fly this Saturday.

My friends and family live in Tokyo or Osaka which was not as severely affected as the North. Still they have to live with the fear of aftershocks and possible increase in radiation as well as the inconvenience of dealing with food shortages, unexpected power cuts, chaotic transportation and scarcity of fuel. According to my folks back home though things are picking up. I keep up with the latest through Twitter and Facebook as the current news headlines are being annoyingly obstructed by the Libyan Crisis on CNN and BBC. Though a non-believer in charity, I now find myself making donations, including the Japan Tsunami Appeal from the British Red Cross. If only it were that easy to airlift some food and clothing out there.

If any nation can quickly recover from such a disaster, it's going to be Japan. Heck, we experienced the horrors of WWII and two atomic bombs and yet in 20 years managed to rebuild and even become one of the world's top economic superpowers. We're tough cookies. Even among the youngsters whom our parents always grumbled about being complacent and spoilt, I see their spirit and determination. I know we'll pull through.

During this past week, I've done two shoots in the UK, and once ready will be posting my blog in no time...

Suite 301 Experience with Elroy Powell

2011-03-10T10:32:00.018+01:00

I had quite a unique experience in London a few weeks ago. I never thought I'd handle doing a video shoot, and though I've had some experience featured in events, it was to be all solo and as a matter of fact on-line for all to see, Well certainly a great change to doing stills all the time! London-based music producer, photographer and videographer Elroy "Spoonface" Powell contacted me through Model Mayhem where he even posted a casting call searching for models to appear in his website to promote his production company. Now that's something different! And definitely to add in my diversified portfolio of work.

Elroy scheduled the shoot the weekend before I was due to arrive in England. As I expressed my disappointment at this and keenness to work with him, he kindly arranged an additional day for 20 February 2011, for which I have been most grateful. Luckily another model was shooting the same evening so I didn't feel bad he'd arranged one especially for me. The promotion was to be based on the theme "Suite 301" involving various exotic models being photographed, interviewed and videoed in and around, you guessed it, Suite 301 of a North London hotel. I took the tube there and arrived at the hotel where Elroy greeted me. And what a nice guy! Very polite, professional and making sure I was comfortable throughout the shoot. He even provided healthy treats like water, fruit juices, fruits and ok flapjacks...not quite healthy but certainly beats Jaffa cakes! Not many togs would do that.

We started with me entering the room in the outfit I came in and introducing myself on video. Then Elroy had this bright idea of me doing that all in Japanese. Having been out of the country since 1994, and hence not having much opportunities to speak it, that completely threw me off! Still I managed by switching into my Japanese mode and being giggly, humble and acting "cute", you'd think I was a totally different person. Now that would certainly add value to my work experience and add diversity to the Suite 301 promotion! For the other video clips though, it was all back in English so I was back to my more confident "Westernised" self, hence positively enhancing versatility. Many of my peers in UK were also rather surprised to see the other side of me. I've certainly Elroy to thank for thinking about this!

Througout the day, we shot in different settings. On the bed where I rolled around in lingerie or in the nude playing with silky fabric, one in black another in red. That was a lot of fun, bringing out the inner child in me! Then in the closet in my red lingerie all huddled up in the narrow space and hanging on the rails. Thankfully I'm rather flexible and small while not so claustophobic. Then it was the most unusual part: slathering myself in baby oil and moving around a leather armchair to enhance sheen. He'd take photos in low key to make a fine art nude effect. Then into the shower! I didn't mind getting my hair wet or my make-up smudged but my eyes started stinging trying to keep them open. Oh well! Worth the fun. Finally, when I got out and dried myself, I changed into some black bra and panties as Elroy was shooting me dancing to some sexy music.

It was such a productive, exciting and interesting day. It's always good to have a new challenge now and again, and this certainly was one of them! Now, Elroy has a website for this, and he's even got a limited-edition book out! I'm considering getting it as it'll remind me of what a fun shoot it was and how chuffed I am being among these other beautiful models featured. By the way, Elroy is looking for models for his various projects, the more exotic-looking the better, but really it doesn't matter as long as you're sexy, vivacious and fun! Get in touch with him via www.suite301.co.uk. You get my recommendation for working with him, he's awesome!

Oh... and don't forget to check out the videos on the Miu's Videos page!!

Erotic Nude Shoot with China Hamilton

2011-03-02T16:06:00.011+01:00

I couldn't believe my luck when I got a birthday greeting on Facebook from one of the world's renowned photographers in the erotic field. Yes, from China Hamilton! It was quite a random message and in fact thought it was a hoax, let alone having doubts as to whether his FB profile was genuine. I replied to his greeting, and we started exchanging messages with me praising his work and him positively commenting on my "unique look" even adding that I remind him of his late aunt...

I first came across China's work in his books in fact when I was staying at Clover and Dave's house in November. All I can remember is the exotic name and all the beautiful work associated with him. Some were fetish involving bondage but without the shock factor. Others were erotic nudes which though explicit were very tastefully done. Clover commented that I should try and work with him but as he seemed way out of my league I dismissed it as something I can only dream of...

As such, I casually told China on FB that I would like to collaborate with him, expecting that he'd be "too busy" and promised myself not to be gutted. It was to my surprise he invited me to shoot at his place the next time I was in England. I was due to be there for just over a week so we set a date for 16 February 2011. I was still pinching myself to see if it was all a dream...

After a 3 hour train ride to Lowestoft from London via Norwich, China picked me up at the station. I was rather nervous to be honest but when he approached me, I was pleasantly relieved to notice what a friendly, kind-hearted and genuine gentleman he was. He drove us to his huge beautiful house and immediately made me feel at home, feeding me good food (not Jaffa cakes... sorry but they're horrible!) and making sure I was comfortable. We had a long chat about art, erotica and photography in his room which had all wonderful work displayed on the wall. I looked through his collection of books from other photographers as well and got very taken by it all.

We worked a little bit that evening. I won't say "shoot" because China dislikes that term! The first moments were rather awkward as I was quite ill at ease not because I was all in nude but as I was still star-struck knowing one of the world's best photographers was behind the camera! After warming up a little, we decided that I would lie down on his beautiful rug on the floor. I did a number of rather implied "naughty" poses though nothing too explicit. After nailing an image or two, we went to his office and downloaded the pictures to choose which ones we liked. I sat and watched China editing the images which for me was another plus to this day as I'm in the process of learning Photoshop!

We called it a night and resumed the next day. Up and early the next morning. I had such a comfortable rest! After a healthy breakfast of berries with goat's yoghurt and farm-produced jam on rye, I got ready with the make-up, hair and lingerie consisting only of black stockings and suspenders. Nothing more. As I was admiring this antique restraining chair he had in his room the night before, China suggested that I pose in it getting strapped with two leather belts and my feet bound. Then later on, I had my hands tied back.

We also worked on a few poses in his room with me keeping my suspenders and stockings on but wearing my red satin gloves. Just some beautiful but sensual images. Then a few with me naked. China was very careful with the lighting and knew exactly what he wanted out of the images. In fact, he was such a great director giving me advice and having me pose in the most effective way. Accustomed to and being a glamour model as well, I occasionally got scolded for standing with my hips on one side and trying hard to look unnaturally curvaceous. Erotic photography is about showing the beauty of female form in a natural and tasteful way rather than being loud and in your face. Being a model of different facets, it's at times hard to switch on and off!

Normally I shy away from baring all nude and going just a small step further in terms of level but China was different. He is an experienced and professional photographer who knows and truly appreciates the meaning of erotic art. I enjoyed working with him not only because he is renowned but because he was such a great company to chat with. Very witty, intelligent and worldly. We had so much fun discussing and learning from each other about history, culture and the environment. Besides, he's also very polite and down-to-earth and though I was intimidated at the beginning he made me feel relaxed. I hope to work with him again in the near future... thank you so much, China, for this wonderful opportunity!

Last Autumn... with Tim Hutton

2011-02-21T15:33:00.003+01:00

Oh wow, I nearly totally forgot! I was just browsing through my pics and came across these beautiful images that was taken by Tim Hutton of Sliproad Junkies. He is a photographer who deals a lot with cars and has just started gaining some experience shooting models. On 5 September 2010, I accompanied him for some promo-work with T-shirts and stickers at a carshow in Silverstone, a main race track in the UK.

The day was spent handing out flyers and chasing people to check out our tent. After a successful but exhausting day of standing around in boots, shorts and a crop top and smiling and schmoozing, we drove to some deserted field on the way. We would've loved to shoot me in some bikinis and skimpy wear but as it was nearing the end of the day it was getting rather chilly. So we decided that I leave my animal-print trench-coat on and as I was still wearing my shorts, we leave that on as well, along with my boots!

It was a short shoot but we nailed some awesome images. Due to his wedding, work and generally being occupied with his new business, Tim was unable to send the edited versions till December but it was well worth the wait! The images had a very autumnal mood indeed but moreover I loved the 1970s retro feel. It was the outfit, hair & makeup perhaps but more with his play with the colours on the images. And a friend commented how the warm golden tones of the wheat field complimented my tanned complexion. I really miss having a tan and can't wait till the weather warms up again!

Thanks Tim! Hopefully when it gets warmer we plan to do more outdoors shoots and next time involve some cars!

Please have a look by logging onto my Flickr page to view the extraordinary images!

Chains & Masks with Paul "RothRopes"

2011-02-19T20:01:00.011+01:00

Another fetish shoot! This time, it was with a tog called Paul, known as RothRopes, who is based in Rotterdam. He is another connection from Fetlife who contacted me. Much of Paul's work is quite simple yet effective and certainly a change from the elaborate rope-tying to just chains and cuffs, really adding to the feeling of captivity! Not much planning was needed...we set the date for the evening of Tuesday 8 February 2010.

It was a couple hour's train ride from Amsterdam to his turf in Rotterdam. Though a bit of a cold day and I was to catch a train in the evening to get to him for 7pm, it was well worth it! Paul picked me up at the station. Despite his rather intense bondage images, I was pleasantly surprised to discover what a mild manneredguy he was! He drove me to his place where the studio was located in the attic.

The house was toasty and warm. With a cup of coffee and a stroopwafel (yummy but incredibly calorific Dutch honey waffels) we chatted about the shoot and how well I'm adapting in the Netherlands. It turns out Paul is a photographer at a local hospital! We went to the studio-attic and I quickly undressed but put on a pair of fishnet holdups and black platform shoes.

First set was quite something else. Now I don't have a kink for strangulation but the image turned out rather effective. I put on a collar and Paul handcuffed me with leather straps and tied both hands back whilst connecting my collar with a chain suspended from a ceiling. Well as

long as I was able to still talk it wasn't that uncomfortable though I would be wary of whom I would allow to put me in this position. Luckily I somewhat trusted Paul...

In the second set, I was to put on a head strap with a mouth mask. We don't know what they are called in English but it's usually used for dogs to stop them from biting, we think. I usually don't like wearing masks or headgear as they mess with my hair and smudge my make-up but I remembered that this is a fetish shoot, not a glamour or fashion shoot where makeup and hair has to be immaculate. Besides I was in the mood of strong effects rather than looking sexy!

As such, I had no qualms about wearing a gas mask. I wasn't even bothered if people can see my face or not. I've also seen a few images with models wearing gasmasks and wondered what it would be like or look like. So I sat on the table and started posing with it whilst at the same time trying to look as somewhat seductive as possible. I liked the way my eyes would show through the mask, showing an expression of vulnerability.

Lastly the masks off but chains back on. This time, I was to kneel on a table and get chained around the neck and have my arms suspended to the ceiling as well. I really liked the way the chains shone through in the images and adding a contrasting "coldness" to the warm tones of my complexion. Such work is most effective when in nude than wearing clothes.

After a few hours, we called it a day as it was getting late and I had a train to catch back to Amsterdam. I was so exhausted by then I slept throughout the journey but I enjoyed the shoot with Paul. In some of his images, I noticed he uses plastic vacuum tubes which I would like to experiment shooting with. Maybe I'll be more brave next time and try nipple clamps which I prefer not to use as my pain threshold is rather low. Or, if it's warmer it would be awesome to shoot in his private garden outside!

Nevertheless, I was pleased with the results of the shoot and impressed that Paul delivered the edited images within a few days... Thank you Paul! Everyone loves the images too, and I definitely want to work with you again...

For more crazy pictures of Miu from this shoot, log onto her Flickr page under Chains & Masks.

First Shoot in Our New Amsterdam Home

2011-02-14T16:33:00.012+01:00

Finally, I get around to networking in Amsterdam, my new home! It's also good to reconnect with togs I have worked with out here during my visits before too as I was very satisfied with their work. One of them is Bart Wilmink, with whom you may recall I shot last summer at his place in Appeldoorn blogged as Elegant Glamour shoot. This time, it was his turn to come shoot with me in Amsterdam!

We got in touch again on Model Mayhem late last year but as Bart had an arm injury from RSI he was taking a break. I too, was also taking some time off with the moving. Once settled, we came to an agreement with the date for Friday 4 February 2011. We both had similar tastes when it came to which sort of images we wanted to work on which was a lot of edgy but elegant nudes with some Agent Provocateur style lingerie images thrown in. The only concern, though, was getting the lighting right as it's still winter and rather dark at home even during the day.

At 10:30, Bart arrived at our place armed with lighting equipment and outfits. I started off by wearing my own red basque with suspenders and black stockings as a warm

up and shot near the door and front stairs. A lot of the time we spent on getting the lighting right but I'm patient... I'd rather wait and come up with good images than rush. We did nail a few good photos especially in front of the door rather than by the bottom of the stairs as the lights flowed upwards.

I then changed to another set of lingerie, a more neutral theme with a beige lacey bra and mocha-brown knickers with tan-coloured hold-ups. We did a set by the french windows in the lounge. Again more hits and misses in attempt to capture the natural noontime sunlight. It would've also been ideal to have the french windows wide open to see the garden in the background as the reflection from the glass was quite obvious. But it's wintertime and this is not a fetish shoot! Although Bart was dubious about how the images would turn out, I found a few that I liked. With a little tweaking with Photoshop, I think they could come out quite well!

For the next set, we decided to shoot by the red settee. I changed into a matching set of black & white animal print lingerie with the same tan-coloured holdups. I wasn't sure about sitting deep inside the settee with my feet up as they tended make me look weighed down, but I felt the ones of me sitting on the edge of it standing up worked out quite well. Still wearing the outfit, we went to our bathroom which is decorated with an exotic Middle Eastern flair. After a few shots, I stripped off nude and this is when the pics really started looking good! Initially I wanted some lingerie shots in the area but Bart felt it could improve by being simply nude! And he was right. It must be the combination of white walls, back lighting and the blue tile which enhance the simplicity. Wearing outfits just makes it the image too cluttered as I discovered later.

I then dressed into a black Agent Provocateur lingerie set and did a few sets on the bed with white sheets. We used the red settee again but I laid down across it whilst Bart climbed a ladder in front and shot from above. I must say that the effect was amazing! Again I stripped naked and remained lying down. The contrast between the crimson red settee and my complexion, along with me wearing a big silver pendant, really created some beautiful work.

The final set was going back to the stairs in the front area of the apartment. This time I was to be all nude. At first I was a little doubtful how the picture would turn out with me posing in a pale beige flight of stairs as there is no contrast. However, having the white walls and banister on the side helped. Also it was about blending in rather than contrasting, unlike the previous set with the red settee.

The day went rather well I must say. We managed to overcome a lot of the issues about the lighting but now that Bart has been here, we know what to do the next time. I suggested that the next time he comes over, it be summertime where we could shoot outdoors in the garden and also, the light will improve and the days are longer. Plus hopefully I will have topped up my tan by then and not look quite so pasty as I do in the wintertime! So after receiving his edited 6 images, I chose around 15 additional images that I really liked and believed have potential to be beautiful pictures with a bit of tweaking.

Thank you Bart for taking your time to visit and helping to create more beautiful images together. I look forward to the edited images and can't wait!!!

It was Worth the Wait! Sin City Inspired Shoot...

2011-02-07T21:51:00.008+01:00

(l to r: Becky "Perilune" Brandbeer, myself, Karenza Rosier, Clover Fibbs, Rob "Red" Raynes, and Vikki "Azteria" Handyside)

Remember about me mentioning about the Sin City shoot back in September? It was around the same time I was doing my second shoot with Tim Rosier up in Northampton. A group of models, along with photographer Victor Kurzweil, were quite mesmorised by the scenes, outfits and atmosphere of the film Sin City and decided to do a shoot based on it. It was an honour that I was invited by one of the models, Karenza, Tim's partner.

So about 6 of us models were able to decide on a weekday date without any struggle. It was Becky, Karenza, Clover, Vikki, Rob and me who were to participate in this exciting event all set for Thursday 16 September 2010. Becky and her partner picked me up at Wellingborough station near Northampton and gave me a lift to the studio. And Karenza turned up with her very hot Harley Davidson motorbike! Victor, an expert at themed shoots and famous for graphically producing elaborate images using impressive backgrounds, was the perfect choice as our photographer. Whilst he meticulously adjusted the lighting, the 5 female models managed to fit in the small changing room praising each other for our outfits. I seem to remember Karenza's cool black PVC catsuit! Prior to the shoot, we were told we'd have two outfit changes which was good as it prevented us from lugging too stuff unnecessarily.

In the first set, Victor shot us as a group using the Harley bike as a prop. Then we each took turns and got shot individually which was a brilliant idea as we could add both the group and solo images in our portfolio. For the first outfit, I wore fishnet top and tights and topped

it with a black leather underbust corset. Then the thigh high boots. I later realised when the pics turned out, though, the fishnet top didn't sufficiently cover my boobs which meant that the pics would be over-18 or put it not "Facebook-friendly". I regret this may have been unfair to others but nobody has complained, well at least to my knowledge. The second outfit change was the bra & knicker set by Dutch lingerie designer Marlies Dekker which was perfect for this shoot! Along it I had a black leather suspender with fishnet holdups and black stilletos. This time, definitely ok for under-18s!

Poor Rob, the sole male model for this shoot, was the victim or the villain we, the women, were punishing. Nevertheless, he was such a good sport throughout the shoot and after all the swords and guns being pointed at him, was still so cool and collected. My kudos to him! And of course my kudos to the girls too as we were all able to work together as a team and complimented each other so well. We girls really stuck together! I thoroughly enjoyed working with everyone. It was also nice to see Becky, who was rather new to modellin

g, open up a little and gain more confidence. It pays to work with people who help each other.

On the technical side of things, as you can see, the backgrounds vary quite a lot and are very impressive. The shoot actually took place in a studio with black background of rolled paper! Through a lot of research and imagination, it was Victor who cleverly compiled his work with great attention to what sort of backgrounds suited what image. Looking back, it was quite ignorant and impatient of me when I insisted I was happy with getting the images in plain background and weren't too bothered with the elaborate settings. Now I realise how Victor takes pride in his work by taking his time and producing images that have meaning. The final images finally arrived in January... and it was most certainly worth the wait.

Unfortunately it's always bad timing when it comes to announcing. With the busy January month for tax returns and family issues to sort, I finally got around to uploading the work only these past few days. By documenting this shoot, though, I hope to rescue the fading memories of this fun day we all had! Thank you everyone for this exciting experience.

More pictures of this event can be seen on my flickr page.

Check out the rest of my pics from Naked@Yours!

2011-01-30T23:47:00.002+01:00

This is a test post from , a fancy photo sharing thing.

Naked at Yours with Steve Hayward

2011-01-26T17:09:00.019+01:00

My very first shoot back in the UK for 2011 was at home featuring Hello Kitty! And again, I was also asked if I would be interested in featuring at a photo exhibition! It was Guildford-based photographer Steve Hayward who discovered me on Model Mayhem and contacted me last December, explaining about this project he was doing. Inspired by New York photographer Andrew Einhorn, the objective was to capture real people at real moments of everyday life at home but in the nude! I had a flick through Einhorn's infamous book, Happy NakedGirls, and was mesmorised by the beautiful work and the natural beauty of the women featured. Most were not models, just ordinary girls perceived to be suitable for the theme. No pretentiousness, no excessive posing...just being oneself... happy, relaxed and chilled...which mind you I should strive more for!

Now, I never allow togs with whom I work for the first time visit our home and have me stripped naked. However, I gave Steve an exception. His work on Model Mayhem and his own site reflected outstanding quality and taking it all seriously. More importantly, all his models looked relaxed and at ease so I knew I'd be comfortable to work with him. Also, I did what most sensible people would do and called him. He was very pleasant and polite, very professional in his approach, and I was looking forward to shooting with him and was most honoured he even invited me as part of his project! The date was set for 15 January 2011.

Steve arrived safely at our place in Horsham. With minimal make-up and just tidying up my hair with curling tongs, I was relieved to know that as outfits were not required for this shoot, I had less to worry about! I was advised prior to the shoot not to wear any underwear (especially bra) as they leave marks on the skin so I was in my bathrobe answering the door and chatting to him in the lounge which made me feel so informal yet relaxed from the beginning. After showing Steve around the house to keep in mind where to shoot, we went to the kitchen to start the session. Stripped down, I prepared ourselves some coffee and he began clicking away...

Throughout the shoot, Steve would be chatting to me and asking me questions so he would have an idea as to how to describe me in his website. We had a lot of fun talking about life in Europe, his work, why I have an American accent and how things are in Japan which he took great interest in. And of course about photography and modelling... In the kitchen, I was seated by the "Stressless" chairs just relaxing away sipping my coffee while he captured every moment. The best ones were of me just looking out the window. Then there were images of me sitting on the work surface cross-legged and smiling. Very hippy chic! And some really sultry shots of me opening the fridge and squatting down to reach for things l

ike bananas, strawberries, even a can of beer!

Then we thought we'd change the scenery and go to the guest bedroom. During the late morning, the light is best there. But before that, we did a few images on the staircase and landing, where I would be gripping the bars on the banisters and making a scary face before composing myself and going back to the cute happy face. There were a few Hello Kitty soft toys scattered around the bed, and I thought to myself, being Japanese, I so had to get a shoot holding a Hello Kitty! I was pleased to notice that Steve had actually included one of them on his site!

Back downstairs, we did our final set in the lounge. Plenty of room to go crazy! First I sat on the sofa and be reading magazines. Then Steve passed me a packet of Malteasers which I was supposed to be shot putting in my mouth and munching. Then I sat on the floor and looked as if I'm supposed to be reaching for his camera. He changed the lens to a wide-angle one (correct me Steve if this is wrong) so that my body would look smaller and head and hands bigger to make a rather cute "anime" effect. At one point, when I told him I do Yoga so he got me to do a pose which would show me at my most flexible. The Halasana or Plough position! Finally, I was to stand in front of the wall making funny shapes with my body but rather than smiling this time, I thought I'd make an "art nude" face, ie. looking serene.

I thoroughly enjoyed my shoot with Steve. He really put me at ease from the beginning as he is friendly, genuine and enjoys his work. His exhibition is not planned till at least 2012 as he has just started his project, but I hope he won't forget to include my images! Well, at least for now, I'm featured in his website as Naked@Yours. Apparently he is also looking for other models to shoot, male or female, couples or single, young or old... so hit him up if you're interested. I recommend him! Thank you Steve for this fun shoot. I look forward to receiving the rest of the images!

Steve's work can be found on: http://www.stevehaywardphotography.com/nakedatyours.html

I'll be Featured in a Photo Exhibition for Sher Khan!

2011-01-19T23:40:00.017+01:00

Last weekend was a fruitful one. My first shoots in the UK for 2011 which I was very much looking forward to as it's been at least 6 weeks since my last proper one due to moving and Christmas. I was even getting edgy lately with withdrawal symptoms so was finally feeling calm once I got back on the modelling track! On Saturday I shot at home with Steve Hayward (blog to follow) and on Sunday I travelled up to London to shoot with Sher Khan, otherwise known as Kash.

Kash and a few other photographers are working together to open a photography exhibition in a few months featuring erotic and art nudes. The beautiful and tasteful stuff you see in art books and wall pictures which are sensual and "leaves to the imagination". Not and never to be mistaken with pornography! Therefore I was most chuffed when Kash asked me to be one of the featuring models. I have seen his work on Facebook and Fetlife all of which I was very impressed with. However, I never actually spoke to the guy before and imagine he'd be way out of my league to work with me. Then one day out of the blue he contacted me on Facebook and asked me to give him a call. Imagining him to be dry and stern, I must say I was pleasantly surprised to hear how friendly, warm and even funny he was over the phone!

I was more than delighted to help him out for his exhibition. I must add that I was elated to hear I was recommended by another photographer and also that since I'm "experienced and confident", I would be suitable. Wow! We set the date at his house in North London for 16 January 2011. Armed with rucksack full of several lingerie and corsets and a pair of stilettos, I took the tube to Dollis Hill where Kash picked me up and walked me to his place, where the open-plan living room was the studio.

We had some coffee and a chat about the shoot whilst browsing through some photography books to get inspiration. Once we had an idea of what we wanted, we started as a warm up with me dressed in a black bra and knickers set with holdups and doing teasing poses then eventually stripping off whilst just kneeling on the sofa which he flattened out to make a bed. As Kash sells luxury cars, I have to admit I had a bit of a giggle when he used his black Audi car cover as a "sheet" over the sofa. Then it was a changeover to a white lingerie set. There was one picture I liked in one of the books Kash had in his collection of a girl lying down and pulling up her white knickers which were quite sheer. So we thought we'd adapt that. I have to say it came out quite well though rather raunchy!

The third set, we thought we'd have me in a corset! As it was to be a black & white image, I had a perfect one for this purpose...black with white polka dots! I got that in Amsterdam a while back and have been intending to wear that for shoot for ages. In this, I was to be a scary dominatrix armed with a crop. We decided to shoot that in the staircase leading to Kash's front entrance to his flat. Though quite a confined space, the photos turned out quite well as he was able to shoot from the bottom. We did nail some good ones there, and one of them is along the photos to your right.

The final set we returned up to the living room where Kash cleared the floor and lay down his black sheet. He had this ingenious idea where I'd be lying down still in my black polka-dotted corset surrounded by all sorts of art erotica books and magazines scattered around me, looking ecstatic. Then, the piece-de-resistance was to be a shot when I'd be all nude still lying on the floor this time surrounded by CDs. Some of them were placed on my body to cover up the

"bits". I liked how the CDs shone, especially against my rather tanned skin tone...

These are the images on the blog which Kash posted on FB. I'll also be picking up a CD of all the images he shot shortly and will be selecting the ones I'd like edited on my part. Seeing his viewfinder from time to time during the shoot, I'm most certain I will have helluva time trying to select which ones! Moreover, I'm very excited that some of them will be used for his photo exhibition shortly. I definitely must be there! And of course I have to tell my friends...!

Although Kash told me he only started photographing models last year his quality of work shows that he's got even more experience! He definitely has the eye for it as well as the talent. The lighting and composition of his images are both good, and he's got great ideas. I can't wait to shoot with him again another time. Thank you Kash! Once I get more information about the exhibition, I will let everyone know...

First Shoot of Year with Jessica Evans

2011-01-14T02:16:00.005+01:00

Before I begin, HAPPY NEW YEARS to you all! I hope you enjoyed your White Christmas and celebrated New Years in style. And what's my New Years Resolution? Getting even more experience with shoots especially in Holland where I just moved to, getting even more in shape and according to the Chinese, it's the Year of the Rabbit...so...that means getting even cuter and more raunchy with my Sexy Bunny Girl image!!!

My move from England to Holland has been a smooth transition despite being before Xmas. The only things that sucked about it though was having to keep my modeling on hold for nearly 6 weeks and of course... the fact that I had very limited internet access since moving. And what a rush that was, especially when a Florida-based photographer/webmagazine editor contacted me via Model Mayhem asking me to be featured!

A guy called JD Moran contacted me from FemmeXposure, an up and coming online magazine featuring fine art and erotic nude. All I had to do was answer 20 questions about my career and provide him with a set of 44 images of tasteful images, nude included. Great publicity for me and the tog involved. This was all happening right when I was in the middle of my move and I quickly had to find a suitable photographer within good reach. Enter one of my best mates and favorite photographer, Jessica Evans!

You will recall that I did a shoot with Jessica in Breda during the summer with me wearing lingerie and looking cute. There's something about her that makes me want to be cute. Even when I've been focussing on art and fetish shoots lately looking scary or scared or simply serene, I somehow managed to smile again with her. It is also great hooking up with her, as she has just returned to the Netherlands from Spain. We set a date for 4 January 2010 at her place in Etten-Leur just near the Belgian border. After a two-hour train ride, Jessica met up with me at the station and drove me to her place. After a nice girlie chat and playing with Miffy, her mischievous dog we were up for shooting!

Unfortunately, Jessica lacked proper studio lights. They were stolen in Spain when some thieves broke into their apartment on the day before leaving for Holland. A real pity as they are quite expensive and necessary to have, and Jessica practically considered giving up photography because of it but talked her out of it. In fact, we managed to pull through, as we made do with two smaller lights. After some experimentation, she discovered that by putting one of the lights behind me, and the other on my right hand side, the effect was quite impressive as it brightened up my skin tone.

And amazing how a little space could do a lot. Just as we experimented with the shower area during the last shoot, all we did was use one wall in the lounge, a black and white striped one which could have easily been a studio setting. So there I was initially clad in a pretty peacock-blue lingerie set, gradually stripping off to nude. With Jessica being a friend as well as a good tog, I always feel at ease when working with her, especially as she's such a good laugh!

After our shoot, Jessica's boyfriend, Javier, came home from work and we hanged around and chatted. He gave me a lift to the station and just when I arrived at the platform the train arrived immediately so I was able to ride back without having to wait out in the cold. Jessica sent to me about 50 web-sized images to forward to FemmeXposure which will be launched in two days' time (15 January). I am very curious as to what it will turn out to be!

Nevertheless, Jessica and I had fun as usual and churned out at least one good image which she's edited I've uploaded above. Thanks again hun and next time lets' spend more time and do some crazy images!!!

That Crazy Snow Shoot is now on Flickr!

2010-12-30T12:25:00.002+01:00

Click onto the button , a fancy photo sharing thing, and have a look at all the images we took on that day...!

Private Snow Shoot in the Secret Garden

2010-12-19T20:03:00.013+01:00

So the snow sets in again! In UK it's pretty bad, ditto in the Netherlands. It somewhat happens to be a tradition out here to have a snow shoot, in nude if possible, whenever there is snow. Maybe because it's not usual to snow so heavily. Or maybe it's just the case of us mad togs & mods seeing who can come up with the craziest and most daring pics of braving the snow with nothing on. Well in my case that's definitely so!

Obviously getting a shoot arranged on snowed in days is rather

impossible. Trains are disrupted and roads are too dangerous to drive on. Last year I was lucky when Lester Coates approached me as he was local and had a good solid SUV to drive around in! This time in Amsterdam, I wanted Jessica Evans to shoot but then she's based all the way near the Belgium border, a good 2 hours train ride if I'm lucky. So what is more handy than grabbing a decent Nikon camera and doing a home shoot! It need not be done professionally...the whole point is that we have a lot of fun, right?

We had a whole day to wait last Saturday for our new washing machine to arrive. That is, 18 December 2010. During waiting, I did my makeup and hair, practically meditating before having to brave the cold snow outside. Luckily the delivery men and the engineer came and went before it got too dark to shoot. Around 2pm, we shot away!

First I wanted to shoot a cute Xmas theme possibly for this year's greetings "card". Some would be FB-friendly, others "rude". I donned a Santa Claus hat along with a pair of red sequin Xmas theme pasties but as I had neither red knickers nor red bikini bottoms with me, I simply covered my bottom bit with my faux-fur scarf! To add a little va va voom to it, I put on a pair of black thigh high boots. You got it, it's going to be Sexy Santa in the Snow! Afterwards, the faux-fur and the pasties came off and it was just me, the hat and the boots...

You know, I was expecting it to be torturously cold out there. But somehow, I was so excited about this shoot, looking forward to it all week, that I totally forgot how freezing it was! There was snow on the ground alright but it wasn't snowing, and there was no wind. So even when I shook the trees so the snow would fall on my naked body, I was still smiling. And even when I was instructed to go on all fours on the snow, I was still smiling. And also even when I was asked to pick up some snow with my bare hands and rub it on myself, I was still smiling! Trust me, it wasn't because it was "part of the job". I was actually enjoying it!

After exhausting the Santa "outfit", it was away with the Xmas theme and just shooting with nothing on but my thigh high boots! I figured that after Xmas, the theme would look too

"outdated". So there I was posing away. And yes, I was still smiling even when I was once again asked to pick up snow and rub it on myself and go down on all fours so low that my belly would touch the snow. The piece de resistance of course was... I was to lie down on my BACK in the snow and to cover my bits with snow... yep especially for Facebook! Why pixilate or censor areas when you can use snow???

Boy that was one awesome shoot! Going crazy and having so much fun frolicking in the snow, in the nude for that matter! It certainly brought the inner-child in me once again. The images got downloaded today, and I must say I was well impressed with the quality of them despite the lack of studio lights and reflectors. Thankfully with my elementary Photoshopping skills, I was able to tweek the exposure and the cropping.

As someone on Fetlife suggested, I ought to have gone barefoot in the snow... Brrrrr....oh well maybe another time!

When Tokyo Roze meets Roze Thorn with KK Perales

2010-12-08T00:48:00.013+01:00

Oh dear... the Amsterdam move has put me back a few weeks. I'm even starting to forget which shoots I have done which is not good! But I suppose some things have to take priority. And whilst I'm out here I'm still waiting for edited images from "certain" togs mainly from three major ones I had done last month....YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE!!!

On a more positive, I had one of the funnest shoot the other day. Well say precisely on 12 November 2010. I happened to spot a very interesting pic on Facebook and traced that to be shot by a Spanish tog based in London called KK Perales. I really liked his "crazy" and original ideas which are all well captured. Then there is also Roze Thorn... a fellow model from County Durham whom I met at a group shoot last year. Such a sweet, bubbly and gregarious gal with the cutest Geordie accent ever. We've been chums since and talked about doing a shoot together. Only problem was finding a suitable tog!

KK has previously shot with Roze and in fact get along so well I thought he would be a perfect choice. Another plus is that a week or so before our shoot he had been in Tokyo with a bunch of photographers and was so fascinated by the culture and "Tokyo Fashion" scene so we had lots to catch up on. Originally, KK and I were going to shoot one-to-one but with Roze in mind, I suggested to KK she also join which he was very keen about. It was going to be one fun shoot!

KK picked me up from Swanley station which is near London and drove me to his garage-studio. What an easy-going guys he is, full of energy and vitality. In fact I only met him for the first time but I felt I have known him for years! When we arrived at the studio, Roze was already there getting ready and we just gave each other BIG HUGS. As we prepared for the shoots we were chatting and having so much fun like two teenagers getting ready for a night out

Roze had the ingenious idea of being the strict headmistress with me playing part of the naughty schoolgirl. Recently, I've been doing quite a lot of shoots of me in a Japanese school girl uniform and in fact it has practically become a trademark so thought it would be an idea to use it in this shoot. KK, being back recently from Tokyo, relished on the idea. He put an old schooltable in the middle of the set and later on even added a few props like a skeleton and bottles of dead reptiles (!) like it were a Science lab. Roze and I happily worked on various poses and had lots of fun experimenting. And you know, she may look scary but she's actually very gentle and sweet!

For the next set we just spontaneously decided to do a modern Tokyo gal meets Victorian-style English lady. So Roze got on her black corset with black lacey dress along with a cute white hat. And there I was in a skimpy white PVC top with pink frills with matching white PVC hotpants along with a shocking pink hairpiece Roze had kindly lent me. We looked so cute together. And I really loved the image in which we're holding hands and looking so happy. And we were!

Final set, another "mismatch" theme! This time I was clad in a red pvc one-piece dress I had bought at the Fetish Fair in Brussels and teamed that with a pair of matching red fishnet tights and borrowed a pair of cool chunky red & black shoes from Roze. She, on the other hand, decided to dress up as a nurse and donned on a voluminous wig. We decided to play dentist and victim where she is supposed to be torturing me with dental instruments which by the way she even brought along! Where she managed to find to them is quite a story too...

We called it a day as it was getting late in the day and we were getting hungry. After packing up, we proceeded to KK's place where I was introduced to his wife who is a make-up artist. In fact she teaches theatrical make-up at a local college! The next time I shoot with KK, I would definitely like to use her as our MUA as I myself would love to do something different.

This was actually the first time I've done an alternative fashion shoot which made it even more interesting for me. It certainly adds creativity and flavour and plus it's so much fun! I would love to do more shoots like this. KK has in fact invited me to do some shoots with him for his stock photography in addition to doing some more "crazy stuff". He is not only a photographer but also an artist which is clearly reflected in his work. Working with a model like Roze Thorn who has plenty of experience in the alt scene opened up my eyes as well. Thank you both of you. I am looking forward to working with both again!

Second Helpings with Niko and Dave

2010-12-01T15:03:00.017+01:00

This is the second installment of my blog on the East Midlands Fetish Tour II. On the day of arriving in the area on 13 November 2010, I had the honour of shooting with Niko (also know as Clover) and Wykd Dave again. I only know them by their screen names and honestly don't know their real names yet but who cares! They're still awesome to work with as well as being one of my good friends. Dave is highly praised in the shibari circuit in UK, also getting quite known abroad, while his partner, Niko, continues to model beautifully with the best photographers and is doing well with the photography side too.

Dave picked me up from Derby station and drove us to their pad where Niko greeted me with big hugs. We had some lunch and chatted for a while. Previously I told Niko that I got myself some Japanese school

uniforms on e-bay and I seem to remember her mentioning that the navy-blue winter uniforms are hard to get hold of. So.... I thought it would be a pleasant surprise for her and moreover most appropriate for the shibari theme. Both Niko and Dave were so excited about this and so was I! In fact... Dave was so excited that a small school desk and chair was waiting for us all ready to be shot with at the studio. How cute is that!

So there I was in my school uniform ... sitting on the tiny chair getting my right leg bound in "futomomo" whilst having both of my hands tied back from over my head. I was supposed to look distressed though in reality I was not at all in pain as David is very highly skilled at tying and making sure I had no discomfort. We also added a few sets in which I am to be caught red-handed looking at some bondage pictures for which I am to be later punished. So more an expression of "Oh no, I've been busted"!

After a break, we thought we'd experiment shooting upstairs where the extra bedroom is. It was Dave & Niko's first time as well. Dave "ripped" the carpets from the floor so we would have the floorboards as background. While the crimsom red walls in the downstairs studio created a dark solemn atmosphere, the white walls and the natural light from the window in the upstairs room created a brighter effect, a change of scenery. I was quite impressed how well the images turned out. So well done, Niko!

Though still in my schoolgirl outfit, we did a different bondage style. Dave this time tied my wrists and forearms together to create a sort of "prayer" position which in turn would be roped in conjuction with having my ribcage area being bound so I can't move my arms at all. Then I was to sit on the floor and my right ankle would be tied as if I were going to be dragged!! Hehe in the last of the series, my panties would be down to my shin as Dave created a futomomo again on my left thigh... I have to say that was rather naughty... but cute!

We also did a few topless shoots where I'd be just in my school skirt. Dave created a "breast

harness" or a variation of the shinju whilst my arms would be tied back. Going on my side on the floor, my ankles would be tied together like they were going to be dragged or being leashed on a post. In actual fact, it was one of Dave's kettlebells the rope was tied to!

Our last set was back downstairs, and this time no uniform! In fact nothing on but ropes. I knelt on the floor and again had my arms tied back. Dave created a "harness" in the breast and hip area and as I leaned back as far as I can, the harnesses were suspended to a ring on the ceiling. I myself was not suspended as my legs were still on the floor but even just bending backwards was just as effective in terms of aestheticism and comfort level. Dave and Niko got hold of some beautiful Japanese "sensuu" fans which they fastened on the ropes leading to the ceiling. And wow, the effect was outstanding...!

By the time we were done, we were all quite exhausted. Elaborate rope bondage, namely

shibari, does take up quite a lot of energy but certainly brings back the positive vibes. This time we weren't able to do full suspension but as we have done that the last time, it was better we did something different and focus on the "naughty schoolgirl" theme. As usual, Dave was very quick and skillful in his rope tying and I felt safe. Niko was also with us the entire time of course taking the pictures and she too kept making sure I was okay and to let them know if I feel uncomfortable at any time. As I mentioned in my blog on the last shoot with them, Niko is a model as well so can sympathise with our concerns.... no faffing about with the lighting or position, all is well thought out before Dave ties the model...

As usual I am very pleased with the results. The quality of the pictures turned out so well, and the ropework was beautiful. I hope to work with them soon as they are so pleasant to have around and such fun to work with. Thank you both of you again!!!

Fetish Group Shoot II in Nottingham

2010-11-24T14:58:00.030+01:00

The action-packed weekend of 13-15 November was my East Midland Fetish Tour II, the second trip up to Nottingham & Derby to work with various photographers and models in the fetish scene. The tour stared with my second shibari shoot with NikoFoto along with her partner, Dave, as rigger, then the following day participating in the Fetish Group Shoot organised by Jonny Blaze at the Blue Carrot Studio in Hucknall and on the final day working with Paul otherwise known as Suffering4art. Today's blog will focus on the Fetish Group Shoot...

John Mountney, the tog with whom I worked the Monday before (see blog below), picked me up about half-12 from Niko and Dave's who kindly put me up for the night after the previous day's shoot. The shoot was originally to be 10am to 5pm but due to some misunderstandings with the booking of the studio, the times got changed to 1pm to 8pm which gave us more a reason for a lie in! When we arrived at the studio, there were already people there most of whom I had never met before but everyone was so friendly already. I finally got to meet the organiser of the event, a tog called Jonny Blaze whom I was also dying to work with!

There were also a few I had communicated with earlier on FB and of course there were models Gary and Shelley (a.k.a. Darkcell and Whitecell) a cool couple from Birmingham for whom I did the make-up over a year ago! I quickly made friends with the other models as well all of whom were experienced but helpful as I'm relatively new to the scene.

I was quite flattered to find one of the togs come up to me and grab me before everyone

else did! That was Dean Wilkinson. He brought with him his brother, Hamish ("Mish") and a friend called Bob both of whom Dean is mentoring. After a brief discussion about outfits, I got changed into a black PVC basque with black fishnet stockings. It was freezing as hell butwell worth it! A lot of fuss was also made about the positions of the lights and where to pose but I didn't mind at all because we were all striving for striking images. With Dean as "leader", the three of them took turns shooting... well I hope I created a good impression as a model! The first pic above was taken by Dean..

For the next set, I changed into a red PVC underbust corset (one I bought at the Brussels fet con) with matching collar and fishnet tights. I shot with Jonny Blaze briefly, again up in the attic but among where all the BDSM furnitures were. Teaming up with Gary "Darkcell", I was initially to be domme with whip in my hand, then the roles would be reversed and I would be the one ended up being spanked on all fours by him! A veteran in fetish photography, Jonny had lots of cool ideas on how to make the images look more effective and dramatic. And kudos to Gary who must've been boiling and dying for fresh air as he had his latex head mask on even for a previous set he did with another model! It was a pity the session with Jonny was so short but it's hardly surprising as he's in great demand. We're anticipating having a one-to-one shoot in the near future, and soon I hope!

I quickly changed into a pair of metallic blue hot pants and though topless, donned a collar with small chains dangling down, both items from my favorite brand, Unzipped, from

Amsterdam. Pairing this up with a pair of thigh high boots, I was ready to rock! This time, it was Bob and Mish who took turns shooting both with me solo and with me paired up with Shelley "Whitecell" The setting? A pair of hairdryer hoods!! You know the kinds you see with little old ladies nattering in at hairdressers? Wow now that's an original one, who would've thought of that! And in fetish gear too... hmmm. Oh and dont mind the yellow dot on my chest... that was intended for Facebook!

After this interesting set, I shot with Dean again. We were both intending to shoot something in vintage but the closest I could get to something resembling "retro" was a cute black La Senza lingerie-dress with pink ribbons and suspenders. I wore a pair of pink fishnet stockings to add some cuteness to it and posed whilst standing on a huge tyre. As I write this, I am still waiting for the edited images to arrive...

Then I finally got to work with the tog I came to the shoot with in the end!!! Yes, that's right, John Mountney... We have been planning to collaborate together for the group shoot in the first place even before Monday's shoot was considered. The deal was that I would wear the ballet boots with a white lacey dress and if we had the time, we would do a shoot with me wearing a gas mask which I've never done before. The setting was to be in front of some machinery. Having shot with those boots before, I knew what to expect but as it was later on in the day and I've been strutting around in boots and heels for hours they were more painful than I thought! Nevertheless, I still persevered... and came up with a couple of impressive images.

Unfortunately we didn't have the chance to use the gasmask because we thought we'd do a quick shoot of me in a cage. Though Jonny decided to end the session an hour earlier than scheduled, I speedily changed into a pair of white PVC hot pants, red collar and red ankle boots with padlocks on the side and entered the cage. I had so much fun crawling on all fours and looking like a wild but distressed animal trying to escape! Of course I wouldn't want this to really happen to animals...

It was a shame the group shoot ended an hour earlier than scheduled but some participants had family commitments which couldn't be helped. Still we all had a great time and I got to meet a lot of wonderful people that day. So far I'm pleased with the images and look forward to getting more. They certainly added much more value to my portfolio especially as they were well taken, well thought out and well varied. Thanks so much guys, and thanks Jonny for organising this. I look forward to doing more such shoots so please invite me again!!!

On My Toes with John Mountney

2010-11-17T15:44:00.012+01:00

So back in the UK now, and getting more and more known in the fetish scene. I volunteered to participate in the Fetish Group Shoot in Nottingham this month (more about that in later blogs) and came across a tog called John Mountney among the participants. Impressed with his work, I contacted him to see if he would be interested to shoot me at the group shoot and he said yes!

Meanwhile, he also asked me if, on a separate occasion, I would like to do a shoot for a paid-to-view site called Styxwetworld. In this, I am supposed to be getting drenched in the shower fully clothed wearing normal clothes. No nudity, not even topless. Hmmm sounds interesting. How many people get off on watching fully-clothed women get soaked is, shall I say, rather interesting. As the studio was based in Derby which was a trek for me, we thought we would combine this shoot with some portfolio-enhancing work.

John was keen to utilise a pair of ballet boots, a gorgeous black shiny PVC one. I've only worn them once previously but I too wanted to be taken in it more explicitly, ie. close up or wearing nothing but them on or, as John dared me to, even standing on them! He also came up with some

creative ideas using some chain which he had bought at a hardware store. And for the rest of the session, we could work on some nice outfits such as corsets and basques. We set the shooting date for 8 November 2010.

Before the shoot, John and I corresponded quite a bit on Facebook and he seemed so kind and laid back. He picked me up from Derby station but initially I couldn't find him because I ended up in the wrong exit! Finally we met, and he gave me a lift to the studio which was not too far. Just as I expected, John was friendly yet formal and immediately put me at ease. When we got to the studio which was already warm and toasty, we got down to doing some shoots using the ballet boots.

So there I was, clad in just the boots, a pair of black PVC gloves and a black collar, posing in various positions to enhance the boots. And what fun that was! We also played with the chain by hooking it around the heels. Then John asked me if I would be able to stand on those ballet boots. Well I have to thank my parents for sending me to ballet lessons when I was in school. I learned to use toe-shoes back then which really hurt like hell but like riding a bike, I recalled how to stand in them properly although we had to get John's assistant to help prop me up with a stool! I have yet to receive the edited image of me standing on my toes in those boots...

Taking a break from the ballet boots, I got dressed in a black leather underbust corset I had bought in Amsterdam. It was expensive but man it's worth an investment! Teamed up with a pair of red satin gloves, we focused on doing some "artistic" images. Then I changed and went for a black & white zebra print basque/dress which again I have yet to get edited images of.

We found a trunk which we used as a prop. There, I got myself inside it and around it and later on, I grabbed the ballet boots and went inside the box...well rather, the other way around, going inside the box and THEN putting on the boots! Pity the edited images are not available yet but I liked the way they turned out as I sat in the box and stuck my head out and stretched my legs upwards to show the boots off.

Concluding the portfolio shoots, we proceeded to do the Styxwetworld shoots where I was to do three sets of stills with me drenched in the bathtub. The studio conveniently had a wet room for this purpose as John shoots a lot for this site. First set was me dressed in

a evening gown, then a business suit, followed by jeans & T-shirt! And nope, none of those outfits belonged to me! Just the underpants. I must say it felt rather therapeutic plunging myself in a bathtub getting myself all soaked fully clothed! Sometimes doing crazy things is a wonderful way of releasing suppressed emotions. Unfortunately, I am unable to post any photos up of this session as this is all commissioned work.

We finished the day quicker than we expected. I suppose it's because before meeting me, John was not sure how quick I would be at taking directions and how much I knew how to pose in front of the cameras naturally. With plenty of time, I just leisurely packed my stuff and we hanged around inside the warm studio browsing through some of the images we had taken and generally chatted to get to know each other better. John gave me a lift to the station and we looked forward to seeing each other again in few days time for the Fetish Group Shoot II on Sunday... it was a pleasant warm-up shoot as well as being able to shoot with John on a one-to-one basis. Thank you so much for making this day so enjoyable!!!

Miu Behaving Badly in Brussels

2010-11-11T18:50:00.016+01:00

Sorry guys it took this long to get back to you on my next installment of our weekend in Brussels. As stated int he last blog entry, I had a shoot with Joris Bruyninckx on the Sunday morning, 31 October 2010 during the Fetcon weekend there. Joris was quick about mailing the images soon after the last blog but it was me who was so busy with travelling and shooting I didn't even have the chance to browse throught the 350 or so images he had chosen for me till yesterday!

At around 10am, Joris met up with me in our room at the Hilton Hotel. Always full of creative ideas he brought a bag of goodies and costumes for us to use. We decided to do a few warm up shoots of me wearing my sexy red and black lingerie set, sultrily rolling around the double bed of the room. It's been a while since I last did a proper lingerie shoot so it was quite nostalgic briefly reliving days as a glamour model...

Once warmed up, Joris dug out a really sweet Bunny Girl costume which also doubled up as a French maid outfit. Very sweet indeed as it came with a pair of cute white knee socks with

black bows and a bunny ear hairband which kept slipping! And the shoes... they were the pair I bought at the Fetish Fair the night before, those black & white ultra high platforms. We first shot in the room with me standing up and sitting in the armchair. Then we went to the hallway to see if we could pull a few crazy stunts. Luckily for us, the hotel maids were on their break but had left the vacuum cleaner and trolley in the hallway. Hehe, so we quickly did a few shots of me picking up the vacuum cleaner and pretending to be hoovering or just squatting down and holding it. Even better is when Joris shot me with my top down or my skirt pulled up to expose myself as a naughty maid bored out of her wits with her job. And we also managed to grab a few shots of me standing next to the trolley.

Back in the room I changed to another outfit to prepare for something even crazier! I'd be the rich hotel guest wearing nothing but a long fur coat and fur hat, accompanied by a pair of red high platform shoes. The idea was that I'd be secretly flashing and exposing myself in front of the camera, similar to the Travelodge Trash images I had done earlier but more "upmarket" shall we say! Upon arriving to the room this morning, Joris reported how he had noticed the extravagant and expensive-looking decor of the hotel lift and hence suggested that we do the set there when of course no one is passing by. So there I was in the lift opening my coat and teasing, having a lot of fun. At some point, the doors would be closing and I'd have to rush and push the "open" button as quick as I can which Joris skillfully captured. I really was getting my kicks out of this!

Now if you find the last set crazy enough, take a load of this! For the final set of the day, Joris drove us to Brussels main train station but before leaving he bound my naked body with white ropes in a loose Shibari-style. I was then to wear a long coat, which was my own ankle length black leather coat. It took quite a while to drive through the traffic among all the mad drivers

and to find a parking spot reasonably close by but it was worth it. Being a Sunday, the station was rather quiet though there were quite a number of people, and Joris led me to the very end of a platform where I was to expose myself along with the ropework. Now that was crazy but fun! At one point, the railworker stepped out of his shed and I'll bet he couldn't believe his eyes. Needless to say, he waved! There were some excellent shot where the train would be approaching or leaving behind me in the background. Then we moved to another platform, a much quieter one. There I felt more comfortable taking my coat off and getting down to business. Luckily it was not such a cold day either. I still can't believe what we did, having a nude photoshoot smack in the middle of a city's main railway station! Imagine doing that at London's Victoria Station... it will never happen.

Concluding the shoot, we went out for lunch and Joris dropped us off near the hotel and agreed to meet up again at the Fetish Fair in the evening. It was a pleasure to work with him again. He has all these excellent ideas which are well-thought out when planning venues. Once I'm more settled in Amsterdam, we intend to work together again should I be passing by Brussels or Antwerp on my way to or from London. I wonder what the next shoot will entail!! Thanks again, Joris, can't wait to work with you again soon! And please bear with me as I have yet to upload on Flickr more of those awesome images of this crazy day...

Fetish & BDSM Festival in Brussels - 30-31 October

2010-11-02T22:39:00.011+01:00

During the Halloween weekend while you guys were out there trick or treating and scaring the daylights out of everyone, we made our way along to the FetCon in Brussels! It was the first of the kind in the Belgian capital which I must say was fairly successful though a little more subdued than I imagined. What I liked about it though was that the people who attended were serious fetishists or minimum a kinkster who made the effort to dress up in their gear. Ever go to an event and you see all these space-wasters who turn up in small groups wearing jeans, t-shirts, anoraks and rucksack like tourists to gawp at the "weirdos" as if they were circus freaks? Or these groups of lads that go there and behave like they were on a stag do but balk at the sight of a whip? That is sooo annoying! That's why I don't go to Erotica in London anymore...

So we went there for both Saturday and Sunday. We figured that if we're going to spend a good few hours driving from Amsterdam to Brussels we may as well make the most of it. So when we arrived at the hotel, had some snacks of healthy guacamole, chips and Greek salad, we went to get changed...I donned myself in a one piece black PVC dress I bought at, of all places, Ann Summers, along with a pair of fishnet holdups. Oh and dont forget those groovy black platform shoes I bought in Amsterdam too! We figured that we go a tad conservative on the attire the first evening to see how everyone else dresses...

We took a cab to the venue, the Cellars of Cureghem, a perfect venue for a fetish event. Certainly beats those rather bland exhibition centres! There were at least 25 different stalls exhibiting and selling various fetish outfits, equipment and toys. Yes... lots of killer shoes and kinky boots too! And quite a lot of PVC wear though only one stall I saw each for leather and latex. We came across an awesome red PVC underbust corset...mmmm! Unfortunately, we had not enough cash on us and they didnt' take credit cards! But they kindly set it aside for us so we could pay and pick it up the next day...

On the side of the venue was a bar and a stage where there was a few rope-tying performances. A girl would be tied and suspended from the ceiling and once done up, the rigger would then spin the poor girl around in circles and lift her up and down with club music playing in the background. It was quite an interesting show to watch but to be honest, after a while it got rather stale. Besides, the show was not focused on ropework artistry but more rope bondage. And during the show, I sneaked out to the stalls and helped myself to a red PVC dress and a pair of black and white platform shoes with a buckle on it for my cute schoolgirl outfits!

The next day on Sunday, I had a shoot with Joris, the Antwerp photographer who shot me as a Japanese schoolgirl in bondage and a pet girl in a white tutu. A separate blog shall follow on this. Before proceeding to the Fetcon, all three of us had some lunch after the shoot at a Turkish snackbar before splitting up to arrange meeting him there so I could change into my kinky outfit for the day. I picked up the red PVC underbust corset at the stall and teamed that up with a black PVC skirt and a pair of red fishnet holdups. To tart it up even more, I wore the red version of yesterday's platform heels and teetered around whilst handcuffed. Along that came some titty accessories including a pair of nipple rings with daggers with which I interchanged with a pair of nipple pinchers every so often...

We managed to meet up with Joris later on though he was busy assisting the Shibari stall. However, he liked my outfit so much so he took a few pics of me but I have yet to receive them but will certainly share later. I had a look through some through his viewfinder and I loved them! So hurry up, Joris, send them right over!!! I also managed to have a few images taken by a Dutch photographer who had a stall. Ben Kruijt had a stall with a mini studio setting where he offered passer-bys to be taken pics for free which he post up on his site for us to download. And hence the picture above. Hmmm I'm quite impressed with his work... once I move to Holland I will definitely look him up!

The closing party was that evening. Kinda a silly thing to do it on a Sunday evening as although it was a Bank Holiday the following day in Belgium, not everyone lives there! We hanged around for a few hours and left around 8pm. In all we enjoyed ourselves and the company of fellow kinksters. The only thing I regretted was not being able to go to the party afterwards.... and buy more stuff!!! Oh well, there's always another Festival!

More info on the Festival: http://www.fetishfestival.be

From Naughty Socialite to Travelodge Trash

2010-10-25T16:42:00.023+02:00

I decided to go from Riches to Rags overnight. Following the Naughty Socialite shoot with Jon Mayle (see previous blog entry) on the Saturday, I met up with Bryan Morris (aka Thunder UK) at the Travelodge hotel in neighbouring Billingshurst, West Sussex on Sunday 10 October 2010. We had a chat beforethe shoot on Fetlife and concluded that we do a sleazy motel shoot as I looked at his portfolio and noticed he has done a few and really liked them. I always wanted to do something like that as I seen some awesome B&W images of motel shoots in the U.S. by some art photographers, as portrayed on coffee table books.

Bryan was quite an easy going guy, polite and considerate. Though I myself was a tad quiet at first arriving in a hotel room with a tog I've never met face to face before, he made me feel at ease immediately. What made us both giggle was that he arrived at the room first, and there I was marching through the hotel lobby clad in a gaudy leopard skin coat (part of the shoot outfit) with tons of makeup on with both of us wondering what was on the mind of the poor young receptionist!

The lights were set up and all I had to do was change into lingerie and look pretty. Well pretty? Well, I was to be in black underwear with suspenders & stockings being sexy. However, with the sleazy motel setting in mind, the intention was for me

to be the bored wine swigging, chain-smoking slapper with attitude. What fun that was! There were empty bottles of wine on the dressing table, cigarette stubs piled up high on the glass ashtray (which Bryan smoked all, collected the stubs and brought to the shoot!) and me pretending to smoke! And I don't even drink or smoke... and how cool was that, when I was sitting on the toilet in my bra & knickers having a smoke!

One of the other themes to this shoot was focussed on exhibitionism. Well I won't go into it in detail but I am an exhibitionist. Not only that. I get my kicks doing crazy things like sneaking a flash in public and seeing how far I could go without getting caught. Okay most places have CCTVs but

hey, I'm sure I'm making someone's day! Hehe. So Bryan and I went out in the hallway with me initially wearing that mentioned gaudy leopard skin coat. At one point, an elderly-ish typically Southern-England type couple passed by so I hid in the corner. One they were gone, it was flash time! In another scene, Bryan was to pose as room service and I was answering the door with nothing on. I thought about using the Do Not Disturb sign someowhere but the letters were too small to read...

Another aspect we explored was voyeurism. Bryan was to pose as a voyeur while I was doing my everyday stuff in the hotel room. Drinking, smoking, watching telly, showering, sleeping, looking out the window and even using the toilet! For this shoot, he brought with him a remote-control shutter and disguised himself in a black hood and long leather coat. One of them was of me sleeping on the bed naked while he creeps towards me. Another was of him opening the door whilst am sitting on the toilet seat, knickers down...How rude!

Our final set was a shower scene, related to voyeurism aspect. In the past I never liked doing that because my hair and make up would get ruined. Of course, if we leave it to the last set who cares! And what sleazy motel shoot is complete without a shower scene? So there I went, splashing around and lathering myself with Bryan's shower gel which kinda made me smell suspiciously masculine. I was to act unaware the pics were being taken. Thus, I loved the results when days later, Bryan created a collage of the various shower scenes, as if I was being stalked... the image of this is among the right hand side of this blog...

So concluded our shoot. It was fun and exciting, although at one point we ran a bit out of ideas given the limited space we had in the hotel room. Nevertheless, I think we nailed quite a number of great concepts. I would definitely work with Bryan again, and we plan to shoot soon once our schedules are cleared up. Thanks so much,Bryan, I look forward to it!

...Oh, and now imagine the reaction of the receptionist when I

passed by the lobby with my makeup smudged and hair wet and still wearing my gaudy leopard skin coat!

For more trashy images of this shoot, click onto http://www.flickr.com/photos/minimiu/sets/72157625116446429/

The Naughty Socialite - shot by John Mayle

2010-10-19T17:04:00.014+02:00

The many wonders of modeling is exploring creativity and challenge versatility. One minute it's cute and bubblegum glamour, next minute I'm the femme fatale with an evil smirk, another it's the scared and vulnerable look. Anything to bring men down to their knees! Well this time, I thought I'd play the sophisticated but sexy socialite, that elegant high society housewife or that poor little rich debutante... whichever you choose, a secretly naughty one too!

I was involved in several group shoots arranged by the F8 Glamour Club based in Northolt, near London, the first time being around the beginning of 2009. One of the togs I had modeled for there is Jon Mayle who recently got in touch with me to do a one-to-one shoot. As I was very pleased with his work from the group shoots where I did lingerie and glamour nude stuff, I jumped at the opportunity. After a few months of corresponding due to me traveling so much, we fixed the date for Saturday 6 October 2010 at our place.

Jon was, to quote, "after a high-end 'erotic fashion;, sultry sophisticated, provocative and confident look. So designer dresses with plunging necklines, short or split hem." And hence, my outfits designed by my friend, Farzana Warasta, in Amsterdam were perfect. Also, the dresses designed by Lola who is based in Kensington Church Street in London were also great. Jon was also after testing to see what sort of lighting equipment he should invest on and hence wanted to experiment with built-in flash and reflectors at a home shoot. Considering it was a dull October morning, I must say the results turned out rather well!

We started in the bedroom with the white sheets and cream-coloured walls as the room faces Southeast. I first wore my purple dress which had a plunging neckline, so low and plunging in fact that you need "tittie" tape to hold it in place! This was accompanied by a string of pearls. Next I changed into a brown low-cut tight-fitting cocktail dress with diamante straps designed by Lola in London accompanied by some necklace I bought at a flea market in Amsterdam! The final outfit for this setting was a magenta pink dress from Farzana. As the dress had a split in the middle, I thought wearing a pair of nude holdups with lace tops would be quite tantalising... In this scene, I was to be devouring a bowl of my favourite fruit, strawberries!!!

We proceeded to shoot in the lounge downstairs with all the gorgeous furnitures. As the decor was rather dark I thought I'd change into a metalic mustard-yellow dress. It's extremely tight and rather short with a split on the side so high it's obscene yet the outfit somewhat manages to avoid looking trashy. I have however yet to find an occasion to wear this without raising eyebrows! Again, a pair of nude holdups I thought would be perfect for this dress too. The final outfit of the day was a black dress. Yes an LBD as one would call it but similar to the purple outfit, it is has a plunging neckline...

After 5 outfit changes, Jon was happy with the images so we called it a day. We were both surprised how well the lighting turned out despite limited equipment and mediocre natural light on a dull day. I also thoroughly enjoyed my shoot with Jon today. Though rather quiet and reserved, he is very pleasant and polite as well as being organised, knowing exactly what he wanted in the shoot. Both of us felt more at ease being able to do a one-on-one shoot without the frustrations of a group shoot where all the togs randomly click away or queue up so time is lost. It's also less tedious for the model too who has to do the same pose to satisfy each tog...

Few days on, Jon emailed me the images which turned out well. Sexy and sensual whilst sophisticated and sultry. I'm glad both of us were able to achieve what we were looking to do. I'd definitely work with Jon again. Thank you so much!

For more pictures of this shoot, you won't find it in Hello magazine... but you will on my Flickr page: http://www.flickr.com/photos/minimiu/sets/72157625210498854/

Kinky Outdoors Fashion Shoot with Tim Rosier

2010-10-11T18:34:00.015+02:00

Ok... so what's my new excuse for this tardiness? The internet at our Amsterdam pad was down for 5 days! So therefore I was unable to do much but catch up with emails via wifi at the local cafe. Still maybe that's no excuse to keep my friends all waiting for my latest!

September has been a busy month though nothing I can't handle (!). Travelling to and around Amsterdam and back, visiting Mum in London and trying to fit in shoots whenever possible. One of them was with Tim Rosier from Northampton with whom I have previously worked doing fetish/erotic images in a derelict army barrack. This time though, we thought we'd focus on something more modest like actually wearing clothes! We decided to work together again on 18 September 2010 as we were firstly pleased with how our first shoot together went but also because I was participating in the Sin City group shoot (to be blogged soon) in his area with his wife, Karenza. They offered to put me up that evening so we could do a shoot the next day.

Rising quite early we set off around 10-ish to catch the morning sun. The day was rather warm as Tim drove us to a nearby woods with a lake which was relatively deserted as it was a weekday. I quickly slipped onto Outfit I, a PVC bra with leather shorts I was going to use for the Sin City group shoot the day before. Along those were a pair of black PVC gloves, fishnet tights and black/silver ankle boots as well as pasties as the bra had open holes to satisfy FB-friendliness! Oh and we mustn't forget that spiky collar I bought in Amsterdam. The contrast between the harsh outfit and the serenity of the woods created some interesting images.

Outfit II was that sexy red lace dress I got in Unzipped in Amsterdam a week before. It's a short body-con tube dress opened in the middle to expose the abs, ultimately hot! Again, the dress really blended well with the background. We love how the red contrasts well with the greenery behind. And then we broke up for lunch at Tim's place where Karenza kindly left me a bowl of pasta salad to satisfy my need for lots of energy.

After lunch and coffee, Tim drove us to another venue. Another

woodland! The evening before, I was watching a music channel on TV with Karenza and Tim. It featured Madonna's early hits, one of them being "Like a Virgin".... man was she so young then! But then weren't we all. Her white lace dress with plenty of jewelry accessorised around the wrists and neck including a crucifix pendant inspired me as I happened to have a lacy mini dress I had purchased in France more than 10 years ago! I took the liberty to borrow the pearls and accessories from Karenza, so thanks to her for leaving it in the hallway from yesterday's shoot. Minus the big hair Madonna had, I think I did a pretty good job emulating. So it was leaning against the tree looking pure and virginal as possible... The results came out quite well, especially with the white against the tree....

Final set, Outfit IV, was a simple blue tube dress from American Apparel. Earlier on when

we were hiking to find a suitable spot, Tim had spotted an abandoned fridge strewn smack in the middle of the woods. Bless the owner who was too cheap to pay for disposal costs and instead had it carried and dumped! Along with the dress I wore a pair of black fishnet tights and my favourite spiky stilettos, posing next to and on top of this fridge in the middle of the woods. It sure made a very interesting concept! We also did a few shots of me on a hill struggling to climb up in my stilettos. However, as the light was diminishing as the day drew, we didn't manage to nail any decent images. But at least the fridge scene worked well!

With the day becoming dull, we decided to call it a day. Once again, Tim displayed his talent as photographer to perfection as he meticulously handled the lighting. Even when one of the flash guns didn't work at the end of the first set, rather than panic he calmly headed for the reflectors. He sent me the edited images within a few weeks, and I was very pleased with the results. Thank you, Tim! I hope to work with you

in the near future soon!

For more images of this shoot, log onto http://www.flickr.com/photos/minimiu/sets/72157625142579258/

Commercial Shoot Debut with Unzipped

2010-09-27T17:59:00.020+02:00

So here I'm sitting in our beautiful Amsterdam apartment resting after weeks of insane working and travelling. Weeks of back to back shoots when I'm not visiting mum in London or tending our Horsham home. It's raining here again outside so what to do apart from going to the local gym and playing with Facebook? Updating my blog!!!

Well I figured that whilst I'm out here I may as well tell you about my very first commercial shoot. Out in Amsterdam! There is this wonderful shop called UNZIPPED on Centuurbaan in centre of Amsterdam selling all these hot sexy club wear as well as swimwear which my husband had discovered and introduced me to some time ago. And boy, was that a mistake for him...cuz since then...I've been a regular customer!

The shop is jointly run by Anja and Arthur both who are wonderful people with really awesome ideas for designing outfits. They look good on almost anyone even for the more vertically challenged like myself! The clubwear include good quality stretch PVC in red and black (pink has unfortunately been discontinued) and some sheer garments including those in my favourite pattern, animal print. Then there is also the hot sexy and skimpy swimwear collection in all colours of the spectrum including day-glo pink, green and yellow. You can mix and match the various tops to the bottoms which come to the ultimate skimpiest of thongs! Anja has also been showing me the different ways to wear and tie a simple bikini top...

It was my husband who initially coaxed me to try getting some modeling work with Unzipped for publicity stunts such as their website and posters. However as predicted it proved impossible because tall lean and leggy girls were the look they were after as typical in the fashion world. Besides, the outfits are skimpy and tight they may be well suited for the "better endowed". I further seem to recall they were contracted with an agency for their publicity so it wasn't up to them to choose. Still no hard feelings, as I continued frequenting their shop to stock up on all the hot outfits the photographers would love to see me in! And not to forget feeling sexy strutting around in all the barely-there bikinis by the poolside!

Then one day, that fateful spring day when I was trying on some outfits at their shop, a poster popped out in the changing room. A photographer was searching for models for portfolio enhancement. Initially reluctant to question it after being "turned down" the first time, I just casually asked Anja what that poster was all about and she told me I was very lucky today because the photographer in question happened to be in the shop so I could have a word with him! Enter Bart Sluiter... he had just returned to Holland after living in Curacao for some time and was looking for work and hence models to enhance his portfolio. I suppose Unzipped was also looking for some fresh faces and even ethnic diversity to appeal to "normal" women like myself.

With co-manager/owner Arthur there too, I had a chat with Bart. What an easy going friendly fella he was! Must be all the sun and carefree lifestyle he adopted in Curacao. And he was very keen to work with me given my experience in modeling, positive attitude and enthusiasm. Keeping in mind the reluctance by management to use petite models, I asked if my height was going to be a problem but he kindly responded that with the right angle and some help of photoshop, I could appear taller in photos. Sounds obvious but I often wonder why a lot of fashion photographers don't think of that! After a brief chat, we kept in touch and set up a shooting date for the next time I was there, that is 13 June 2010. I couldn't wait!

The shoot took place at Bart's apartment in Amsterdam, where I was also greeted by his assistant, Claire, a very sweet and lively Scottish "lass" who also helps at the shop. All the clothes were provided from Unzipped which included a pvc red mini skirt with zippers on the sides and matching red bikini top, another red pvc outfit but a skimpy two-piece "swimsuit" with a collar attached and a cute sheer leopard skin top & bottom with matching "gloves". In addition, Bart asked me to bring a black bikini and ankle boots. We also did a shoot where I was to be lying down in a bikini pretending to be sunbathing in a boat from which Bart would superimpose a scenery from a busy Amsterdam canal!

In all the shoot went very well and we had so much fun! We all clicked and gelled together immediately. Am also pleased to make another new friend that day. Claire is from Scotland where my husband is also from and recently moved to Holland. She's also a pole-dancer and is keen to give lessons to the girls whilst out here so now I got someone to practise with and have a good laugh! And who knows maybe if I become good enough she might let me have a go at one of her gigs...

In August, I was featured in the summer advertising campaign that was e-mailed to everyone on the mailing list. Further, three of my photos appeared in the website in the mail-order section.... the two red PVC outfits. How cool is that! I hope I have further opportunities to do this again. Well fingers crossed.... Anja expressed how happy she was and even complimented me on my healthy complexion and "good skin" so I must be doing something right! Thank you everyone for giving me this chance and thanks, Bart, for believing in me... that even shorter models can be given a chance to do some fashion, especially in a hot happening label like unzipped! Will be dropping by more often now...

Log onto http://www.unzipped.nl to check out this hot and happening Dutch clothing line...

Sweet Happy Nude Shoot in the Dunes

2010-09-25T23:36:00.007+02:00

Sadly summer is over as we are now approaching October soon. Then the clocks will start changing and we will really feel the Winter! I therefore just wanted to share you my VERY LAST OUTDOORS NUDE SHOOT for 2010 which took place on 19 August 2010. This was in Heemstede, Netherlands about 32 km from Amsterdam, and the photographer in question is known as Dutch Nude Art on Model Mayhem as he specifically requested me to refer to him as on the blog.

Although August was not such a great month in terms of weather, it was only this day we were very lucky. Pleasant and warm without being irritatingly scorching and morover, perfect for outdoors photography without the strong sun. Neither of us remember how we first got in touch, but we found each other on Model Mayhem where I noticed his nude photography work taken place outdoors on what I had assumed was a beach. I suppose I always wanted to do a shoot posing naked on the beach which is rather impossible in the UK especially in neighbouring Brighton where are too just many people and prying eyes. And I grew a tad tired of doing nude shoots in the woods too! Well it turned out that the venue in question was not a beach in Zandvoort but in the middle of the Dutch Dunes not too far from Amsterdam!

We met up at Heemstede-Aardenhout station and we took a bus for about 20 minutes to the dunes, known as Amsterdamse Waterleidingduinen or Amsterdam Water Supply Dunes. It is where the drinking water for Amsterdam is made available via rainwater and pipes scattered around the vast dunes which get purified for consumption. With a rucksack on my back (it was

a nude shoot why do I need extra outfits???) and trainers on my feet, I accompanied the tog through the park which led to the dunes. It was the second day of my Cabbage Soup I recall, the fruit & veg only day, which meant I had no carbs for the energy so I was extra cautious to take it easy by drinking plenty of water. Luckily I'm fit so I survived!

We camped out on several spots throughout the day. Most amazing was that there was NOT A SINGLE SOUL in site! Not even the odd dog walker. How awesome is that! So I was free to roam around in the nude as I pleased which of course suited me. We walked around and hiked hours on end whilst pausing for some shots. All took place in the sand and at one point we found a couple of half-dead trees where I posed. In the end, we settled at this area smack in the middle of the dunes.

After a few shots, the tog had this brilliant idea of getting me to dance, jump up and down and run around in the nude. It was to be from the static to the dynamic. At first I seemed a little shy and reticent but as I got accustomed to it I had so much fun! Recalling that 80's Steve Martin film, "L.A. Story" and how the very young and ditzy but free-spirited Sarah Jessica-Parker starts "spinning around" the beach, I started to feel all the joie-de-vivre resurface in me. I never felt so free and happy for months simply doing crazy things like run, skip and jump like a little child. What a rejuvinating and therapeutic experience that was. I very much recommend that!

Once we decided we nailed enough images we decided to call it a day. It took at least 30 minutes to walk to the gate where we could catch the bus back to the station. However, we realised that we missed the bus and that the next one would be in more than an hour! So rather than hang around and wait, we thought, why not just WALK to the nearby station which was a stop after Heemstede-Ardenhout where we had met up. That would be another 30 minutes or so. But I didn't mind at all. I love walking, keeping fit and enjoying the scenery of the Dutch countryside although much of it is flat fields with cows. Throughout the walk we got to know each other better, talking about families and life in Holland as we're both foreigners (he's half-Peruvian) And the tog was so impressed if a little pleasantly surprised that I didn't complain even once. It's called professionalism... Hope I scored more brownie point on that one!

Once we arrived at the station, we went our separate ways as I took the train back to Amsterdam and he had to go the opposite direction. I had so much fun that day! Though I was just about to collapse with exhaustion when I got home, it was worth it. The tog immediately sent me a contact sheet from which I was to choose 50 images for him to enlarge which in turn I was to select 10 of my favourites for editing. It was a difficult decision as I liked almost all of them! He got me the edits almost immediately after I selected both in colour and B&W. They're so beautiful and so happy. Thank you so much for making my day! I plan to shoot with him again next year of course when the sun is out again...

Shibari Shoot with Niko & Dave

2010-09-15T12:31:00.016+02:00

I had my second Shibari experience in the summer during my East Midlands Tour. The evening following the latex shoot with Les Harwick (as per last entry), I boarded the bus to Ilkeston on 1 August 2010 to work with Niko and her partner and shibari expert Dave Wykd. And what a fine experience it was!

Niko began photography recently but is also a model known as Clover, a sweet and lovely young Irish girl from Dublin studying in Nottingham. It was from Fetlife that she "discovered" me and sent me a message asking me if I'd like to work with her and David for a shibarishoot. I have seen the works of both of them, Niko for her quality images and David for

his beautiful ropework, so I immediately jumped at the opportunity as I was looking to add some more such images in my portfolio, especially after having enjoyed the experience with Rod MacDonald some months before!

After an hour or so bus ride from Nottingham to Ilkeston, I was met up by Niko at the town square, and we walked to their home. She was just as I imagined, very sweet and hospitable! As I was still full up from the pub curry lunch earlier in the day, I let them have their dinner before meeting up with me and arrived at the doorstep where David greeted me. Their front room is used a studio in which the windows were curtained and the walls painted red though Niko typically takes her photos B&W. With the shoot starting the next morning, we just chatted, browsed through various books on rope bondage, relaxed and watched TV and "St.Trinian's II" before retiring off to bed.

Next morning after shower and nipping to Tesco's to buy lunch and dinner, we proceeded with the shoot. But first...Niko instructed me NOT to wear any make-up or do my hair! In fact, it was Dave who initially shook his head when Niko suggested shooting me. The reason? Because I was too made up. Natural was the look they were after. Imagine doing a shoot with no make-up on! But being a skillful make-up artist, though, I have to confess I did slap on some foundation and powder to even out my skin tone and prevent shine, along with eyeliner and mascara to enhance eyes (no false lashes this time!), blusher for a healthy glow and lipliner and clear lip gloss for a fresh-faced natural look. Sorry guys but I couldn't resist!

We started the session with me dressed in a white yukata (Japanese-style gown) with sakura cherry blossom patterns. Dave tied me up around the chest (shinju) and upper arms with my hands tied back with the aim of suspending me from the back before I was stripped off t

he yukata and in nude, as Niko clicked away. Then Dave proceeded in getting me to squat and tying my thighs to my legs whilst knees bent, a terminology known as futomomo (means "thick thigh" in Japanese).

Luckily my Japanese upbringing has enabled me to be able to squat for a reasonable amount of time though I do get pins and needles as my family always used Western furniture like chairs and tables.

With my hands tied back, arms pinned to my sides and knees bent, Dave tied the ropes on my back to the pulley suspension from the ceiling. Scary!!! Even scarier was Dave gently pulling the ropes so that I was really upside down! However, once I was upside down, I was somewhat feeling good, letting the world go by and enjoying the ride. Niko meanwhile was clicking away, knowing exactly which position to shoot from and with experience had the lighting to her satisfaction so there was no faffing about.

Once I was taken down for a swig of water, I got into my yukata and we did some floorwork concentrating on the upper body. This involved binding my arms behind my back and creating patterns with the ropework. One of them is called teppo which means rifle in Japanese, implying a soldier carrying a rifle on his back. It was amazing what a beautiful artwork rope-tying makes! Before breaking up for lunch, we did a quick set in which I was in my yukata again, tied in the chest area with my arms behind and gagged with the same rope. A matching blindfold with the yukata pattern was added for more effect.

Then after lunch, we resumed with more floorwork this time using a bamboo pole which Dave suspended low until it was just a foot off the ground. I was to lie down on the floor being tied to the pole by my ankles, looking helpless as my arms were crossed over my chest and bound. We also added a cloth gag as well. Then the ropes came off and I was ready for another suspension action!

This time, I was suspended horizonally from ceiling along a strong bamboo pole. The pole was strong alright! Ropes were used to suspend me from my ankle, mid thigh, waist and chest. In order to prevent my bottom leg from dangling, it was tied to my other leg knees bent. That was the most difficult position of all, even more than being upsidedown. Upsidedown, at least one can just dangle. But sideways, one really needs to use body strength to keep upright ev

en despite the ropes helping. It was most challenging but my favorite of my images of the day!

The shoot was concluded by more floorwork but at a sitting position . It was a combination of the futomomo on my left leg (tying my upper and lower leg together with knees bent) and tying my lower and upper arm together with elbow bent) on on my left arm. However, my right forearm was to be tied to my right shin area! It really made an interesting effect (see pic on the right hand side of blog) . Once I was untied I not only felt "released" but also very exhausted and a little spaced out. I was nevertheless very pleased with how the shoot went and how the day progressed observing the wonders of ropework. Apart from its effect from a rope-bondage perspective, the point of shibari is for aesthetic purposes, a reason why I enjoy participating.

We had a quick dinner before Dave and Nico drove me to Nottingham station, and we had some coffee whilst waiting for my train back to London. Their hospitality was well appreciated as well as their quality of work and the teamwork. It also helps that Nico is also a model and hence appreciates what it's like to be on our side of the camera. Once I made my choices of ten photos for Niko to edit, I received them a few days after, and was very pleased with the results. I would definitely work with them again... THANK YOU, NICO AND DAVE!!!

Kinky Latex Shoot with Les Hardwick

2010-09-09T01:03:00.010+02:00

Oh no, not again... getting slack again with my blog! I've got such a backlog, it' not even funny. Still it keeps everyone in suspense as to what more naughty stuff I've been up to! Well remember last winter when i went on a West Midlands tour around Birmingham? Well this summer, It thought I'd check out EAST Midlands! A mini one actually, two shoots... one in Nottingham town centre and another one near Derby... So on 31 July 2010, I shot with Les Harwick...

I discovered Les on Model Mayhem or more likely it was he who discovered me as he had left a few comments on my pics on the site. When I checked out his work I was well impressed! Edgy and classy yet sexy and chic, I loved his style. Plus he dresses his gorgeous models with lot of latex which of course I was dying to do. I had another shoot already booked the first weekend in August in the Nottingham area asked so if he were available. And yay, he was!

Les picked me up from Nottingham station and drove me to his studio which occupied part of the British Legion building. What an awesome fella he is and very wordly as well as he spoke of all the travels he does around the globe. He's even been to Japan and as I write, he's trecking out in Vietnam and Cambodia, the lucky man! Les was also formerly a glamour photographer but gave it up as he was getting a tad fed up with the "same stuff" and moved onto the alternative scene where there is plenty of room to explore and be creative. I sympathised with that which is why I am diversifying from glamour work as well although age is another reason I'm also moving on...

Les provided all the outfits, but all I had to do was to provide the footwear as I warned him that I intended to travel light. For the first set, he gave me a gorgeous nylon body stocking over which I were to wear a latex underbust basque. This was finished off with a pair of my thigh high boots and an airforce cap. The set in the studio was well thought out with a

vintage trunk surrounded by heaps of old newspaper apparently found in the building... dated in the 1940s!! Now that's what I call retro. So there I was looking fierce and oh so dominatrix, with a touch of burlesque thrown in. Towards the end, I was asked to rip the body stocking I was wearing in shreds. I really liked those body stockings and nearly protested but then it made me feel good to release all the repressed anger and grief I tend to bottle up...

For the next set, we thought we'd fit in a headshot image. I have been looking to get some gorgeous ones done as much of the them I have tend to be cropped from images and hence fail to provide good quality resolution. Whilst Les was going to provide me with a makeup artist, she unfortunately fell ill at the last minute which was a pity as I was looking to have my eyes elaborately done which I'd find difficult to do myself. Though I'm a makeup artist myself and happy to do my own, I would be curious to see a different face from another hand too. Oh well next time! Les had an ingenious way of providing a light box with ringflash effect which he made himself using a wooden board with a ring of lightbulbs. The idea was for the ring area to surround the pupils of my eyes so as to brighten up the eyes and provide a smooth and flattering finish on the complexion. I was provided with a beautiful black and crimson feather band to put around my neck.... and wow, the result of it! And amazing how a headshot always looks better at an angle rather than facing square onto the camera....

For the final set, I was given an awesome latex set of black "holdups", gloves and matching bra & panty set and wore a pair of my usual kinky steel heel stilletos. Oh and it also came with a cute black/white bowtie choker! I felt ever so sexy wearing it all... making me feel so mean again! I now understand why latex is such a hot item as it's not only because of the second-skin feel but it really does make a woman feel powerful. And boy did I feel it! We did a number of shots of me leaning against the grey concrete wall which really enhanced the shine and gloss of the outfit. And he result again? Wow!!!

The shoot was concluded with Les kindly taking me out for a pub lunch locally where I had my healthy fare of British-style vegetarian curry on rice! He gave me leads meanwhile on how to get more work in the alternative scene and encouragingly reassured me I had great potential for it. It was suggested that I join an agency called Dark Arts but when I looked at the site, hmmm... they are waaay beyond my league! While Les' images will definitely give me a promising start when applying, I really need to add more and work with togs who are as good as him. If I continue at this pace, well, fingers crossed!

I will definitely be working with Les again and hope to schedule a trip to Nottingham again soon. Les was nothing but friendly, considerate and funny while taking his work seriously and knows exactly how to make a model look good. I'm very happy with the images too and look forward to getting more...Thank you so much!

My First Shoot in Belgium and it's BDSM!

2010-08-23T14:57:00.012+02:00

I am proud to announce my very first shoot in Belgium, let alone with a Belgian photographer. Being aware that I travel to Holland frequently, Joris (known as Sansflash on Fetlife) discovered me on FetLife where he invited me to shoot with him in Antwerp on my way back. I nowadays travel by train between UK and Holland, via Belgium so Antwerp seemed a perfect opportunity as it was along theway. I had a peek through his work and was impressed with the work of this experienced photographer. Like me, he is always looking to do something new and different and enjoys exploring with creativity.

The following early morning after Chris Morley's shoot (below), I hopped on the train from Breda bound for Antwerp. Joris picked me up at the station. I was surprised to see how much younger he looked in real life which he was pleased to hear! After some breakfast at a cafe chatting about ourselves and discussing the shoot, we drove to the venue, a derelict petroleum factory just outside town.

Wow, it was derelict alright! Though it was safe enough to walkaround even after 2 flights of stairs, all what was left was the concrete foundation along with all the dust and debris on the ground. A homeless guy is usually there on the ground floor with his desk and chair to "guard" the place but he was nowhere to be seen. It was upstairs where we decided to set our "base camp" with all our gear and area for changing. Joris emptied out his suitcase to show me what he had in mind for outfits. As I had warned him previously that as I was running around by train and hence wished to travel lightly, he assured that all I needed to bring were a small amount of lingerie and a pair of stilettos. Joris works with the theatre when he's not taking pictures so he had a great selection of outfits for me to wear, all well thought-out.

The first set... a Japanese schoolgirl!!! I was quite impressed that he managed to dig out a sera-fuku school uniform, a white and grey one which is typically worn in Japan during the warm seasons. Accompanied with this were a pair of white knee socks and a pair of brown penny loafers which I vowed I'd never be caught dead in since I left school! Joris had a bag full of green apples which I used as props. First, to munch with innocently and then to place a big pile between my legs whilst exposing my white panties like a naughty little girl. Because of this naughtiness, I was to be "punished" for it by being tied up. Joris started by tying my hands back and around my chest area shinjuu-style then looking as if I'm being suspended to the ceiling from the back. We decided to add some spice with a ball gag as well as getting my nipples clamped with clothespins... and switched that to, and listen to this, pairs of chopsticks (see pic)!!

For the second set... I was now a Belgian schoolgirl!! Outfits consisted of a navy pinafore with a blouse underneath finished with a red tie. Very cute. We went downstairs and got seated where I was to brandish a

stick and create different moods and facial expressions while Joris clicked away: sweet, innocent, mean, threatening, pensive, sentimental.... then to naughty by again exposing my white panties looking "oops!". We then went upstairs facing a pane-less window for effective lighting. Joris tied me up again, just around the chest area. Then he had this ingenious idea of using a flute as a gag across my mouth! Finally we had my wrists tied together and "suspended" from above. Before we proceeded to the final set, Joris wanted to quickly shoot some nudies of me(!) but this time just holding a Samurai sword. I was to look serene and calm in it, whilst looking invincible. We managed to come up with this beautiful photograph which I have uploaded on the right hand side of the blog.

The final set... Pet Girl! This was all new to me and I had quite a giggle doing this. I was to wear a white tutu, pink legwarmers, matching hairband and a pair of white sandals looking like a lost little kitten. Sitting on a flat crate and after a few cute poses, Joris bound my wrists with a leather band and chained them onto a wooden stick which lay across my shoulders like a yodel

reminiscent of the first scene in the film, "The Secretary". After that, we decided to lose the white headband as it looked so embarrassingly 1980s "Flashdance" especially with the pink legwarmers and my naturally floppy hair which didn't quite fit in the atmosphere. After a few shots of me looking distaught and looking like an aggravated cat, Joris adorned me with a collar and leash, when I was to go on all fours with a milk dish in front of me. Hehe that was fun! But then TWO COPS MARCHED IN!!! I was so paralysed with shock I froze until I realised I was still on all fours clad in the same tutu with that milk dish in front of me!

Nah, we didn't get into any trouble. Joris and the cops exchanged words in Flemish, and luckily I had my passport with me at hand so they could check ID. I don't think either of them has ever seen a Japanese passport before as they marvelled at all the strange characters and all the stamps from my travels. Still, they were very calm, cool and in fact quite friendly and seemed interested in our work. We were simply told we shouldn't be in the derelict building as it's dangerous, so we decided to call it a day. Thankfully, Joris and I managed to nail some good images we wanted. Wow what an adventure that was!

Once back in England, I was very exhausted. First travelling to Breda for a shoot, then up and early for another one in Antwerp before catching a train for a long journey back to England. It was well worth it though! Joris was relaxed and considerate, whilst being a very creative photographer with ideas well thought-out and organised. Considering the amount of pictures we took, he managed to turn them all around and mail them over to me within an impressive 48 hours. There must be over 300 of them, and I'm still sifting through to see which ones go on Flickr, which by the way ought to be uploaded soonest! I would definitely work with Joris again when I have the time again to stop by Antwerp en-route.. DANK U WEL, JORIS!!

Shooting with Chris Morley in Breda, NL

2010-08-18T19:11:00.010+02:00

Again I have been rather slack in updating my blog when I tell myself I should do it at least weekly. If only I had more time! Last week I was over at my in-laws in Scotland. Then in Amsterdam just chilling out. Whilst in Holland frequently, I have been slowly building up my network mainly through Model Mayhem. There are quite a number of quality togs about there and compared with the U.K. not inundated with GWCs ("guys with cameras"), and I've been pleased with every one of them. Another of such tog is Chris Morley. Chris is British but when he came to Holland for work about 15 odd years ago, he loved it so much he decided to stay! And who can blame him?

After few exchanges by e-mail and phonecalls, Chris and I finally agreed on a date for 28 July 2010. I would have been on my way back to England by train so Breda, where he is located, was a good stop-over before I continued onto Antwerp for another shoot then to Brussels to catch the Eurostar. Numerous phonecalls with Chris and his wife, Sandy, also from England but a long-term resident of Holland for 30 years or so, proved that they were going to be pleasant company...very friendly, welcoming and keen to have me over. I was very much looking forward to meeting them!

Chris picked me up from Breda train station. As I predicted he was very pleasant and immediately made me feel at ease. He served me some lunch when we got to their place and chatted until his wife Sandy arrived back from work. As she did, it was all big hugs as if we already knew each other for ages! So amicable and you could talk to her about anything. Once we discussed our ideas and they showed me around the house, we got down to business.

Inspired from an image I put on a "Miu's killer pics" on Model Mayhem,

Chris suggested we start with an image of me squatting on a table clad in a red Chinese-style halter top, stiletto heels and grabbing a samurai sword. I normally prefer not to be wearing a kimono or brandishing a samurai sword as I find such images as cheesy and even rather offensive as it depicts a racial stereotype but I make a few exceptions if it's appropriate. In this case, Chris' and the MM image concept were quite tasteful as it was artistic and edgy. And it was! I was very pleased with the result...

I brought some corsets in Amsterdam a few months ago and couldn't wait to show them off so I hinted the idea of getting shot in one whilst there. Besides, it helps when someone like Sandy is around to tighten it for me. We all agreed on this gorgeous satin jade-green one as seen above with which I wore a black patent leather collar. Initially when Chris first sent the edited image to me, I was not too keen about my facial expression but over time, it has grown on me. Still, he said that next time we shoot, I could bring the corset again and have another shot at it. Well we shall see...

We decided that we leave the leather collar on my neck throughout the rest of the shoot. I think Chris figured that I'd be well-suited to do fetish images though nothing extreme. The next set I borrowed a pair of pretty lace tights. It was intended to be black but when we opened the packet, it was brown. However, it worked out for the better as it made the image less harsh and actually blended well with my then-tanner complexion from my holidays in Greece! Chris edited the image of me in the middle of getting the tights off my hips which is actually my favourite of today's images (see among the images on the right), as it is simple but sexy, enhances my skin tone and most of all my abs look leaner!

The remainder of the shoot we concentrated on "erotic" nudes using low-key lighting. Though I've done numerous images of this sort, I find it one of my strengths as it brings out muscle definition and curves, thanks to all the working out I do! Before we proceeded, Chris took some headshots as I expressed the need of some decent ones. We nailed a good one of me smiling though wearing that leather collar which looked rather cute (see above picture). Then we turned the lights down and shot quite a number of images of me pretending to "play with myself" and looking immersed in it yet managing to keep them tasteful and not at all vulgar. The results were outstanding. In fact I was quite chuffed to receive an email from Chris this afternoon telling me he selected a number of the pictures from the tights and erotic nude sets for his portfolio and given he sets high standards to images, I too must be doing something right!

We concluded the shoot and had some dinner which Sandy prepared. As I was spending the night there before catching my train to Antwerp early next morning for another shoot before returning to England, we sat up and chatted as well. Getting to know them more, I would definitely like to work with Chris again. Not only was he, along with his wife, hospitable and kind, he's also very serious about his work and knows what he wants from the images by his meticulous use of lighting equipment and direction which he did well. Thank you so much, Chris and Sandy, for your time. I look forward to our next shoot hopefully in late-September!

More of Chris' outstanding work can be found on http://www.cdmfoto.com.

Hey it's the Preston Park Princess!

2010-08-06T18:17:00.013+02:00

Summer is here! Or rather "was" considering the crap weather even in August. Lacking some good swimwear images in my portfolio, I decided to post a casting call on Model Mayhem back in July looking for quality photographers with whom to collaborate for outdoors shoots in swimwear. Further, I have drawers full of pretty bikinis and swimwear from hot brands like Halcyon Blue and Dutch-based Unzipped and uh ok American Apparel too. And then there was my tan from my numerously bragged about outdoors nude sunbathing I wanted to show off. So why not flaunt them all?

I had quite a lot of responses to my casting all but as I could only pick a couple of them, I had to be very selective. One of such photographer was Jeff Mood who is based near Brighton. After days of correspondence and being very impressed with his work, we decided to shoot in Preston Park on 8 July 2o10. The park is on the way to Brighton, just outside it in fact, and is rather huge with lots of beautiful folliage and scenery from where to shoot. Jeff was also keen on adding some outdoors shoots, swimwear and lingerie in particular, in his portfolio. Though I was initially casting for swimwear, lingerie was ideal for me too as I usually do that indoors so an outdoors one would be something different.

I drove towards the park and Jeff met me where I parked my car on the street. With a backpack on my back, I followed him to find areas where to shoot. We found a leafy area near the bushes and did our first set where I was wearing a violet and pink bikini. Jeff was happy to let me pose how I saw fit which he was happy about, but at the same time gave me some directions as suggestions. Then we went to an open area with trees, and there I changed into a bright pink lingerie set with a denim vest on to add some cuteness. We decided to stay in the same area as the light was good as I changed into my light blue and white bikini where I posed sitting on a log.

Then we moved to a wooden bridge, hoping that nobody would pass by. I changed into a neon orangey-pink bikini from Unzipped and snapped a few though it was getting a tad too bright because of the strong sun as noon was approaching. As Jeff liked the pink lingerie I had worn earlier, I got into that, and the light was improving. Then came some teenage schoolboys who were very boisterous and sat by to watch. One of them shouted if he could have a photo taken with me but we had to decline as he was under-age. I must say I was sadly flattered, though, considering nobody gave me the time of the day when I was their age!

We then broke up for lunch at a nearby cafe for some sandwiches, discussing what we had done so far. When Jeff showed me what he had shot so far through his camera view finder, I was very happy with them, and I am very difficult to impress especially when it comes to me wearing something as skimpy! The sun was still strong-ish so we thought we'd wait a while and proceed to shooting at the park shed.

Earlier on, the shed area was infested with volunteer gardeners but as they were all gone for lunch, we thought we'd sneak in a few. The shed was quite a pretty building with a beautiful door. I changed into a zebra-print bikini which would go very well with the house. After a few images there, we moved onto the pond with stepping stones and tall green grasses, again which went very well with the swimwear. Some of the better pictures were taken there as it was not getting too bright.

Our final set was at a very picturesque garden, just a walk away from the main park. Well shaded with the trellis, we found this to be ideal. Unfortunately there were quite a few people strolling here and there but after waiting patiently, we finally got some peace. By then, I was clad in a vibrant tangerine bra and panty set with a knitted white cardy to disguise the lingerie in case someone walked by. We shot a few images there, and when we felt it was safe, we took a few images in front of a big gate that led into a school. Then we called it a day...

I thoroughly enjoyed my session with Jeff. Very outgoing, polite and creative, he was able to churn out quite a number of awesome images. The only issue was with the weather as it was a very bright day, and we feared that would affect the images. Had it not been for Jeff's expertise about planning carefully the location and positions, the images would not have turned out well. I would definitely work with him again, and we plan to do so in the near future. Thank you Jeff!

Held Hostage at Home....with Chris Dee

2010-08-02T12:38:00.009+02:00

I am most certainly getting loads of work from Fetlife as I increasingly show more interest in BDSM and erotica photography. It's all the fun role-playing and creating original ideas which keep me going. Another one of the photographers I met on Fetlife was Chris Dee who is based in Hampshire. He does quite a few work for private collectors but as I like his work so much we agreed to split our time between commissioned work and shooting interesting images to enhance our portfolios. So on 12 July 2010 he drove to our place armed with camera equipment and tons of props!

We wanted to create as much ideas as possible using our home and garden as a base. The bed is of course an obvious choice but we left that for doing lingerie work for his private clients, so we worked on that first where I was clad in a bannana-yellow Agent Provocateur bra and panty set and stripping off. Brand-queen I am, I was gutted I had to cut the labels off the garments so they wont be visible in the images. Mainly glamour stuff...

My dressing room has a dance pole which I occasionally use to spin around if I'm feeling rowdy... it's purely for fitness, I swear! Chris covered the mirrors with black cloth and we did a few sets with me chained and bound on it. Firsly to warm up, I was to dress up as a "stripper" in a pair of pink sequin shorts and matching pasties (tassles) and being chained onto the pole with a padlock to add accent to the image. Then I was to strip naked put a straw sack over my head with a collar on my neck to fasten it... brilliant, the collar said "BITCH" on it too. Hehe. Finally it was without a sack so my face and hence expression could be seen.

I wanted to utilise my extensive shoe collection and somehow incorporate it into my images. One picture I found on Fetlife was of a domme German model in latex and thigh high boots standing with her back to the camera but facing a rack full of shoes. We tried to develop that idea but with me dressed in a pair of pink thigh high boots and black PVC dress. Though the original idea didn't work out (too small a space and I'm not as tall & leggy as the German model), we settled for one where I'm standing in front of all the transparent shoe boxes looking smug...

Next set was our en-suite bathroom. It has white walls and good light as well as a cozy corner under the sink to do some crazy stuff. First was me in nothing but one of Chris' thick collars being strapped on my elbows with a belt and my thumbs bonded together with a cute tiny thumb-cuff, an intriguing concept I have never heard of. Then I was to be bound on a nearby towel rail in a pair of leather cuffs, with that said BITCH collar and now here's the piece-de-resistance, my nipples clamped with the clips from a hanger from NEXT (it's a middle-market UK-based clothing chain)!! Well it did hurt quite a bit but it's just for effect, and man, I had to get Chris to hurry up and click away....

Chris had this pivotal idea of me being thrown in our laundry basket. It's located in our sauna which we hardly use. With underwear and unwashed clothes being strewn on the floor, I hopped into the cylinder basket and got my wrists bound together with leather cuffs with a ball gag in my mouth looking helpless. That was a pretty cool idea! Our indoors sets were concluded with me being chained in nude on the banister of our staircase with me looking rather vacant due to exhaustion and fear.

We then went outside and shot in our garden. Another Fetlife image I was fascinated by was that with a model getting hanged by a rope in front of her bedroom door. All simulated of course! So we thought we'd modify that a bit and have me all nude again with a red rope in front of our garage door leading into the garden. Chris however did mention that it may come into some controversy but we shall see... Then the final seduction: me being tied up with our garden hose!!! I got that idea when I was sunbathing one day in the garden and saw our green hosepipe propped onto the faucet. So poor Chris had to wrap me around in this hosepipe... but it really was an unusual idea which he enthusiastically supported. He also added some input by pointing the shower hose at me and me looking scared as if to say, "Noooo don't spray me please!!!"

I thoroughly enjoyed my shoot with Chris. What a wonderful guy! Full of ideas, friendly, polite and very sympathetic to the model's needs and concerns. The kind of person you could confide in if you have any issues. In fact, he invited me to shoot outdoors with a renowned rigger next month which I'm very much honoured and am looking forward to. I also like to shoot with him again to continue with the many ideas we had but didn't have time to exhaust. Thanks Chris for everything!!!

Outdoors BDSM Shoot with Tim Rosier

2010-07-27T21:53:00.004+02:00

Oops been taking my summer break again for the last few weeks. Having 4-5 shoots in a row and travelling all over UK and even to Holland have taken it's toll but I've been recouperating slowly and now up and ready to face more shoots again! One of those "4-5" shoots included one with Tim Rosier who spotted me on Fetlife site though he has been my "friend" on FB already without me recognising him!

We scheduled the shoot on 9 July just a day or two before his operation. On that hot sunny day, I took took a one-hour train ride up to Northampton where he picked me up. I didn't recognise Tim as he looked so much younger than his picture... needless to say, he returned the compliments.He drove us to an abandoned army barrack in his neck of the woods. Climbing fences and lazily strolling under the sizzling summer heat, we arrived at the ideal setting, a derelict army housing which kept us both cozy and cool in the shade despite all the dust. There were a few small insects flying around and covering me from head to toe but Tim assured me they would not bite and were harmless...

We warmed up our shoot with doing some clothed images. To compliment the army barrack scenery, I donned a pair of camoflauge shorts and matching bikini top and pretending I was a POW being held captive or even better, up to naughty tricks like exposing herself in secret... Tim took a few excellent shots one of my favorite being a bum shot of me with my shorts pulled down... quite naughty... like what happened to GI Jane??? The other point was also the beautiful lighting effect enhanced by a bit of light going through the broken window...

Then we worked on some nudes by the broken window where the light shone through and reflected on my body. Next step was getting cuffed and chained with my wrists behind looking helpless knelt on the dusty ground. It was posted on Fetlife site, and everyone loved my expression! That pleading look!!! We experimented all over the hut and had so much fun trying out different themes. Another one was of me being tied to a wooden crate, the image of which I have yet to wait for. Then was a image of me on all fours looking ferocious like I just came out of the wilderness. It's wonderful to know I could play different roles... from naughty to vulnerable to scary!!!

As I complained on Facebook about having to work on such a hot sunny day, Tim promised me to "tie me to a tree" so I could be exposed to some sunrays. So we went outside and did a few images by the tree though I disappointedly didn't get to be tied to it! But one of the images he posted up on Fetlife was a stunning one... a simple nude where I'm just looking up in space, eyes wide open... it's posted on the pictures to your right...

We called it a day but we nailed quite a few amazing images. Tim has them in black and white which makes them even more effective. After the shoot, he took me to his place where I showered and his wife Karenza kindly prepared us a nice salad dinner. Their hospitality was very much appreciated! As Tim has posted up some images one by one on Fetlife, I am increasingly anxious to receive the rest of the images! He's just had his operation so I don't think I'll rush him too much. Still though, I'm very excited!

Thank you Tim for the awesome shoot. I will definitely work with him again. Easy-going, friendly and energetic, he had very creative ideas and really knows how to work with natural lighting. Let's do it again and next time, I WANNA BE TIED TO A TREE!!!

Shibari Experience with Rod MacDonald

2010-07-11T22:34:00.008+02:00

I have been quite fascinated with the Japanese art of rope bondage, Shibari, for the past year but have been rather apprehensive of it. Enter Rod MacDonald, experienced rigger and photographer based in Cambridge. Twice before, I had the opportunity to work with him in group shoots but only when he was rigger and not photographer and also for a short period. At one group shoot in Brighton, I was tied to the back of a big farm truck and another time to a small wagon in a nuclear bunker!

It was through the fetish website, FetLife, when Rod's partner and model, Alex Ramsay (aka Boykitten) contacted me and suggested we do a shoot together. He also mentioned that Rod was doing a Shibari workshop for models for free at their place on 20 June so I figured I should stay for the weekend and shoot the next day whilst there. I was quite chuffed Alex wanted to do a shoot with me because he is quite renowned and a very experienced alternative model whereas I'm quite a newbie. Further, it was an opportunity for me to shoot with Rod directly and enhance my portfolio in the fetish and bondage scene with a proper rigger and to pose with another model. I was very excited!

I got picked up at Cambridge train station and after a chat over coffee, the other workshop participants arrived. There were only 4 of us which was ideal, and all were quite a fascinating mixture from the fetish scene and one of the most genuine people I have ever met. Rod demonstrated the ins and outs of proper rope bondage, all the do's and dont's down to what sort of ropes to use and how to knot and hitch properly. Hemp rope is the best as it doesn't scratch the skin. We practised on each other basic sorts of shibari techniques... all looked easy while demonstrated but takes lots of patience and correct technique when doing. I doubt I'd ever use that in practice at the moment but it's good to know if in future I work with a rigger, I'd know if he's doing it right.

Next morning after a leisurely breakfast, Rod and I decided to shoot outside in the garden as it was such a beautiful day. I wore my red Japanese happi coat and he bound me in ropes. With such an awesome scenery with the bench and foliage behind me, we nailed a few good images. Funnily enough, it looked quite "Japanese" of me. The next set, Alex joined me and we sat together on the settee to do some erotic nudes which turned out awesome in black and white, followed by me clad in a white leather corset being a domme with Alex worshipping my boots and finally the piece-de-resistance of me trampling over him at the doorstep in my red ankle boots!

For the final set of the day, I was able to get suspended on a tree at last!! I have always been apprehensive to try suspension because of my dodgy back but with the expertise of Rod's ways to get the knots in the right places, I was able to trust him. So there I was hanging on a big branch of a tree, legs and arms sprawled out. I actually found it quite theraeutic surprisingly... I could just let loose in limbo and let the world go by. I have been told that some people do get a little emotional afterwards but as I'm always emotional anyway, I was fine!

The weekend went very well. It was one of the most memorable shoots I have done as a lot of the stuff was new to me as I'm enthusiastically getting into the fetish-BDSM scene. It helps to have supportive togs and models like Rod and Alex as well. I really enjoyed my shoot with Rod who is meticulous about his images and takes pride in his rigging skills yet is relaxed, approachable and very patient. Further, I'm very pleased with the images which arrived sooner than I expected. I would recommend and definitely work with him and Alex again. THANKS GUYS!

Glam Lingerie and Dazzling Dresses with Tony Stubbings

2010-07-03T23:22:00.006+02:00

Again I've been quite slow at updating my blog! Too busy catching up with personal things and plus, the weather has been so beautiful and warm, a rarity in UK, so why sit in front of your computer when you could be working on your tan???

I have a special limited list of favorite photographers with whom I would work over and over again to enhance my portfolio. And it's special and limited for a reason because I'm very very picky and strive for top quality! On the fashion front, there is Tony Stubbings, a commercial professional photographer based in Hove. Back in early 2009, I had the honour to work with him and though I was relatively new to fashion, he gave me various tips for posing and with good lighting and a fan to create wind, we churned out the most fantastic images which I still treasure today as my faves.

So again this summer, I worked with Tony for the third time! (8 June 2010) He expressed his wish to explore the works of German photographer, Ellen von Unwerth, who specialises in "erotic femininity" - ie., edgy, dynamic, some burlesque influence and heavy make-up. By the same token, I wanted to add some pretty colours to my fashion portfolio and bring out the summer by again wearing those sexy vibrant frocks designed by my Dutch friend, Farzana Warasta (whose work you've seen in the photos I took with Phil Moran blogged below). Great trade-off! Still I was also looking to add something different to my portfolio so Tony's idea was very appealing...

We decided to shoot at home rather than a studio which would in particular be a change of scenery for Tony. During the first half of the shoot, we tidied up the garage and I posed in some of Farzana's outfits, in fresh purple, then turquoise, then bright lavender and finally mint green. The first three outfits were shot with the white brickwall background from our garage, but as the mint green was not standing out, we decided to shoot that in our garden with all the folliage. The only thing missing was some background club music to dance to and a huge fan to create some wind. Oh well, still we managed to get by...

Once the fashion shoot was done, we headed for the Ellen von Unwerth stuff, shooting in the bedroom and the lounge. All this is very different from what we've both been accustomed to so it was a challenge which however turned out rather well. With heavier makeup, I was clad in basques and black fishnet stockings looking very stern, but seductive with an "attitude". The first set, I had on a shimmery burgundy basque which in photos looks very striking. Then I changed into a pretty light pink lace basque.

As usual, the day turned out quite well as we managed to nail a good image from each set. Tony sent me a few images a few days later. The results were amazing. All the colours from Farzana's dresses stood out so vibrantly, you'd think you're going to be blinded! And the glam lingerie shoots turned out so well, the burgundy basque one now becoming one of my top 10 on my list of faves with lots of compliments as I posted them up on Model Mayhem and Facebook. Picture is one of the photos among a string of them on the right.

I thoroughly recommend Tony if models want to enhance their fashion portfolio. Never mind if you're only 5' like me...he makes one look a foot taller and so glamourous you'd think the images should appear on the cover of Vogue. Besides, Tony is very easy-going, relaxed and great at giving directions... makes you want to dance whilst he's clicking away. Thanks so much Tony, I look forward to another shoot with you!