Sienna Hayes

I used the window light and shadows for a number of shots. This shot is the unedited version.

I recently had the opportunity to shoot with Sienna Hayes. Sienna is a professional model, headquartered in San Francisco, but travels widely. I shot with her at an airbnb on Queen Anne in Seattle.

The spiral staircase offered a grand opportunity for a memorable photo of Sienna.

I spent a few hours reviewing the many, many airbnb offerings in the metro Seattle area. Most were cluttered, included less than the full property, and were generally non-photogenic. The home I selected had fine windows, excellent light, and interesting features such as a balcony/deck and a spiral staircase.

Shadows on my backdrop, a window with natural light…this produced a dramatic composition made more so by her pose with the twig.

Sienna arrived a few minutes early, and after about 45 seconds of makeup retouch, was ready to go well before the start time for our planned shoot. I gave her a very quick tour of the home and the various places I had in mind to shoot, and she also commented she liked the fact I had also brought along a portable backdrop. I used natural light for most of the shoot, though I did have an LED light and 2 studio strobes with me as well. Within 5 minutes of arrival, Sienna dropped her dress to the floor, stepped out, completely nude. She works as a nude model in virtually all her shoots, and has excellent grasp of the art form.

Sienna has been a professional model for some time. She started modeling in her native Canada. She’s less than fond of Toronto, but we shared stories about vacationing along Lake Huron…Grand Bend, Sarnia and the like. Now she’s working on the road a lot of the time, and plans cities to include on her tours carefully. She also does shoots in the desert. Someday I hope to shoot with her in Santa Fe and desert locations as well.

Sienna understood light better than anyone I’ve shot. Her pose made the most of the available backlighting here.

She’s very respectful and tasteful, and very skilled to see that the shots taken of her are tasteful as well. Sienna Hayes is the best model I have ever worked with at striking a pose, holding it for the shot, then quickly moving to the next pose. She needs very little instruction as to the best positions, and has great awareness of her expressions, her eyes, her hands and so on. She mentioned that she took a big step forward in her craft when she really figured out the importance of hands and how to position them well. She rigorously avoids overtly seductive/sexual shots. She’s a fine art model, and is very aware of the impact of various poses and eye contact. Most poses are not going to be provocative/flirtatious, just beautiful. It is nearly zero the number of shots that must be discarded for a strange expression. For that reason, the number of useable shots in a 2-3 hour shoot will likely exceed what the photographer usually accomplishes.

Another shot using the windows and shadows.

I chose to publish this bog with the opening of my new photography website. The redesign includes a gallery for Fine Art and Nudes, and Sienna Hayes embodies both. The fact that she’s hard working, reliable and congenial with excellent communication and organization skills, well, those are big bonuses. She’s a smart cookie, and is already following her family’s example and learning investment so all this hard work will pay for a lifetime. I extend my thanks for your contribution to my portfolio, Sienna Hayes.