Modeling Types

Models often have questions about the three categories of modeling. The following descriptions should clarify the situation. Regardless of the type of modeling you have agreed to do, it is important for you to discuss the specific costume you will be wearing for the shoot you have agreed to do. It is generally rude to show up insisting on a more conservative outfit than agreed upon.

General - This category is very easy to define. It is modeling wearing the same clothing that would be legal to wear in public. It covers virtually everything: sweats, party dresses, suits, jeans and on and on. It also covers clothing that is acceptable in certain restricted situations that would not be considered acceptable as street clothes, such as bathing suits like bikinis and Speedos.

Lingerie - Defining this category is much more problematic, technically it covers any use of private clothing. Generally this includes underwear like bra, panties, slips, stockings and boxers. It can also be construed to include robes and other drapes, where the model is nude underneath, but the material is strategically placed to cover the more critical regions of the body. The problem is that this category is very broad. On the one end it would include an opaque bra and panties or men's boxers and briefs. While clearly private wear, they are not qualitatively different from a bathing suit. The middle ground is very rich with all sorts of lacy or sheer garments like bras, panties, body stockings and night gowns. The use of sheer drapes would also fall into this area. On the other end, we run into a similar problem. A female model who is wearing a bikini bottom and no top or who is wearing a garter belt and stockings without the bra and panties is still in the Lingerie category, but the qualitative difference between those costumes and Glamour modeling is negligible.

Glamour - Again this category is simple to define, during a significant portion of the shoot the model is nude. Many people confuse nude with naked. A naked person is one that is exposed and vulnerable. A naked person is neither comfortable nor in control of their situation. A nude model is not vulnerable and is completely in control of their own bodies. A nude model is comfortable with their bodies and how they are displayed or at least is trying to present that image. Glamour modeling often starts out with a costume that would be acceptable in either the General or Lingerie category but then proceeds to remove that costume to reveal their purest beauty. Glamour modeling is not sexual in nature, which distinguishes it from pornography. Glamour modeling is often considered to be the highest of photographic art forms involving he human body.

Pornography - THIS TYPE OF MODELING IS NOT USED BY THIS STUDIO. Pornography is images of a sexual nature. Legally, it is only images that depict an actual sexual act. However, the definition used by this studio is much broader. We prohibit the depiction of actual sexual acts, simulated sexual acts and the explicit display of the sexual parts of the body. That specifically excludes the touching of the nipples, anus and vagina. It also excludes any images that appear to look directly into either the anus or vagina. The goal is to display the model without a vulgar exposure of the model. Pornography does not require nudity, although most pornographic images are naked and that is where they can be confused with Glamour images. However, that is the only similarity. Again, pornographic images are prohibited in this studio.