Close-ups appear again and again in vintage physique photography, particularly among photographers who approached the male figure as a study of form rather than a theatrical scene or fantasy. By cropping out the face and most of the body, they turned familiar anatomy into an abstract arrangement of shapes, lines, textures, light, and shadow. There's something almost rebellious about magnifying the very parts of a man that were considered too obscene to show in the first place.
1. Unknown model and photographer.
2. Scott by unknown photographer.
3. Bob Anders by Zews studio.
4. Bruce McMaster who starred in Falconers in 1978 by Falcon Studios and featured in their Talon magazine.
5. Roger aka Tom Garret (born Daryl Roger Hanson 1954/5-1982) was originally from Detroit, spent two years in the Navy and became a professional dancer in Miami before becoming a model and adult film actor. His manager, Jim Bacon, encouraged him to lift weights to get more work on camera. He reportedly died in a car accident at 28 years old.
From the front, I'm drawn to the meatiness and weight of it all. The triangular patch of pubic hair, the inguinal creases directing our eyes toward the center, and the way everything hangs naturally. Sometimes there's even a little suspense, like a fly opening and one of those spring-loaded snakes jumping out of a can! But what makes these close-ups especially intimate is the implied distance between us and the model. In real life, we'd be close enough to touch, smell, or even taste what we're seeing. That's a very different encounter from admiring a beautiful man across the room.
6. Roger again coming out of a pair of cut-offs. He is one of my favorite bns men...a natural beauty.
7. Unknown model getting help pulling off his jeans. He somehow reminds me of Ken Alexander...I could use help with the ID here.
8. Another unidentified model in a white bathrobe. This is probably 21st century, but it stays for obvious reasons.
9. Anthony Springer by David Hurles.
10. Another unidentified 21st century close-up emerging from sudsy water. Rub-a-dub-dub!
Please leave thoughts, questions, corrections or additions in the comments. And if you enjoy my posts, please let me know. Thank you, bns
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