Measuring Up

The model for "Measuring Up" is a friend named Griffin who was a personal trainer at my gym, and occasional model in my studio. With the idea of creating a narrative around masculine body image, I took a series of photos in his apartment, exploring different poses and compositions. I eventually landed on the concept of him using a cloth measuring tape on his bicep. I followed this with painted preliminary sketches.
Griffin's apartment building is a converted industrial space, with a large bank of windows high on the wall. The natural light was fantastic, and provided great backlighting against his figure and the dangling measuring tape.
The clothing choices were trial and error, but thankfully, with his closet nearby, we settled on a blue tee shirt. The yellow logo was perfect with the yellow cloth measuring tape. There was a red flowering plant in the window, and I wanted to repeat the color in his clothing. A red bandanna with white stars tied on his head seemed to do the trick.