Victor Constantin by Mark Leighton

I cannot believe that FH is in it's fifth year and I have not done a profile of the work of photographer Mark Leighton. I think I felt I already had... I have loved Mark's work for awhile, he was one of a handful of photographers who I searched for before google, on excite and yahoo, when I first got online. I think his work, shooting men on the incredible scenic beaches of Lagos, in Portugal, that began a passion for seeking out images beyond the studio.

The beaches of Lagos are so much more than sand beneath and sun above. The surroundings are breathtakingly unique with extraordinary rock and cliff formations that almost look like time has stood beautifully still.

I think those beaches have become a welcomed fixture within my consciousness, and another reason I thought I must have profiled Mark's before now. Several models have sent work through images of their time with Mark on those beaches. I have also been fortunate to have profiled the work of Mark Montovio from Mount Photography. Montovio, besides being a good friend of Leighton's, usually visits Portugal, along with several models, once a year and the two artists shoot their subjects in the water, and along those beaches together.

When contacting Mark about a profile, I first had to pick a subject. Sometimes when I profile an artist I like to choose a selection of my favorite shots from their portfolio. Other times, I like to choose a model that I think sums up what I love best about their imagery. With Mark, his work with model Victor Constantin did just that. Mark says that Victor is the only model who lives locally so they have had the opportunity to shoot several times. Although I included a couple of shots of Victor on the beach, their latest collaboration, with Victor on the bed certainly caught my eye. The shots with the red sheets and apple are both innocent and erotic and tantalizingly naughty.

The mix of naughty and nice stems from Victor's beautiful face, hazel eyes and incredible lips. He exudes both venerability and a knowing strength through his eyes and facial expressions. Although just 19 he seems to know exactly what he wants.

'I first saw him when he was working as a summer waiter at a restaurant. I could see he had a great look about him but he seemed quite shy, so I didn't ask him if he wanted to model until I had visited the restaurant a few times. By then, I had seen he had a dazzling smile and was interested in fashion, so I thought I would risk it and ask him. He was very enthusiastic and we arranged a shoot.'

'After just a few shots he settled in and was very comfortable with the camera and was good at taking direction. Needless to say, I could see he was very photogenic. Each time we have shot he has made more progress as a model and at the last shoot was more sensual and we worked on getting some more expression - facially and with the body.'