For quite a few years after the calendar, which was 1996 on… I occasionally shot a few models with the fire service theme, hoping one of these days to revive the poster line, and these days, I wish I had done it much sooner, like when the economy was much stronger. Instead, I concentrated on creating portrait work full time and shot the fun stuff in my spare time. I was shooting posters during this time period, but many of them were of jet skiis and motorcycles in one form or another. Fortunately back then, I was able to find some great models that were able to refer me to many of their friends, who also became great models along the way…

Mike, pictured above….one of my local models, was one such guy, and Chris C, one of my other local models, was another who referred some of their friends to me for modeling work for a few years time. Both of these guys worked with me several times and shot with photographer friends of mine across the nation as well.

I was able to hook Chris C up with some photographer contacts in California who hired him to work for their agency, and this afforded him several trips overseas in both directions to work with other photographers as well,  on various projects and shoots.

I had some photographer friends in Texas and Alabama who frequently traveled up here to work with various models of mine as well. One of them, Ray Lewis Payne, shot black and white art print work and we would often team up on shoots at some beautiful local outdoor locations nearby for many years. Chris C was one of his favorite models to work with during those years, but most of those images are on another site. 

During one of my travels to Arkansas in that period of time, I stopped off in Fayetteville one day and checked out a Chris L….

….who turned out to be a very hot model for me and others. He was referred to me by a mutual good friend, who was a successful model out in California and knew of my work. He told me Chris L not only had a sexy look and build, but also had a great attitude and would go far in modeling work. He was right all the way around, as Chris L turned out to be a great model for me and for photographer friends of mine, seen here shooting with on some other various projects…

Another friend that Chris C referred to me was Mel, who also turned out to be a great model back in those days, super nice guy that went on to model for me in other areas as well….

About the same time, I found another hot female model to work with, Cathy K, and she brought her boyfriend with her to the interview and test shoot…I put her in a fire coat for one of her test shots and armed her with an axe…she was fantastic with it….

….and I shot more of her later on with some jeeps and four wheelers at some neat locations as well…

…and posing above, modeling with Mel and Chris C at an area waterfall.

Cathy turned out to be a great art model !!