Jeremiah Thompson, an American from Missoula, Montanan and amateur photographer, however, a former "dotcommer," went to Brazil for the girls or, rather, to follow his dream of photographing beautiful women and making a name for himself as a professional swimsuit photographer.
Thompson has just released the fruit of his vacation fun in the form of the Girls of Brazil 2009 Swimsuit Calendar.
"Many men dream of being a professional swimsuit photographer, but my dream was much more than that," Thompson says. "This project, called The Girls of Florianópolis, so named for the beach town that is home to these breathtakingly beautiful women – took a life of its own and is very, very real. I simply took a vacation down there, started taking pictures of women who just loved and wanted to be photographed for free, and the result is this amazing calendar of the most gorgeous women in the world."
A photographic debut of sorts, Thompson's "Girls of Brazil 2009" calendar is packed with 15 models who are local to Florianópolis, the capital city of the Santa Catarina State in Southern Brazil. Within the calendar, each featured spread reflects the models' unique styles and moods – playful, seductive, thoughtful and more – that combine to create a calendar filled with sex appeal.
Among the surf and sand, the girls sport their own bikinis in most cases, although Thompson bought a few swimsuits for the shoot, giving them as gifts to several of his models. It was this bikini shopping and photographing of such exquisite beauty that made Thompson wake up and realize this life, at least for him, wasn't such a dream but the real deal.
"I believe people should follow their dreams, and this project was so successful that it was a reality check of sorts in terms of what one can achieve," Thompson states. "I shot this entire calendar with simple but classic gear – a Canon 40D, plus a Canon lens and some flash equipment. I didn't use any crew, lighting reflectors or other kinds of support that professionals typically use."
"I did solicit the help of Mother Nature … incredible sunrises and sunsets lit my 'stage,'" Thompson concludes.
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