Aussielicious

Every now and then on this blog I try and share something more than hot guys and nudity with you. A friend sent me a link to a tumblr blog today that made me smile and made me nostalgic. Dear Photograph is a blog that is fuelled by reader submissions. People find an old photograph, usually from their childhood and hold that photo up in the same spot as the photograph was taken and take another photograph. People have written a one line to “Dear Photograph” to go underneath the new photo and it’s beautiful reading what some people have written to go with their photographs.

David Gandy has been hot property on the modelling scene for a couple of years now in huge campaigns for Dolce & Gabanna and countless others. He has a look that can go from distinguished gentleman to fiery Italian. This is the first time I’ve seen any hint of full frontal from David and he’s gone pretty much the whole way.

His body is incredible with very broad shoulders and definition on definition. I don’t know who took these shots but they are gorgeous. If only he didn’t smoke.

It’s that time again. Yes time to catch up with the beautiful bunch of boy snow bunnies for Ski Camp Episode 3. Kindly brought to you by Samesame! Is it just me or does Dan have an incredible body?

The Score range has been updated at aussieBum with new tank tops and new shorts. I’m not usually a huge fan of footy shorts but on the right guy they look sensational. Go on, go and score!

As a modern homosexual it has never been more important for one to master social networks to promote oneself in the best possible light and photograph selection is of the utmost importance. One’s facebook or twitter profile photo can set you up to be the aspirational it-homo that everyone wants to meet at a party and be regaled with with and humour or it can reveal you to be some kind of anti social hobbit that only tweets about their latest online gaming conquest at 3am after a 45 hour marathon gaming session.

There are rules about your photographs however. One common theory is that the photos should be of oneself. For some reason or another, this is not always the case. On dating and hookup sites some modern homosexuals have been using less than honest photographic selection for some time. The idea of using someone else’s photos on facebook is a new concept to this homosexual.

In recent weeks I have noted at least 3 profiles where the person belonging to the profile is not the visage represented in the photographs. The profiles have all been Melbourne based young lads (possibly) but each of them has gone to amazing lengths to source dozens of photographs of  porn stars in two cases and an underwear model in another case. They have shown mighty levels of resourcefulness by obtaining candid and non-commercial photos of said porn stars and models.

There is a slight flaw in their modus opperandi. They have chosen beautiful men, beautiful well known men that millions of other modern homosexuals have lusted after and know quite assuredly to be citizens of cities definitely other than Melbourne.

As regular readers would know, I’m feeling out of shape and I’m struggling to kick myself out of that rut. I’m taking one step to help my fitness and also charity by giving up alcohol for “Dry July” which raises money for cancer patients here in Australia. There were choices of hospitals to donate your raised money to and I’ve chosen Wollongong Hospital. It’s in Wollongong where I grew up and is also the hospital where I was born. So I will not be having any alcohol in the month of July. Let’s see how I go. If you feel like donating any money it will be greatly appreciated. Please click here to donate.

When I first saw Didier Cohen it was in a photo shoot for DNA Magazine several years ago and he had long hair. Then I saw him a while later with a close cropped head of hair for Industrie Clothing. Now I bring you Didier with a bit of a rockabilly quiff, some 50′s Brando styling and his bad boy tattoos shot by James Demitri.

James’ photographs are simple, classic and let Didier’s boy-next-door with a hint of trouble looks shine through. Check out James’ blog here.

FINALLY the new verions of Magic by Olivia Newton-John created by Peachy & Murphy has been released world wide! Olivia has performed it at Gay Pride and apparently the crowd loved it! Congratulations to the team. If you want to buy it, click here.

Congratulations to New York GLBT Community. Your elected officials voted 33-29 to approve gay marriage. From my understanding there were some religious amendments made to the bill but it still got through. That gives me so much hope that one day we will follow suit.

Sadly our Prime Minister, Julia Gillard responded to the news that we make decisions for the good of our own country. I’m not sure, as the figure head of the Australian Labor Party how she can maintain that line when several state Labor Parties have voted to support gay marriage.

While New Yorkers celebrate a very hard fought win, we still have a long way to go. The news from NY adds another thing for my list of things I want to see while I’m there. I want to see a gay couple coming out of a church or registry office beaming with joy at their just-completed nuptials with happy family and friends all around them.

One of the lastest updates on Dylan Rosser’s site The Male Form was a shoot he did with a friend of his. Now Dylan usually refuses to shoot friends because of the possible awkwardness involved in a friend being nude etc.

I have to say, this shoot with Ali is one of my favourites that Dylan has ever posted. Maybe it’s the location versus the studio shoot but there is something beautiful about this series.

AussieBum have just released their new line called Flame! As ever they look comfy and fun and a bit hot! Someone told me where the warehouse is that they filmed this in and I think I’m going to have a look at it on the weekend for a possible photo shoot.

Here is the video Dan Murphy has put together of our Flash Mob on Monday night for the Pop Princess, Kylie Minogue. It was so much fun. It’s a shame a muck raking journalist has turned on it and said it was all fake and not spontaneous. I’m not sure what kind of world the journalist is living in where 100 people all know the words and steps to a spontaneous routine but I’m guessing it’s one in which West Side Story is a documentary and Moulin Rouge is a Reality Show.
Last night we went and saw the first Sydney show of Aphrodite – Les Folies. AMAZING! I know I’m a devoted fan but you’d have to be pretty cynical not to enjoy her show. HUGE production values, fantastic costumes, staging, setlist and of course Kylie.

Successful and very talented photographer Dylan Rosser was kind enough to answer some questions for us about his work and his new project, TMF Magazine! If you want to order the magazine, click here!

How did you get started in photography?
It was a very gradual process. I started by shooting profile pics for guys to use on a popular UK gay dating site. As my work improved I moved on to shooting models and escorts and it all just grew from there. I never trained in photography and still sometimes feel like a beginner even after a decade.

Were you always drawn to photographing the male form?
I was, and still am, that nerdy skinny geek from school who realised I was never gonna get to hang with the muscle guys so I guess this was my only way to finally see them naked.

Your style is quite distinctive. Was that a natural style for you or something you worked towards deliberately?
I don’t think any photographer really goes out of their way to create a distinctive style. It is just born out of whatever influences appealed to me while growing up and maybe my design background has led me to always keep things simple and minimal.

You seem to have a knack for finding rather genitally blessed men. Do you ever get people asking you to enhance that part of them in photoshop?
I like to create a fantasy man so a big dick is often part of that. Models want to look as big as they can so they realise they need to “fluff” it up a bit and try keep it in between soft and hard. I’ve had guys get hard then tie an elastic around the base to keep it big. Then I can just remove the elastic in photoshop. But I do sometimes enhance the size as well. But it need to have that nice semi erect shape to start with.

Would it be fair to assume that the more endowed guys would be more willing to display it?
They might be more willing to show their dick but often they don’t want to show their face. At the end of the day I’m looking for the complete package. Excuse the pun.

You are starting a new digital magazine showcasing other people’s photography. Were you at all worried about promoting other photographers in a fiercely competitive market?
I think there is more competition in the fashion field. Male nude photographers seems to do their own thing, quietly trying to make some money by selling prints and books. I’m more than happy to bring attention to these guys and hopefully promote their work.

What are you hoping to achieve with the magazine?
The term “male nude” in magazines seems to have developed negative connotations. I’m hoping to show that you can have a publication full of male nudity and for it to still be tasteful. My dream is that models and photographers will want to be featured in it because of the way it is presented. I have managed to combine my magazine background, design and photography into one project. There is one rule however – NO fashion!

Will TMF Magazine be a subscription based publication or a free online magazine?
It will cost $3.99 for this issue. I would like to do more but it all depends on how this one does. It took 2 months of my life and a lot of cash for the software so it’s never going to be something I just churn out every month. Maybe if I can get some advertisers for a next issue it will bring the cost down but for now I think it is a fair price.

How have you selected the photographers that you’ve included?
The main interview features are with guys I personally know and who were happy to help me out with this first issue. I’m hoping other talent will want to be included now that they can get a better idea what TMF Magazine is about.

How often will you be publishing TMF?
I want to see how the first one does before I commit to another issue. Possibly every couple months seems like a more realistic goal. Now it is up to photographers and models to get in touch if they have something to promote.

You’ve recently posted some stunning shots of a friend on your site TheMaleForm.net. How did you find the experience of shooting a good friend nude?

I usually have a rule about never photographing friends. For me it’s weird to see my friends naked even if they ask really nicely I try find an excuse not to do it.

You shoot in both the U.S. and the U.K. Do you find there is a different attitude with the guys in both continents?
Definitely. It’s much easier to find guys that will do full frontal in London. There are so many people travelling through there and nudity is not such a big deal in Europe. I sometimes find the LA and NYC models more flirty but at the same time less willing to do full frontal. Especially in LA where they want to protect their future acting careers.

Having stunning men nude, often semi or fully aroused in front of you all the time, do you find you’ve become desensitised to that kind of beauty?
It’s always a bit of a thrill the first time the model gets naked, but that last a few seconds and then I’m more concerned about getting good shots and I kinda forget that he is naked. I do get to see a lot of naked guys but compared to what some of people get up to on the gay scene I’m sure they get to see and touch a lot more.

What advice would you have for aspiring photographers out there?
Thanks to digital photography anyone can have go and take time to practice without the expensive cost of film. Join a site like modelmayhem.com and start networking with people in your area.

I’m trying to track down someone that I did an interview with two and a half years ago. The interview was with a guy that was a happily married bisexual guy. If you are still reading the blog mate, please email me!

This video made me laugh this morning. It’s a simple and effective recruiting video for Canada’s gay rugby.