Minouche in the Atelier by Val-Mont

I'll start with the obvious. She's gorgeous.

Now, I will admit that I always like these behind the scenes or between take photos, as it gives me a sense of immediacy and of being there. (Nick Chao is a favorite in this regard.) The setting, with the various clothing items on the rack provides the perfect backdrop for this picture. Whether coincidence or not, the fact that the colors are all from the same family gives this a sense of unity that would not exist had the colors been more varied. Even the wall color works nicely, bridging the gap between her skin, hair, and clothing colors.

As I often remark, less is more. The framing of the photo (cutting off below the navel) and her placement of the lingerie over her breasts strikes a perfect balance between showing too much and not enough. To quote Goldilocks, this is just right. Another nice touch, one does not get the sense of being a voyeur, as sometimes happens in shots like this. Rather, everything seems natural, and as it should be. The viewer could be the photographer, waiting for the model to make a decision as to which piece to wear, a dresser bringing another rack of clothes for her to look through, or another model getting ready for her turn in front of the lens. For some reason, I get the feeling that if you were to zoom back from this shot, you would be greeted with a modern day analogue of Velázquez's masterpiece Las Meninas, although perhaps a little earlier in the sequence of getting dressed and ready.

Although I am not a very good photographer myself, even I can appreciate the lighting here. Bright enough to show sufficient details in her body and the clothing, yet soft enough to eliminate any harsh shadows, giving this an almost serene look. Another great example of the artist's sense of balance. And the position of the light with respect to the model and the background is also perfect.

Again, not being well versed in the various post-production techniques used by photographers, I do not know what retouching, if any, might have been used here. If there was any, the restraint shown by the artist is to be commended. So, either such techniques were used to attain a perfect sense of the natural, or the photograph was taken in such a way as to make any such manipulation unnecessary. Either way, bravo to you.

I don't know that I have ever given any piece 5 stars across the board, but I can find nothing to fault here. No room for improvement. Nothing I would change. If my wife would let me, I'd have a print of this hanging in my library.

;^)