By Shawn Petrovich of Totally Ripped of Los Angeles, which specializes in photography and video of fitness models.
It's Important To Select The Right Location For Any Photo Shoot
We experimented with a variety of locations in the early days of holding photo shoots with college guys. Along the way, we learned several important lessons. One lesson: take all factors into consideration when selecting a city for a photo location, including possible weather changes.
Put-in-Bay is Good for Photo Shoots
We chose the party-hearty village of Put-in-Bay on South Bass Island in Lake Erie for our very first on-location photo shoot. It had all the makings of a great background for photo shoots: sandy beaches, historic backdrops, plenty of bars and restaurants, nightlife galore and a liberal attitude. There's a reason they call this place "the Key West of the North."Be sure to book a bead and breakfast if you ever visit
Put In Bay.
Models treated to 200-mile drive in a limo
To get to Port Clinton, the models and crew we driven by limo from central Ohio to Port Clinton. Everyone piled in with great expectations about what shooting all day and partying all night would be. From Port Clinton, they caught the Miller Ferry to Put-in-Bay and settled in for a combination of work and fun.
Put-in-Bay Weather
June seemed to be the ideal month for our shoot. The weather is generally warm that time of year and not all the tourist/boating crowd has yet arrived on South Bass. What we didn't count on was rain. As soon as the models disembarked from the limo, rain began to pour. June can be a very rainy month in Ohio and storms pop up frequently on the lake.
Scenic backdrops at Put-in-Bay
We used East Harbor State Park, South Bass State Park and other public venues as backdrops for our photos near lake erie. These locations worked, but we were constantly dodging raindrops. Our shoot lagged behind schedule and the models got tired of being wet and chilled!
Florida offers more consistent weather
In subsequent years, we chose shooting locations in Florida, where the weather is more consistently sunny and dry. Despite the distance and the roadtrip required to get to Florida, it seemed to be an easier place to work - especially Key West and South Beach where the locals are welcoming and the weather more agreeable.
Put-in-Bay is known for being a hard drinking, party island. If you know an attractive or popular college student who likes to be social at places like Put-in-Bay, you can Nominate a Student to Become a Campus Man. The guy you nominate probably won't be headed to Put-in-bay anytime soon, but he will be grateful you "nominated" him for such an honor.