FAQ

Where are the photos taken?

The quick answer to this question is that you the client get to decide where the photo session should be. Clothed portrait sessions can be shot anywhere. For boudoir/nude/erotic sessions, I usually photograph either at the client’s home or outdoors. Clients are responsible for costs associated with renting a location.

For photo sessions at a private residence, it is important to have a clean and tidy place for the photo session. Take a cardboard box and go around the house and put in any nick-nacks and assorted chachkis into the box, and take down any very loud artwork. This is in no way a comment on your personal interior design tastes - the photographs are about you and having a busy background can detract from the subject (you) of the photographs.

Some clients, particularly clients from colder climates, like to fly to Arizona for photography and make it a weekend getaway. For others, it may be more advantageous (either financially or to save on the client’s time) for them to pay for me to travel to do the photography in the client’s home city.

As I live in the Sonoran desert, I get a lot of requests for desert photo sessions. I love a nice desert photo session right before sunset with that very golden light. However, please note that the ground in the Sonoran desert is full or rocks and sharp stuff you don’t want to kneel on or sit down on. In a normal indoor photo session there will be a much wider variety of shots as you can be seated, reclined, leaning up against something, etc. 

I want headshots, clothed portraits, photos with my dog, some erotic shots with my partner, some swimwear, then some leather gear, oh and I have an underwear fetish, can we do all this?

Sure! You however just described multiple different photo sessions.

Most photo session are around 90 minutes and there is only so much you can put into a single photo session before it becomes unfocused and visually garbled. We also want to think about a general theme for the photo session as I am basically creating a series of photos that should “fit” together. I offer headshots, portraits, boudoir, art nude, erotic, gear&kink. I always do some headshots in each photo session and can do one or two other categories in one photo session. After this, a photo session starts to lack cohesion and too much gets stuffed into the photo session, this negatively affects all the photos.

Can I have my photo session be half at one location and half at another?

You just described two completely different photo sessions. For clients desiring a larger selection of shots, some packages I offer do contain multiple photo sessions. Please see my pricing page for more information.

I am not a model, and have never done this. Is this a problem?

I don’t really shoot models, I shoot real men just like you! Working with regular guys, I know how to make guys feel at ease and how to work with real men to get the best photography, no modeling experience required.

What should I wear?

The short answer is you can wear whatever you feel comfortable in. In the end the most important thing is that the clothes fit you and you like wearing them as this comes out in the photos. For clients who are unsure of what to wear, my preferred look to start off with for a boudoir or nude session is a white button down and a pair of jeans that you like to wear. A jacket or blazer can look nice with this look too.  For underwear and swimwear, I prefer briefs or boxer briefs as I still want to show off your body while still being clothed. I generally dislike photographing underwear with the brand name written in large letters on it as I am taking photos for you, not free advertising photos for the brand. I will try my hardest to dissuade you from wearing a jockstrap. I find jockstraps are less than flattering for anyone who isn’t 17 and without the protective cup, they don’t actually contour to a guy’s body very well. Also, and more importantly, jock straps have thick, heavy elastic bands that, when taken off, leave noticeable indentations in the skin.  We will discuss wardrobe during your pre-session consultation.

Is there anything I can do to prep for my photo session?

• Start drinking lots of water a few days beforehand. This will help your skin look better for the photo session.

• Get a haircut a few days before the photo session, just not the day before.

• Shower beforehand, generally room temperature water is better for the skin’s appearance than a hot shower.

• Moisturizer is a good thing if you have dry skin. If you are prone to breaking out, Hempz is great as it is vegan and contains no lanolin or other products that can make my skin break out. If you have oily skin don’t overdo it.

• Beard care if you have facial hair. A good beard balm can do wonders.

• Wear clothing that you enjoy wearing that fits your body, preferably with no underwear. These two things combined will help minimize very noticeable skin indentations when shooting boudoir/nude photography.

What is a retainer fee?

One of the most common fees for photography is a retainer fee. A retainer fee is a portion of the overall cost of photography which is paid before the session takes place. Paying a retainer fee is showing the photographer that you are serious about the photo session, and with this the photographer will reserve the requested date and time for you. Photo sessions may be rescheduled once but they are not refundable. Cancellations forfeit the retainer fee.

What is a model release?

A model release is a legal document which basically states that the photos are my intellectual property.  In non legal terms, they are “my photos of you”, not “your photos taken by me”.  The model release will also stipulate how the photographer and the client are allowed to use the images created from the photo session.

What is this “mood board” thing all about?

Mood boards are a collection of words or short phrases that help communicate the mood (feelings and emotions) that are supposed to be communicated in the end photographs. Another integral component of a mood board are inspiration images. These images will either show me the photographer examples of photos that you feel express these emotions and feelings, show poses that you would like to try, or represent a specific visual “look” the client wants for the end photographs. These can sometimes be helpful to photographers when clients have specific things they want to achieve.

Long story short, my personal style is very pensive and moody. Most clients come for my style, but if you are looking for something different I will definitely want to have us create a mood board. This helps communicate what you want to me and make sure we are both on the same page. The mood board helps me ensure that you will love your photography.

How will my photos be delivered?

Digital photos are delivered in a ZIP file with a download link either via Google Drive or Dropbox. Both Google Drive and Dropbox have free account options. Both Google Drive and Dropbox are standard industry cloud storage options and each has been in existence for more than a decade. It is highly suggested that each client make sure they are capable of downloading and unzipping the ZIP file from either of these two options. I, the photographer, am not responsible for giving technical support.

Prints and coffee table books will be delivered in-person within the Phoenix metro area. Outside of the Phoenix metro area, clients will receive their photography with UPS.

Will my photos be all over the internet?

I dunno! On most social media apps you can either download a photo or screenshot one that was shared with you in a private chat. So once you share something online you need to be OK with the fact that it could just end up out there in the universe forever. I only post PG-13 images to non-subscription social media - so either images with the nudity cropped out or I censor it.

Which social media accounts do you use?

• Non-Subscription Social Media - Instagram, Threads

• Subscription Social Media - Just For Fans

• My username on all social media accounts is @Baergalerie

I don’t like how (insert body part) looks. Can you photoshop this out to make me look better?

I do not do extensive retouching on my images. I prefer to use lighting and posing to make my clients look their best. Some retouching I do consists of:

• Minor removal of temporary blemishes. For example, a pimple or two on your photo session day shouldn’t ruin it and is an easy fix for me.

• Minor skin retouching. I generally remove some moles and other dark spots as when I make a black and white image, they can come out really dark and just stick out. I may do some minor skin smoothing, but this is generally not readily identifiable in the final images. In my opinion, if the skin looks “photoshopped” at first glance it is not a successful photograph.

I however believe there is nothing wrong with the real you! Men can be muscular, have a gut, or be overall thin. I want to portray the real you, and reality is what is beautiful and sexy. Male skin has pores and the pore structure is part of what makes us beautiful. Live it, accept it, love it!

Will you photograph trans people, non-binary, or women?

Definitely! If someone likes my style of photography, I am more than happy to discuss a photo session regardless of sex or gender. I generally shoot other types of photography under “Peter Christiaens” and not the BAER GALERIE label.

Will you photograph my wedding or do an engagement photo session?

In a past life I was an event photographer and a photography teacher. If a couple really likes my photography and would like it for their wedding I would love to do your wedding. Please see the pricing page for more info.

I offer engagement photo sessions as part of a wedding package for a discount. I can also do engagement photo sessions separate from a wedding package. Some gay couples want their engagement photo session to be a bit more fun, risque, and revealing, which is just up my alley.

Will you find someone to be in an erotic session with me?

In short, no. I am not a pimp nor a porn studio. Finding someone to be in an erotic photo session with a client of mine they have never met doesn’t work out. Porn performers may be used to doing scenes with people they are not entirely attracted to, however with erotic art photography this lack of affinity would be apparent in the photos. So finding scene partners isn’t really something I do, I do believe you finding your own scene partner is best. It creates an intimate bond with the person you choose do your erotic photo session with and this shows up on camera.

Fine art? Isn’t this just porn?

Actually no! Pornography is first and foremost created to facilitate arousal. Fine art is intended to be appreciated primarily or solely for their imaginative, aesthetic, or intellectual content. Erotic art may be implicit or explicit and may be arousing, but is first and foremost created to be art. I create my work to stand alone on its own beauty, if you find it hot that is just an added bonus. I also use my photography to convey mood, feelings, and emotions. This is independent of subject matter and I try to do this with landscapes I take for myself as well as my Baer Galerie work.  I chose to do erotic art as throughout history, male eroticism has not been viewed as a valid subject for fine art, and I want to show that it can be beautiful. 

Why can’t I get the RAW files?

With photography, the final artistic vision of the photographer is the edited image and we don’t generally like giving our RAW files. Generally photographers only really give out RAW files when shooting commercial photography jobs and the client is large enough to have photo editors on staff full time to ensure that images are edited in the same way for consistency. The photographer generally charges a commercial day rate, my commercial day rate would cost you much more than what I charge for private clients who don’t get RAW files, and the day rate would not include any editing. However you are not a huge company with full time photo editors, you want me to edit your photos.

Can you edit your photos to look like this other photographer’s photos?

I am more than happy to modify my aesthetic to match what a client is looking for. There is however a limit to this and I don’t intentionally copy what other people do.

I am a model. Will you photograph me for free / TFP?

In short, I shoot clients and am not really in that “aspiring commercial photography / aspiring model” scene. If I need to try out some new photography technique before offering it professionally, I generally photograph my husband or a friend. I have done it in the past and I have yet to encounter an aspiring model that I don’t have to continually direct and pose in detail. I have shot models as clients if models are interested.

I have a lot of Only Fans followers / I won a leather competition. Wanna “collab” with me for “mutual benefit”? 

Sorry but your “exposure” won’t pay the bills and it just ends up being me working for free. I know my worth and value and it is way more than exposure that won’t get me any new clients. The couple of OF guys I have photographed were paying clients.

Do you want to bring your camera, snap some photos, and then have sex?

I get questions like this all the time. I do not have sex with clients while I am working for them, end of story. Besides legal implications, think about it, you are paying me money to take photos. I need to ensure I keep the level of quality that I normally put out. How exactly is a photographer supposed to get interesting angles and compositions while keeping the camera from shaking (and change camera settings and lighting and everything else) while having sex? That would be a recipe for disaster. Boudoir/Nude/Erotic sessions are not having sex with me, think of them has a fun and sexy adventure with yourself/partner that I am documenting.