My Ten Requirements That Make Up My Perfect Naturist Photo

[Brendarella]

The World's Best Naturist Photo - well, according to me.

Some naturist photos seem to have a certain magic touch that can pull you in to the world of naturism with a glance and set your mind racing with possibilities. Maybe it reminds you of times you've had or times you wish you'd had. These special photos seem to be few and far between. So I decided to create a simple "Ten Point Checklist" list that I mentally compared photos to whenever I saw one.

I've seen thousands of naturist photos, but I only ever found one photo that ticked all ten boxes.  These are my choices. Feel free to come up with your own list.
Some people may like naturist photos to be of happy children splashing around in the pool or an elderly couple holding hands watching the sunset on the ocean. Or a family of naturists running across a field.  But these are MY ratings. Some are, by their nature, highly personal and possibly even a little controversial. I can only repeat that these are MY personal choices for what I consider to be a top naturist photo.  Feel free to come up with your own list and select your own top scorer.

My Ten Requirements That Make Up My Perfect Naturist Photo. Ok, Top Nine Requirements, with a bonus point.

Naturistic.
Yes, that's a real word. First and foremost, the photo needs to show someone who is loving the fact that they're naked! You should be able to read it in their face! The photo needs to be of someone who has immersed themselves into the joy of being naked because it's such a fun thing to do. So, no coy glances at the camera and no scared-rabbit looks.

Total full frontal nudity.
It's supposed to be a naturtist photo.  There should be no clothes covering anything, no photos taken from the rear and no peeking out from behind trees or tables. We want to see the whole package.

Taken outdoors and in daylight.
It's easy to be naked in the privacy of your bedroom or in a hotel room, but it takes more than that to take a naturist photo outside where you have far less control over the environment and people may be watching you.  You have to cope with all that and still be able to produce a good photo. And no skulking around in the dark, either. We want good honest daylight.

Amateur, not a professional model.
Motive is everything. Only an amateur can truly show the feeling of naturism, it's just not the same if you're being paid to do it. They should be doing it because they want to, not because they want the money.

Taken with members of the public visible in the photo.
The photo may well have been taken a public space, but a picture taken on a deserted beach or in an empty field, well, it's not the same. There needs to be other members of the public nearby and visible in the photo to bring it alive. It doesn’t matter if they’re looking or just getting on with their own business. But it confirms you're not the only naturist on the planet.

Doing something interesting, not posed.
The subject should be doing something spontaneous, not just standing there striking a pose. You want them to be doing something that shows they’re a normal person doing everyday normal things. Preferably something exciting and fun!

Taken by somebody else, not a selfie.
No selfies.  And not taken with a long-distance telephoto, either. Nor did the photographer just prop the camera up on a brick and walk in front of it.  If you took the photo, it needs to be of someone else.

Appealing and attractive.
This is the most personal choice. You'll all have your own opinion on this, so just substitute your own tastes. But for me, the photo needs to portray someone who has an alluring demeanor to make you want to be with them. Yes, I know that it shouldn't matter but it does.  We're all humans and we don't all find everybody equally physically attractive.  If we did, no one would ever fall in love at first sight.

Enjoying themselves.
This is the most important one to me. The subject needs to be happy and smiling, self-assured, confident, enjoying themselves and having a great time whether anyone is looking at them or not.

Shaved pubes.
Finally, for a bonus point, there shouldn’t be any trace of pubic hair on the subject in the photo. No bush, no landing strip, no pencil moustache. Just smooth, bare, naked skin.  See, I told you these were my personal choices.

I've only ever found one photo that gets my full TEN out of TEN ticks.  And here it is https://i.postimg.cc/gJBdxYZW/fb17fc6b-68ea-48a8-813d-ef7102dee96b.jpg.

[Leyoh]

This pic should get a high score 

[Mondegreen]

All of them make sense to me except the last one. It seems oddly specific and out of nowhere. What's wrong with pubic hair? It's a natural part of the body, or so I think. 

[Brendarella]

...What's wrong with pubic hair?...

Did you miss the bit where I said these were my personal preferences?

[astaggs]

All of them make sense to me except the last one. It seems oddly specific and out of nowhere. What's wrong with pubic hair? It's a natural part of the body, or so I think. 

I agree. While Brendarella has every right to her own opinions (I too prefer the clean shaven look), to include this bit of personal preference in a list of requirements for the perfect naturist photo is very exclusionary and may seem judgemental against anyone who has amazing photos that check off all the other points made on the list but have full bushy pubes. I get the point she's trying to make about her own preferences but I would have left that part out or at least made it an added bonus. Because not everyone has the same preference, or maybe they do but they just didn't have the time to shave one day, and I believe they can still have a perfect naturist photo. Leyoh's is a great example.

All the other requirements are spot on and I think everyone here would agree that all of those together would make a perfect naturist photo.

[Delta]

Personally, I think full frontal is overrated. Make it unambiguous the person is not wearing anything, sure. Not make it look like they are going out of their way to hide certain parts, also sure. But I personally love pictures that manage a natural, no-hiding pose without showing anything that could be construed as pandering to voyeurs. Particularly when younger children are being featured and you therefore definitely want to avoid people looking at the images with voyeuristic intent.

Otherwise stuff I like to see are mixed-sex groups that are not merely a couple, being around water or under trees, and not being made up of exclusively >35 people. Sorry for that bit of age discrimination, but like the attractive criterion, younger people portray an activity as more exhilarating than older people.

[Brendarella]

Some good opinions, here. I agree with astagg's viewpoint about having the smooth pubes as a bonus, so I've changed my original criterian to reflect this.

As for Leyoh's photo,.. it's a great picture and a very high scorer but (in my personal opinion) the crowd are striking a pose for the sake of the camera. Ask yourself.. would they have all behaved like that that if the camera wasn't pointing at them? 

[carbon]

This is an interesting thread! I've always wondered what different things people look for when they look at photos -- professional and amateur.

I'm more of a meditative art-observer, so I prefer images that invoke something -- meaning the photographer intends to convey something more than a nice photo to sit in the storage for all eternity. So not professional per se, but at least someone that knows how to handle a camera and have an intention to make a compositionally sound image to share with others. Looking at images, I tend to look at them with these in mind:

1. What does the photographer intend to express with the photo?
2. What is the subject doing -- literally and figuratively?
3. What does the observer (me) feel?
4. What does the observer (someone else/critic) feel?

As for personal preferences in the physical composition, a good photo consist of...

1. Aesthetically pleasing/well-composed/coordinated
2. A natural state of being

By then, I go case-by-case to figure out whether I like the image or not. I'm not too picky about pictures from a technical standpoint. Sometimes, I just feel like a picture is captivating despite being composed by a complete amateur and without much thought behind it. I guess it mostly depends on the depth of experience of the observer and how they interpret an image using a wealth of experiences and knowledge. Maybe all pictures have the potential to be good and just requires a certain amount of experience and the right person and time for them.

[Brendarella]

Thanks, Carbon.  Your reasons for what makes a photo special are perfectly valid, but they're generic, and they can be applied to any photograph, whereas my full checklist is specific and applies only to a naturist environment. 

[carbon]

Thanks, Carbon.  Your reasons for what makes a photo special are perfectly valid, but they're generic, and they can be applied to any photograph, whereas my full checklist is specific and applies only to a naturist environment.

Yeah, to me, the criteria for a good photograph — nude or otherwise doesn’t have distinct differences. I basically just hold artistic merit above all else.

Although I say that, all the nude photos I like have similarities... usually a lone subject, a natural/rural environment, and disregarding the state of undress. If I were ever given an opportunity to photograph people, I think I’ll compose them exactly like that.

[Mondegreen]

I agree. While Brendarella has every right to her own opinions (I too prefer the clean shaven look), to include this bit of personal preference in a list of requirements for the perfect naturist photo is very exclusionary and may seem judgemental against anyone who has amazing photos that check off all the other points made on the list but have full bushy pubes. I get the point she's trying to make about her own preferences but I would have left that part out or at least made it an added bonus. Because not everyone has the same preference, or maybe they do but they just didn't have the time to shave one day, and I believe they can still have a perfect naturist photo. Leyoh's is a great example.

All the other requirements are spot on and I think everyone here would agree that all of those together would make a perfect naturist photo.

I agree! Also, without a doubt, some of the best nudist photography comes from the 20th century, where it was way less common for people to shave. Personally, I think the clean-shaven look feels artificial, and I hate the pressure that society places on women to be clean-shaven all the time.

[NakedShadow]

Yeah there is a difference in this photo:



and this



One fits Brendarella's description perfectly but is clearly more candid/creep shot. The other is clearly posed with pubic hair visible. This why as explained by the above posters that skill and intention matter. Personally I love pubic hair and actually think that pics with it make it look more natural or innocent depending on the picture. Instagram pictures for explain don't allow you to have front frontal without censorship but yet there are some great outdoor/nature pics that get posted. It reminds me of the Cap d'Agde where the old ones were full of naked people posing for pictures with nice bushes in the urban environment in the background where today photos from there are full of old people shaved with genital jewelry and other clothing in front a building clearly just swinging for sex instead of what naturism is.

[pvct1]

That's true! I think it's more of the intention of the photographer. Even a selfie can look more natural and naturistic than a non-selfie. A posed photograph can look more innocent than an unposed but creepy candid shot.

About the pubic issue, just my two cents: either it's bushy or clean shaven, that is the most naturistic to me. Other hairstyles make me feel like it's unnatural. But hey, it's not like I come to naturist venues to look at people's pubic hair anyway!