Now the work begins!!

It has been a couple of months since we last updated our followers of what is happening with Photo Model Holidays, so now is the time to do that.

The winter can be a tough time here in our small mountain village because we experience a typical Balkan winter with its temperatures plummeting to below -15C and periods of deep snow. The temperatures are quite easy to cope with as we use a traditional wood burner to keep the central heating going and, generally, we can move around quite well. However, the snow is a totally different ball game.

Our visitors to the photography holidays love the village in its small basin in the mountains surrounded by the forests with its total peace and tranquillity, but the snow is a nightmare. Bulgaria does not have sufficient snow clearing equipment at this moment in time so the main priority must be to keep commerce and the general public moving, and so the main highways and cities get the priority. Also, here we are not talking about a few centimetres of snow, we are talking up to a metre at one go a lot of the time. Couple this with the high winds off the mountains and we have drifting in the two very small roads that access the village blocking them totally. The nearest highway is seven kilometres away and that makes for a lot of snow to be shifted even if a snow plough is available. None the less, ourselves and the villagers cope well, we just ensure we are stocked up with provisions and then batten down the hatches and either wait for a snow plough to be freed up, or the sun to melt the snow. This year, so far, we have been blocked in on three occasions of up to four days but we have experienced far longer times in the past ten years. Maybe global warming could be a help for us.

On the photographic front, test shooting of new faces is a must in order to ensure there are always new models for our regular visitors, even though most do request their special favourites to be available if possible. The snow this year has thrown a bit of a spanner in the works for this task but, now the snow has gone, and hopefully we have had our share for this year, we now have to start test shooting in earnest.

Currently, at the Sedlarevo end, we have had test shoots with Mimi and Katrin, whose images are shown in and around this blog, whereas, at the Sofia end, Marilyn's shooting has also been a bit curtailed as Latex clothing is not the warmest garments in which to do outdoor photo shoots. None the less, she has kept her studio busy and has made test shoots with a number of potential new faces who we are hoping will be prepared to make the long road trip from Sofia to Sedlarevo to meet our visitors.

This is a particular wish as we will be featuring one or two days shooting in latex wear this coming season which is certainly an exciting new venture for Photo Model Holidays and we are looking forward to the stunning images our visitors will take back with them.

Also, after seeing some images of Marilyn and I doing a vagrant style

shoot for a personal project, our regular female visitor, top Belgian professional photographer, Anneke Schram, http://www.anyka.be/about.html, asked if we could arrange some photo shoots for her, on her next visit in July, based on a biblical theme. No problem we replied, until I found out that not only do I have to grow the beard again, but also Pavel, our Jesus look-a-like, must also grow a decent beard by the end of July. So, sorry Mr. Gillette if you see a drop in the profits over the next few months, but Anneke demands authenticity. Apparently, I shall be taking the part of Lazarus!!

This is a typical request from our visitors and we get a lot of pleasure in being able to provide special projects for them as it tests us and also the models, plus, these shoots are always a lot of fun and perhaps one of the reasons that our visitors keep returning. As a taster for the Latex shoots, here is a typical image of Marilyn wearing one of her own latex catsuits.

So this is the current state of things in Photo Model Holidays, Sedlarevo, Bulgaria.

Join us again for more test shoots and goings on in this beautiful mountain village of Sedlarevo where photography comes first. If you like what you read, 'Like' us on Facebook and if you have anything you would like to comment on, or ideas you would like to explore, just message us through Facebook.

As a closing reminder, at this early stage of the year, eight of our eleven One-to-One photography holidays are now fully booked leaving only three open dates available so, if you want to join one of ever popular photography holidays with our stunning models, you had better move quickly. The holidays are also available via www.vidados.com.

So, all the best from Marilyn and I and hopefully we will meet up with you some day, here in Bulgaria. Stay happy.​​ Peter