I used to really like Naya back when she was on The Bernie Mac Show and still had some body fat. The "Glee" version of her is still cute, but not sexy IMO. I'm posting these more so for this cover than anything else. I thought this was a really good cover - it reminded me of the old days when mags were still thriving.

Tags: Naya Rivera, Glee, FHM

One of the best images I've ever seen of Christi K... Interesting factoid: Christi doesn't have many images floating around out there on the net - hence the "elusive."

Props to photographer Ryan Astamendi. Click to enlarge. (Retouching by Indosplace)

Tags: Christi K, Christiane K, Ryan Astamendi

As many of you know, Sabrina Hunter is a model who is also a successful writer now. She briefly dabbled in urban modeling in 2005 and then returned to the scene to take some exclusive pictorials for my blog. Our photo shoots were a success and she wound up on Media Take Out and many other blogs several times due in part to them (she also would have been in Smooth magazine were it not for a strict no-thongs policy on her part (kudos)). But Sabrina always had a game plan in mind when taking photos. She was doing it to gain notoriety before going public with her novel, Skeletons in the Closet. Her plan worked quite well and illustrates perfectly how urban modeling can be used to a woman's advantage. It is just another tool to focus the public spotlight on an aspiring model. What you do with that spotlight once you get it is up to you. (Click to enlarge)

Tags: Sabrina Hunter, Skeletons in the Closet

Bria Myles and I have gotten some good shots. When I first started this blog, it might has well have been called the Bria Myles/Koi blog, because that's all I really had to post. Unfortunately, a lot of those earlier posts didn't get their just dues, so I'm reposted these because I'm sure many never saw them.

Tags: Bria Myles

Since nearly the beginning of my blog three years ago, "Natasha" from the United Kingdom has been a regular contributor in the comments and one of the voices I listen to most. Earier this year, by methods which escape memory, I somehow happened upon Natasha's profile on Facebook. Much to my surprise, I discoved that this Pisces cutie could be a model on Indosplce herself. She's got quite the figure and a cute face. Anyway, I caught up with her and asked her a couple questions about her thoughts and experience on Indosplace...

You said in a Sabrina Hunter post that you had "lost faith" in the site (agreeing with RN 100) - I wanted you to talk some about that and your feelings about what the site represents for aspiring urban models or curvy women in general, and also what you don't like about the recent direction (being candid)...

Ok well, as far as losing faith in the site, I haven't lost faith at all! That's why I keep coming back although on some occasions I'll take a break if the models don't interest me. Really and truly, I guess my opinion probably hardly matters because I'm a woman and I understand that your blog probably is directed at male readers more. Sometimes I do wonder where the black models are but at the end of the day if there isn't much great black urban models out there what would be the point of featuring them? If you showcased just anyone or the typical urban model you would probably lose what makes your blog stand out from the others.

One thing I do love abut your blog is the fact that most posts have some form of intellect posted with it. You always prompt a discussion or debate and I love debates! I also like the fact that even though you may not show as much black models anymore, you do find some very unique and pretty amazing non-black women such as Mal Malloy and Brittany Leigh and you take a chance with models whether people find them attractive or not and its always good to see fresh faces whether or no they're appealing to us.

Also, what your feeling is about the current state of the urban market in general, and how things differ in the UK from here...

As far as the urban modelling industry in general I do think its been in quite a pitiful state recently. I think the Game sort of contributed to the downfall of the urban model's reputation and of course as music sales suffered so did these models' earnings. Of course there are still urban models about but their value has been cheapened quite a bit. In the UK, I don't think urban models ever had any real value in the first place! The urban music scene in the UK has just recently been brought to the masses and the UK is still quite a conservative society compared to the USA. If American urban models are ever seen as 'video hos' then you can be sure that most urban models in the UK are probably seen as worse.

Who some of your favorite posters are on the site (only 2 or 3), as well as favorite models...

I'm really not sure who my favourite posters on the site are. I quite like most of the regular posters but I particularly like people like Real N****, not because I necessarily agree with their blunt comments but because they state what they really feel without a care because it gives you another perspective. For instance, as a lady I wouldn't want to be tarnished with the 'hater' reputation so I tend to either ignore the articles/models I don't like or type 'hmmm...'

My favourite models... I would have to say Bria Myles first and foremost because she brought me to this site and she looks absolutely adorable and has an amazing figure. Mal Malloy makes me laugh - her personality really shines through in all her videos and she pulls the best faces! I can see why she is so popular with an attitude like hers and not to mention her goddess body. There are other women I find stunning like Katherine Monslave but if she wasn't fixed at the top of the screen I would've forgotten her - as I do with most of these models. I like the ones with great personalities.

How does having a curvy figure affects your dating choices and options. Pros and cons to guys liking your curvy backside, etc.

On having a curvy figure, it had been difficult for me to come to terms with at first. It was never down to food, its ingrained in my genetics. In South Africa (which is where my roots are) 99% of the women are like this and my baby pictures always show an oversized nappy! However, growing up in England, where its not the norm, had me planning liposuction as soon as I knew what it was! But of course, as I grew older and started getting compliments from boys and men, I started to learn to love it. Which is why no matter who I date I hold black men in high regard because they really made me feel good about my body.

If there are cons to having quite a prominent bottom its the fact that men see you as a sexual object. I think men tend to approach you with sex being the very first thing on their minds before much else. It became so bad at one point that I once had to say to a guy who had stopped me: "Be honest, you just want to backshot it." He burst into laughter but I knew it's because I was right!

Whereas before I used to flaunt it nowadays apart from when I'm going out in the evening I try to cover up more. No matter how much men say they love big butts I would always prefer to be looked at as facially beautiful rather than body-beautiful.

Tags: Natasha

Today I got a nice little promo package in the mail from Laura Dore as a thanks for covering her on the blog. The package was really impressive and included all of her SHOW issues, her calendar and most importantly, her DVD. (Note to aspiring vixens: this is how you promote!) With the state of affairs in urban modeling, it's hard to take anything at face value anymore and I wondered to what extent Laura's fantastic proportion were the real deal and to what degree Photoshop played a part. You can imagine my horror as I watched the DVD and realized that those insane proportions in the hip-to-waist region are completely real! Hence, yikes (twice) Laura also comes off very likable and down to earth. Her comments about her hair and what it takes to get it that way are hilarous.

This is great little DVD. Not too long and packed with great footage of Laura, who is extremely impressive.

Tags: Laura Dore

Nothing makes me happier than seeing models I've shot go on to bigger and better things. Congrats to Carol Seleme for getting in next month's issue of Super Street Bike magazine (the same publisher of the venerable Low Rider magazine). Reach Carol on Twitter here. Bonus shot.

Tags: Carol Seleme Daniel, Super Street Bike Magazine

A well deserved tribute to one of the greats, Bria Myles, by one of the greats, KING Magazine... Kudos to editor Sean Malcolm for remembering the models that helped define the genre in his cover choices. Hit Bria up on Twitter here. (This post will be updated with further pics once I get around to scanning)

Tags: Bria Myles, King Magazine

"Video Girl" got a lot of things right - acting, cinematography, and direction are all notable. I always say we need to see more movies about African Americans just living life and doing things everyday people do. This is one of those movies. It tells the story of Lori Walker, strongly played by Megan Good, who moves from her small town to Los Angeles to pursue music video modeling. You can tell that the people involved with making this movie knew the business, because they got the nuances right, like the atmosphere of a music video set. Lorie's submergence into the world of music videos also felt true to real life, as did the interaction between the key players. Good brought her considerable acting experience to bear in this movie, taking it up several notches.

There needs to be a separate mention for cinematographer John Barr, who was camera operator on Capote and Frost/Nixon. This guy knows what he's doing, and he gave the movie a professional, self assured look that is rarely seen in independent African American films. People may not notice small things like the lighting on the golf course music video scene, but as a photographer I certainly did. Bravo John.

Melyssa Ford has a nice part as a bad influence on Lorie. Esther Baxter also has a small part in the movie, as do Suelyn and Angel Lola Luv. All of the supporting cast is fairly good, and particularly La'Myia Good as Lorie's sister (La'Myia is Meagan's real life sis) and Haylie Duff (Hilary's older sister) as Lorie's "friend." (Haylie is uncredited in the movie for reasons unknown to me.)

The first half of the movie is enjoyable in a low key way. If you don't already like Meagn Good, you probaby will after this movie: she apparently has no bad camera angles. The problem comes with the third act of the film, as Lorie succumbs to the fast life in Los Angeles. This part of the movie feels overwrought and drawn out. Additionally, Lorie's sudden cocaine abuse problem feels cliche and dated. (It probably should have been an oxy or vicodin addiction.) But the main issue is that we aren't shown any of the real problems an aspiring video vixen might encounter (e.g., being a single parent, homelessness, rape) in a meaningful way. Success actually comes pretty easily for Lorie, except that "Shark," the music video director who takes her under his wing, becomes overly possessive. There's some back story about issues at home leading to Lorie's unraveling, but it also seems cut and paste.

Despite this, "Video Girl" is still a pretty likable movie. It's not everyday you see a quality black, indie like this, and I suspect that as word gets around, this will become a favorite in the community. Kudos to all involved.

Tags: Meagan Good, John Barr, Ty Hodges, Melyssa Ford, Esther Baxter, Datari Turner

I've mentioned the blog Me In My Place before here, so you can check that post for the overview. Long and short - professional photographer for Esquire magazine anonymously doing pet project shooting everyday women (and occasionally models) in their place of residence. Generally speaking, I love the photography, but the models are usually not so curvy. But Xian Mikol Quon is kinda different. Cute face, and fairly "thick"...

Even though she was on Janice Dickinson Modeling Agency, I couldn't find much about her online pictorially speaking, and esp. not any photos in swimwear or lingerie. But she wore it for MIMP.... That's how you know your blog is getting really popular: when you can get models to do what they haven't otherwise. Anyway, his stuff is always in good taste, so it's not really all that controversial...

Tags: Xian Mikol Quon, Me In My Place

These are new images of the beautiful Christiane Kroll taken by talented LA photographer Ryan Astamendi and retouched by me. Ryan has his own blog, which has more excellent images. I really like these pics. Christi's classic good looks are just going to get better with time. Click to enlarge - Bonus pic added 10/6/11...

Tags: Christi K, Christiane K, Ryan Astamendi

Carol has got a new Tumblr page and she's going to be adding new artwork and sexy pics and vids, so check it out here. Gratiutous pic added for Carol fans.

Tags: Carol Seleme Daniel

You hear this a lot, that once a woman’s photos are published online, they will be there forever. Nothing ever disappears from cyberspace, so the thinking goes. It sounds good and seems true, but I’m not sure it really is. Ever tried looking for photos of a model who appeared on the net 5-10 years ago? Unless they’ve experienced a sudden resurgence in popularity, you are unlikely to find anything. That's because while an image may have the potential to be around for years on the net, that rarely winds up being the case. Call it digital attrition, but somehow these photos seem to just disappear. Take the case of Canadian fitness model Jamie Keoppe. At one time, message boards were flooded with photos of Jamie. (Anyone who knows this model can attest to this fact. ) Now, her image results on Google are meager at best. The same can be said of Miss Cheeky, whose ECM galleries used to be a regular staple on message boards. But when I recently posted her, I could scarcely gather up a dozen photos.

Mind you, a lot has changed in five years, most of it in favor of the infinite preservation of digital images in cyberspace. Just five years ago, Facebook was in its infancy, as was Youtube. There was no Tumblr, Twitter or Blogger. All of these tools aid in pictures lingering around the net longer. But I still have a difficult time finding images of models who were hot just a year ago.

The internet is a very transient medium. Message boards and blogs disappear all the time, and the photos indexed on those sites with them. Photobucket accounts are suspended or abandoned. Tinypics get deleted, Facebook accounts terminated. Eventually, if the factors line up, all of the breadcrumbs leading to a model can vanish. It’s not as unusual as you might think. Try finding the below image of Bria Myles online. It was posted about 2 years ago on her website as a “Bonus Shot” for several weeks. During that time, it circulated message boards heavily, but now, “poof”, it’s gone.

Tags: Jaime Koeppe, Bria Myles

At one time, Jernie did an an exclusive interview for Indosplace. She looks nice here in these new Smooth magazine shots. Kudos to Smooth for publishing more often and regularly than any of the other urban mags at this point.

Tags: Jernie