Chapter 10 - Photo Shoot

Robert, Amy, and Suzanne spent Thanksgiving together. Robert and Suzanne tried, not very successfully, to conceal their relationship from Amy. It didn't matter, Amy had it figured out within a few days after Suzanne and Robert fell for each other. She still did not understand what on earth Suzanne had in common with her father's law partner.

This Thanksgiving was special for each of them, given that each had spent the previous Thanksgiving alone. Amy had spent her Thanksgiving in a daze on a bus, Robert spent his having dinner alone, and Suzanne spent hers alone in her apartment developing photos. None of them could have anticipated the strange turn of events that would bring them together that day.

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Amy's friendship with Wendy developed throughout November and December. They went out to a couple of times to movies and met for lunch or coffee almost daily. They liked the same music and planned for concerts they wanted to attend over the next few months. For Amy, having a person in her life with who she could share her interest in music was a nice change from Suzanne, who mostly listened to European New Age or Classical music.

During the days immediately following Burnside's party Amy and Wendy pulled down their jeans to study each other's welts whenever they met to work on their paper. They had a fascination with the experience they had endured together, and studying the marks as they slowly faded became part of that shared experience.

Wendy was simply curious to see how long it would take Amy's bottom to heal. Amy, however was fascinated by Wendy's bottom as well as by the welts from Burnside’s switch. Wendy had been more severely marked than Amy during her punishment because Burnside had hit her harder than Amy, and also because her skin was more delicate. On the first day they got together to study at Amy's apartment, Wendy lay on Amy's bed with her jeans and underwear around her ankles, while Amy put lotion on Wendy's welts. Amy was fascinated in tracing the marks on Wendy's bottom with her fingertips as she gently spread the lotion. Wendy, still traumatized by her experience in Burnside’s house, was content to just lie there and let Amy do what she wanted.

As Wendy's welts faded and her soft brown skin recovered, Amy remembered how fascinated she was watching the beginning of her friend's punishment, seeing her bent over, that smooth flesh on her bottom stretched tight as she waited for the first stroke of Burnside's switch. Amy had a guilty fantasy; she badly wanted to punish Wendy herself. She remembered a time in high school that she and Courtney had tried spanking each other and how much fun it had been. Amy wanted to have a similar experience with Wendy, nothing severe, but some nice sharp smacks on that soft petite bottom of Wendy's. Amy figured that it was just a fantasy, since she would have a hard time finding a reason that would convince Wendy to submit to a punishment.

Amy's fascination with her friend's body increased the week after Thanksgiving, when Wendy realized that Suzanne knew how to give massages. As her photography took off, Suzanne had slowly reduced her massage schedule, but she still had a few regular clients. Wendy badly wanted a capable massage therapist, and offered herself to Suzanne as a model in exchange for massages. Suzanne gladly accepted the arrangement. Within minutes Suzanne had some backdrops put up on one side of the spare room and Wendy had her clothes off, waiting for the photographer's instructions. As Amy helped her roommate put the lighting in place she could not keep herself from continuously glancing over at Wendy.

The photo shoot itself was brief, since Suzanne only intended to test the lighting on Wendy's body. The only pictures she planned to use would be a couple of portraits of Wendy's face. For the figure studies she called to reserve a studio at the art department for a more serious shoot for the next day.

Once Suzanne put down her cameras Wendy lay face-up on Suzanne's massage table. Amy watched as Suzanne calmly spread massage oil on Wendy's dark skin. She worked Wendy from the feet up to her neck, then finished with Wendy's arms and shoulders before having her turn over. When Suzanne started massaging Wendy's bottom, kneading and pressing the soft flesh and the muscles underneath, Amy's imagination was fired. She felt her heart pounding in her throat when Suzanne finished the massage by lightly slapping Wendy's skin. Suzanne was too involved in her work to notice Amy's expression, which was lucky for Amy. Had Suzanne realized what her roommate was thinking, she would have ordered her out of the room.

The next day Suzanne and Amy prepared the lighting and selected backdrops for the studio at the art department. Suzanne had all of her cameras with her and an assortment of tripods and flashes. Wendy arrived in a sweatsuit with nothing underneath, following Suzanne's instructions to avoid pressure marks from underwear or other tight-fitting clothing. She stripped and stepped into the center of the room.

Suzanne shot roll after roll of film in different lighting arrangements. She learned to her great pleasure that her new model had been a gymnast as a teenager, and still had incredible flexibility in her body that Amy did not have. Suzanne was able to experiment with Wendy on poses totally different from the ones she had taken of Amy. There would be pictures out of this shoot that would sell for sure, thought Suzanne.

Suzanne realized that Amy and Wendy were the same height and had the same build, the only difference being that Amy's hips were slightly wider and her breasts had a slightly different shape. The similarity between Amy and Wendy gave the photographer an idea. She decided to do another shoot the next day with Wendy and Amy together. They would shave their pubic hair and have the same hairstyle, which would make the two models almost mirror images of each other. Amy and Wendy agreed immediately and took off to Wendy's hairdresser to agree on a hairstyle and cut.

Suzanne decided that not all of the photos of Amy and Wendy would be figure shots. That evening the three women went to various clothing stores to buy matching outfits, ranging from business attire, to formal dresses, to leather jackets, to jean clothing.

Suzanne and her models spent an entire day in the studio. They put on different clothes, posed nude together, posed topless, posed bottomless, posed one nude and the other fully clothed. They took opposite sides of each other and mirrored each other's movements. The shots were excellent and many of them would be marketable. Suzanne was pleased with both Amy and Wendy.

However, as the day went on Suzanne began to see much greater potential in this shoot. She decided that she wanted more from Amy and Wendy. She wanted their faces to come alive with intense emotion. She wanted the shoot to be a real experience. She wanted to experiment with her two models and do something really on the edge. Suzanne decided to reserve the studio for a third day and ask her models to give her another day out of their lives. "Tomorrow I want to do something really intense. We have some excellent energy going here and I want to take you two to your limits." Suzanne was all business now. Amy and Wendy nerved themselves for what promised to be a difficult, but interesting day.

That evening, Suzanne still did not know exactly what she wanted from Amy and Wendy. She randomly developed several pictures from the first shoot of Amy and Wendy together to see if she could get any ideas from the pictures taken so far. One picture she developed was of Wendy and Amy taken from the back. They were wearing nothing but matching jean jackets and sneakers. They were holding hands, but at the same time pulling away from each other. The muscles in their legs and bottoms showed the tension. Suzanne studied their expressions, then their bottoms. Suddenly she had an idea. Had Amy and Wendy been spanked, had their bottoms been pink and their faces reflecting the emotion of just having been punished, this picture would have been shocking indeed.

Suzanne decided that what she really wanted to do for the next day was to spank Amy and Wendy during the photo shoot. There was no question that punishment would give Amy and Wendy the intensity of emotion that Suzanne wanted. She remembered the effect that paddling had on Amy during the exercise photo-shoot in June. She approached Amy with the idea. At first Amy objected.

"Suzanne, I still don't get it. Why do you want to punish us? We didn't do anything!"

"Amy, it's not about punishment. It's about the intensity of your experience in the studio. I want everything from you. I want all of your emotion to come out in those pictures. I want to see the fear and nervousness in your eyes come through. I want you to be scared about not knowing what's going to happen next. I want the pain and passion of your day tomorrow to jump right out at the viewer."

Suzanne was dead serious. Amy knew that she was on to something. Her heart pounded. "What are you going to use on us?"

"I still have my father's old paddle, the one I used on you in June. I'll use that." Suzanne looked at her roommate. Amy's face was full of concern and worry. Suzanne put her hand on Amy's. "Amy, it would mean a lot to me if you and Wendy could do this. I know it's a lot to ask, especially of Wendy."

Amy sighed. "OK, I'll do it. I'll talk to Wendy and try to get her to go along as well. I need you to take me over to her place and drop me off. I need to explain this to her in person."

Wendy was surprised to see Amy at her door. As soon as Wendy closed the door behind her Amy began "Wendy, I need to talk to you about the photo shoot tomorrow. It's going to be pretty rough."

"I gathered that. What does Suzanne have in mind?"

"She wants to paddle us."

"WHAT?! Why? Is she mad at us?"

"No, not at all. Actually she was real happy with our work today. So much so that she wants to take it further. It took me a while to figure out what she wants. The way I understand it is that she thinks we are on the edge of something really...exciting, I guess. She thinks that if she can somehow give us an extra push of emotion her pictures will really be something special."

Wendy shook her head. "Amy, I don't want to...It's too much for her to ask."

Amy paused. She had her doubts as well. She put them aside and defended her roommate.

"Suzanne is a good photographer. She knows what she's doing. I know that she wouldn't ask us to do this for her unless she had a really good reason."

Wendy sighed. "Amy, what exactly did you tell her?"

"I told her that I would do it, and that I would talk to you about it. Look, I'm nervous too. The only thing that I can tell you is that she used that paddle on me back in June. It hurts, but it's not as bad as what we got from Burnside."

Wendy was silent for a long time. Finally she sighed again and looked at Amy nervously. "Alright. I just hope it's worth it."

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The next day Suzanne, loaded down with her photographic equipment, led her two models, who were loaded down with suitcases of clothing, back into the art department studio for a third day of shooting. She quickly turned up the heat in the studio and started laying out her supplies and cameras. She snapped at Amy and Wendy to unpack their suitcases and systematically lay out their clothing for quick changes.

Suzanne became a different person during a photo shoot, especially one in a studio. Amy was amazed that the dominating, no-nonsense photographer in the art department was the same person who just a few days before had driven her to Detroit and knelt with her in an ally.

Suzanne decided to use a white backdrop for most of the photos. She planned to experiment with other colors and designs, but would mostly stick with white. She checked the other backdrops, then turned her attention to the lighting. Amy and Wendy, wearing sweatsuits, stood together watching Suzanne move about the room.

Suzanne suddenly left the studio and returned with a small wooden stool. She reached in her camera bag and pulled out the paddle. She placed it on the stool. Amy and Wendy exchanged glances. Both were visibly nervous.

Suzanne turned to face her two models "OK. Wendy, Amy, drop your sweats and move to the center of the room."

Amy and Wendy complied. The nervous tension in their eyes pleased Suzanne; this was what she wanted. She shot a couple of close-up shots of her models' faces, then backed off for the poses. The close-up shots would work for sure, thought Suzanne. There was an intensity in the eyes that was lacking yesterday.

Suddenly Suzanne ordered Amy and Wendy to the stool. "Wendy, pick up the paddle. Look at me." Suzanne took another series of close-up portraits of Wendy. "Wendy, hand the paddle to Amy, put your hands on the stool and spread your feet a little. Please try not to cry."

Suzanne snapped more pictures of Wendy once she was in position. Wendy looked back at Suzanne with a sad, nervous expression. Amy suddenly felt incredibly aroused, seeing Wendy's body once again bent over for punishment. Suzanne took the paddle from Amy, and swatted Wendy hard 10 times. The loud pops reverberated in the room.

"Amy, your turn." Wendy's eyes had tears in them, but she managed not to cry as she stepped aside for Amy. Amy placed her hands on the stool.

"Amy, look back at me." Suzanne's camera snapped a couple of times. Suddenly Amy felt the sharp sting of the first swat. Amy bit her lip against the pain. Like Wendy, Suzanne swatted her hard 10 times. Suzanne snapped two pictures of Amy still bent over.

Quickly Suzanne ordered Wendy and Amy back to the center of the room, for a long series of dual poses. She had been right, there was an intensity of emotion that was not in the pictures from yesterday. Suzanne knew that the pink color on Amy's bottom and the pinkish tone on the brown skin of Wendy's bottom would add shock value to the pictures.

Suzanne was now ready to re-do the jean jacket shots. She ordered Wendy and Amy back to the stool. She wanted more color on her models' bottoms for the next series. The two girls exchanged a glance of nervousness and fear that Suzanne just happened to catch with her camera.

Once again, Wendy took 15 hard swats on her bottom. This time it was even harder for her not to cry, but she managed to stay quiet. It was Amy's turn. Again came the sharp sting. It was worse this time, having the 15 new swats laid on top of the first 10.

Quickly Suzanne ordered Amy and Wendy to get their jean jackets and tennis shoes on. She re-posed all the shots from the previous day with the jackets, including the one that gave her this idea in the first place. As Amy and Wendy pulled against each other, their teary eyes and nervous faces, as well as their pink bottoms, exhilarated Suzanne. Suzanne then ordered her models to clasp their hands and press together, front to front and stare straight into the camera. Amy felt Wendy's bare thighs against her own.

Suddenly Suzanne ordered the models to put on their matching business outfits. As Amy and Wendy posed fully dressed the only evidence of their pain and emotional turmoil was in their faces, but it was clearly present. Suzanne then ordered Amy to strip again but for Wendy to stay dressed. She handed the paddle to Wendy and ordered Amy to move to the center of the room and to bend over with her hands on her ankles. She positioned Wendy and took a couple of preliminary shots from different angles.

"Wendy, I want you to start paddling Amy. Go slowly and take your time between the swats. Amy, please keep your eyes on me."

Wendy hit Amy almost as hard as Suzanne had, laying a third set of paddle swats on top of the first two sets. This time the stinging was almost unbearable. Amy struggled not to cry. Suzanne was fired up, taking pictures with two different cameras. She did not tell Wendy to stop paddling until Amy had taken 20 hard swats. It took all of Amy's internal strength to stay quiet.

Suzanne quickly switched rolls of film. "Amy, Wendy, stand face to face. Hold hands and look at me."

Tears were rolling down Amy's cheeks. They both looked into Suzanne's camera. Suzanne took several shots.

"Put your arms around each other. Hug and make up." Amy's face, full of tears, came closer to Wendy's intense wide-eyed expression. Suzanne snapped some close up portraits then stepped back to snap some shots of the contrast between Amy's naked body and Wendy's business attire. Suzanne then ordered Wendy to change into a formal dress for another set of poses with Amy still naked. Suzanne re-took all the pictures with Wendy dressed differently. The dress gave the new pictures an entirely different mood than the ones with the business suit. Suzanne had Wendy change yet again, this time into jeans and a leather jacket. She re-took all the poses yet again in this new variation of Wendy's attire.

Suzanne moved a wooden chair into the center of the room. She ordered Wendy to sit down and Amy to go across Wendy's lap. She switched to a high-speed camera. "Start spanking Amy. Put some force into it." Once again loud slaps rang through the studio. Suzanne quickly moved about her two models, taking dozens of pictures.

Amy struggled yet again not to cry. Wendy was not showing her any mercy, which of course, was what Suzanne wanted. Wendy had become as enthralled with the session as had Suzanne. Wendy was not spanking Amy full force, but instead with calculated precision to maximize the effectiveness of the swats. Wendy's eyes met Suzanne's camera. Suzanne had found her moment with her model. She took several close-up shots of the intense expression in Wendy's face.

Reluctantly Suzanne broke the spell with Wendy. She ordered Wendy to let Amy up. Wendy stopped spanking Amy, although it was clear that she wanted to continue. Amy struggled to her feet, trying with all her effort not to cry. Through her teary eyes Amy gave Wendy a hurt look, which Suzanne was able to capture on film.

Suzanne handed Amy her jean jacket. With trembling hands Amy managed to put it on and close the buttons. Suzanne ordered Amy to turn her back to the camera but then look over her shoulder. Amy's red bottom contrasted with the dark blue denim of the jacket. Amy was still hurt that Wendy could have spanked her so hard over the three paddlings she had already received. That hurt in her eyes became the focus of the next series of shots. Suzanne had found her moment with Amy.

Suzanne shot a couple more rolls of film on facial and figure shots of Amy and Wendy, but she already had what she wanted. She briefly thought about having Wendy and Amy switch places, but she realized that the moment to do that had passed and that the shots would not be as good as the ones she already had taken. Thus Wendy was spared any further punishment and Amy never got the chance that day to get even with her.

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While Amy and Wendy studied for their finals, Suzanne spent days in the darkroom developing the photos. These were good, she thought. Suzanne had been pleased with the pictures from the first day of Amy and Wendy together, but the first day's shots were nothing in comparison to the shots from the second day. Suzanne showed some of the better pictures to her models, who were amazed that they had actually been the subjects of the photos. Suzanne, in her usual way of dealing with her best subjects, offered them half of the income from the shoot, this time to be split evenly between Amy and Wendy.

Suzanne quickly asked Wendy and Amy to sign model releases and visited her publisher with the complete set of photos from both days of shooting. Suzanne's editor looked through the pictures in silence. The pictures impressed him, something that clearly showed in his face. He called two assistants to have a look, as Suzanne sat nervously watching. No one said anything, but every so often the editor exchanged glances with the two assistants as they nodded. He dismissed them, folded his hands on his desk, and looked at Suzanne.

"Suzanne, do you realize what you have here?"

"Not really. I shot all these without much of a plan. I wasn't sure how they would turn out."

"Well, the way they turned out is going to put you in the same league as the top group of photographers in New York. These are going to be controversial. I got to warn you about that. I'll take as much of the heat as possible, but you are going to get some as well."

"I...don't understand."

"I'm going to give this collection top billing. It has tremendous shock value. What I like about the pictures is that you weren't trying for shock value, but it's there, plain as day. I'd be neglecting my responsibilities to this company if I passed up the opportunity to market your work to its fullest potential." The editor paused, then continued. "One question, just out of curiosity; you actually punished the two models? That wasn't make-up?"

"Yes. I wanted to get all of their emotion out onto film, and couldn't think of how else to do it. The idea to spank them hit me at the end of the first night of shooting, because I wanted to push them to their limits. Besides, I wouldn't use make-up for something like that. You can tell the difference."

"Well, you succeeded. You got just the right amount of emotion in the pictures. As for the controversy over what you did, it'll be there. It's there for every collection of this class."

Suzanne and her editor spent the next several hours going over the photos to be published. Suzanne was still a bit astounded by her editor's enthusiasm, and more so by seeing how many of the pictures he wanted in the book. He separated some others for promotional purposes, and still others for submission to magazines.

Suzanne was even more surprised when she finally saw the draft of her contract. She realized that she had been quite generous with Amy and Wendy. The money that each of them could expect from this shoot would easily put them through college and graduate school.

"Suzanne, your boyfriend is a lawyer, right?" She nodded. "Show this contract to him. Talk it over. I want to make sure you are completely satisfied with it."

Chapter 11