Yesterday, Sunday, April 7th, was not a day I was looking forward to, and considering how much I had paid to attend the Next Level workshop, that should tell you something. Why was I not excited about day three of the workshop? The morning session was "shooting the female nude" with live models. I do not understand my hesitancy, my being uncomfortable about the idea of taking photographs of nude models. I just was.

During my studies at RISD, my drawing classes included several sessions with both male and female nude models, during which I had no sense of being uncomfortable. So, why was I so uncomfortable with the possibility now? It is beyond my ability to understand and communicate. In the end, the session went okay. The models were very young, 26 and 30, beautiful and experienced. Ralph led the session and worked with the models and us throughout the morning. My takeaways from the session are as follows:

• Ralph's first goal was to help us understand that the nude female body has been a subject of art since prehistory. Studying the human body and creating art based on that study was an essential part of the practice for many if not most, great artists.

• Ralph's second goal was to illustrate how this type of shoot is a process, a collaboration between the photographer and the model.

• Over the morning, I became more comfortable with the shoot, and in the end, there are several images that I would be proud to show you, but I can't. The model agreements we signed prevent us from using any of the images created without a signed consent and agreed-upon compensation with the models.

• I have never been interested in shooting nude models, and it is not something I plan on doing again.

The afternoon session included Ralph discussing his practice, philosophies, inspiration, lessons learned from other great photographers and through experience, and some questions and answers. Ralph has put out an astonishing number of books. He believes that books are the best format for the presentation of photographs. Among those books are more than a few on his practice, philosophies, inspirations, and lessons learned from other great photographers and through experience. So, what he presented that afternoon was what I had already gleaned from his books, and the afternoon dragged on just a little too long for me.

It had been two and a half long days without exercise, and when I came out of the subway, the sun shone, and a walk beckoned.

I struggled to make any images. That sometimes happens. Here is what I saw on my walk: