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For Trevor Christensen his job as a portrait photographer is to make his subjects feel comfortable when taking a picture - so he decided to get naked. Yes, in his series titled Nude Portraits, the award-winning photojournalist changed the dynamic of a traditional shoot by photographing people completely unclothed.

"My thinking was that I’m a person who is comfortable taking photos, helping a subject feel comfortable posing for pictures. What if I became a photographer who was uncomfortable taking photos, who was photographing a subject who was similarly uncomfortable?" Christensen told Bored Panda, stating that he wanted to explore how his fear would change his ability to make a photographic portrait. In short, Nude Portraits was a big experiment for the photographer.

For this portrait photographer, taking the road less traveled has always been his way. Christensen took his first photo class freshman year of high school, and it quickly became a serious part of his life. The Utah native dropped out to pursue his passion, and his talent led him to be published in outlets such as The Salt Lake Tribune, USA Today, the BBC and The Washington Post.

Despite being a highly experienced in people photography, he admits that the first naked shoots were terrifying. "Even with people I knew, it was stressful and strange to carry on a conversation and direct a portrait shoot while I was nude. I did about 50 shoots for the series and never really enjoyed them," said Christensen. As time went on, he noticed a shift in the experience:

"As I got used to the process, I wasn’t as intimidated by the experience as I was in the beginning. I also noticed from subjects facial expressions that they didn’t seem to react as strongly to my nudity either. What I realized is that when you’re taking a persons photo, they’re looking to you to know how to feel. So as you become more confident and collected, they’ll be the same way. They’re feeding off your energy."

Christensen has received mostly positive reactions to the series, saying it has spurred conversations on bodies, how we process nudity and vulnerability. In addition to his personal projects, the now Los Angeles resident teaches online photography classes as well.

Scroll down below to see the photos from this experimental shoot!

More Info: Website | Instagram | Vimeo

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    Elena Adams
    Community Member
    6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Victoria looks kinda uncomfortable, but Hannah is posing and all haha

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    Magpie
    Community Member
    6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    We can see that both model and photographer are getting comfortable.

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    Whawhawhatsis
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    6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    The men all seem to laugh! The women have all kinds of reactions, but the laughter seems pretty universal amongst the men. I guess it makes them extra-uncomfortable. I approve!

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    Kath Leen
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    6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    i can see any moment now something is gonna pop out of the space below the bed...

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    Jade Lynn
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    6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Her parents let some random guy be naked in their yard? Much more relaxed than my parents haha

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    tarebear
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    6 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It seems like some of the people who look un phased by the photographer are just good models/ trying to be good models and not show a reaction....is that how photography works?? I used to watch ANTM and they were never allowed to react to anything around them

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