Customer Reviews

Bites

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This small format book is an excellent work. The photographer, who normally makes his living shooting fashion in Europe and the US, was frustrated with the focus on quick, relatively thoughtless production values in fashion photography. He decided to create a body of work that allowed him to explore his creativity, while taking the time to photograph his subjects in a manner that would be uneconomic in his usual work. He was also looking to focus on the homoerotic. He began to photograph models in the nude, focusing in various respects on their bodies and in particular their "bites" (French slang that roughly translates to "dick"), but without showing their faces. This book displays the best of the works of his project. The subjects are beautiful; most are muscular and the photography really shows off their assets. They are shown in a variety of settings -- on beds, in the shower, otherwise fully clothed but with their "bites" exposed, laying about -- but always artfully. That the photographer has chosen to show his subjects bodies without their faces creates an air of erotic mystery. Although I highly recommend this work, you should be cautioned that it is not necessarily a coffee table art book for every avant guarde home. Here, art borders on pornography. The final shot, in fact, shows a torso covered in semen. But if you enjoy that genre, you will love this book.

Giovanni deserves accolades for taking on a book subject that has been neglected since Grecian times - the male phallus! While multiple photographers have approached the male nude with complete success and have included full frontal nudity, Giovanni makes the focal point of each of his photographs the phallus itself. He is more successful in his black and white photographs where he can heighten the lighting effects and the mystery of his subject. When he includes a bit of clothing or drapery, the result is all the more effective. His color photographs appear a bit mundane and graphic as opposed to sensual.

For this reviewer the cover photograph for the book (two nude males facing each other, 'crossing swords' as it were) is detrimental to the content. For one, the image does not appear on this site. And for another, for people who fear guilt by association, picking up this frank photo on the cover will probably not support sales. And that is unfortunate, because what Giovanni has accomplished is a brave step in the right direction of replacing the maleness back into art! Grady Harp, August 05

I feel I must stress this point to interested buyers - more than 90% of photos are faceless, trimmed at the chin or neck. Those with partial faces are deliberately angled or off-focused. Technical brilliance aside, for me it just did not work. Many of the photos, in my opinion, are 'rip-offs' of Mapplethorpe and Quiroz. It's like watching the frame by frame reshoot of 'Psycho'by Gus Van Sant. Paying homage is one thing, being inspired is another, but when an image is almost identical - it's rather lame.Nothing confrontational or visually feral here, the front and back covers might just be the two best attempts. Don't waste your money.

If one both appreciates the male body and is sensitive to the highest standards of photography from composition to tones to exactly sensing the best moment to take the picture, the outstanding nature of the photographs will be appreciated and the fact that they are of the naked male body will expand the appreciation.

This book was SO worth the money! It's officially my FAVORITE book ever! I look at it everyday and it makes me happy! Let's just say I get tons of pleasure by looking at these pictures, AND I am very hard to please. First off all the guys in this book are extremely, EXTREMELY hot! Second the fact you don't see their faces makes it even hotter... There's a sense of mystery about it. All the "bites" are extremely large and perfect! You also get to see all kinds of... stages that the "bites" can be in. Basically, if you love men and love looking at their "bites" you have GOT to get this book! TRUST ME!!!

this book is pretty good. the picture quality is OK. it would be better if the prints were in a larger format, but overall great photos.

Having taken the photographer almost ten years, it shows a passion for the subject coupled with a skilled artist working at his peak.

there was nothing, either aesthetically or eroticaly, to justfy the sale of this book.