WHY NOT TO USE GRINDR… WITH ARTUR M

One of the main questions we get asked is how we find our Elska boys. Generally there are three ways…

1. Sometimes they contact us directly, cos they’ve seen the magazine or our instagram feed or whatever, and they’d like to be a part of Elska Magazine. We love this!

2. We also use social media to spread the word that we’re coming to a particular place and ask random guys if they’re up for it. We don’t look for a particular type except that it should be someone living in the place, not a tourist.

3. Sometimes when we’re already on location and we’ve got some extra time to fill, we’ll pop on Grindr or some similar app and message anyone around to see if they want to get their picture taken.

It was this third way that led us to Artur M. It was around 10:00 and we’d yet to hear back from a guy we were supposed to shoot at lunchtime. Fearing he’d disappeared (some guys do get nervous at the last minute, it’s forgivable), I turned on Grindr and messaged about ten guys. Artur M. was one and he offered to let us take a few shots during his lunch break. We also met Sasha M. this way – see our post Sasha M from Behind the Curtain.

Artur turned up, signed the model release form (not very sexy but such contracts are necessary), and stood by the window nervously wondering what to do. The problem with last minute shoots is that there’s no time to build a rapport with someone. The idea of Elska is really to get to know the boys and their city, but it’s hard to convey such intimate knowledge with someone who you’ve barely spoken to and have 30 minutes available before they have to get back to work. What we’re left with is a set of images that evokes such awkwardness, interesting in its own right but not exactly a mood we wish to perpetuate.

Elska Boy: Artur M

Photographer: Liam Campbell

Location: Lviv, Ukraine

Elska Magazine: Elska Ekstra (1.1)

#LvivUkraine