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Back to Greece.... Cheerful, sparkling Xenia posed for me at the sunny beach of Alimos near Athens. She was accompanied by her life partner Stavros who is an excellent photographer himself. Stavros was sitting a few feet away on my left hand side. When the Valentine glasses came out of the box, it was immediately clear that Xenia went for out of the box posing and acting. Nothing is left out in this splendid series which took us less than half a minute. Hat off for Xenia!

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Back to England.... Doing the photo shoot with lovely, lively Nicci was a wonderful experience. Lots of excellent posing and equally important, lots of laughter and fun as well. She was well able to switch from one role to the other within a split second and back. Of course Nicci went for the acting bit when she saw the Valentine glasses but she added a nice twist of her own. She first took a good look at the imaginary handsome man but then decided to ignore him. Instead, her kiss was sent to her devoted, nearly blushing photographer. Thank you, Nicci!

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The Valentine glasses also traveled with me to Greece in spring. Nefeli was one of the models who posed for me in Athens. The theme of her photo shoot was fashion in the 1960's and 1970's but Nefeli did not mind posing briefly in the Valentine glasses during a break. The bright red pillow came handy as an accessory, blending perfectly with the Valentine glasses.  

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It came as no surprise to me that Lettie went for the acting role in the Valentine glasses. However, there is enough reality in these portraits. Lettie is looking at her life partner Willem. So much better than the imaginary handsome man....

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The Valentine glasses also traveled with me to England in May. Miliswa was one of the three models who posed for me in the Pavilion Gardens in Brighton. A model with a distinctive style of her own, Miliswa preferred to stay true to her own style of posing. She is slightly longsighted and the lenses in the Valentine glasses are minus eight. Not bothered by the blur, Miliswa achieved a natural, credible eye contact with her photographer.

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Monique was one of the models who posed for me in Berlin in October. She preferred to pose in her own characteristic style, delivering these fine portraits under the willow tree.

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The photography project started with Nel and she always kept inspiring and supporting my work. When we decided to split up in harmony two weeks before Christmas, I had serious doubt if there was enough reason for me to carry on with the project. It felt as if the very heart had just fallen out of it, so to speak. Nel then did her best to convince me that I should carry on with the project. She also assured me that she would pose again whenever her help was needed. And she did. This photo of was taken at Christmas. Nel made a deliberate choice to look at her photographer, ignoring the imaginary most handsome man in the world. Thank you, dear!