East Devon farmers and other rural workers have stripped naked for a calendar to raise money for Brain Tumour Research.
Photographer Cat Down took pictures in locations across the county including fields near Colyton, a Christmas tree farm near Honiton, and a site in Sidmouth.
A total of 84 men and women from Devon were photographed in a range of poses and activities, with only agricultural accessories and props to preserve their modesty.
They were motivated to create the calendar, called Living Our Best Lives, after a member of their community was diagnosed with a brain tumour – and Cat herself also knows people who are living with the condition.
She said: “A friend, Rory Biggins, came up with the idea of the naked calendar during the August Bank Holiday and a week later he was finding sponsors and recruiting models while I was organising groups of nude farmers in different countryside locations from Sidmouth to Tavistock. It was quite the experience!”
Photographing naked farmers in the open countryside had its challenges. When setting up one of the shots, Cat made a sign to put on a nearby footpath to warn any passing walkers.
She said: “There’s another picture which was taken close to the main road so we had a few people tooting their horns as they drove past.
“I also remember a few of the farmers couldn’t take their riding boots off. They would normally be wearing jodhpurs, which gives the boot some friction to slide them off, but because of the bare skin, it created a vacuum, so that made us laugh for a while on the day.
“I have to say it was also the biggest range of tan-lines I’ve ever seen.”
Melanie Tiley, community development manager for Brain Tumour Research, said: “When we heard that farmers across Devon were posing naked for a calendar, we never imagined there’d be so many people willing to help and the props have been used in a very creative way. It’s inspiring to see them join together as a community to find a cure for the disease.”
To see more of the photos, and to order a copy of the calendar, visit the Living Our Best Lives website. All proceeds from the sale of the calendar will go to Brain Tumour Research.
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