Meet The Models: Aaron

Aaron and I met early last year while I was on a trip to Los Angeles. We tried to shoot as much as we could for Kapow Meggings before the sun went down - and I think we did a great job.

Since then, he’s been able to come to Nashville to work at a Nashville Pride booth for a company I was working for at the time and I’ve been to LA several more times where we’ve been able to get together.

Working with someone like Aaron pushes me to do better and expand my horizons and promote my work in new and exciting ways. I wouldn’t be where I am today without folks like Aaron in my corner!

NAME: Aaron
BIRTHDAY: April 26th
HOMETOWN: Cleveland, OH
CURRENT CITY: Los Angeles, CA
INSTAGRAM: @a_ronmed

WHAT IS YOUR STORY: I am a healthcare worker that moved to the West Coast for the liberal culture, great weather, and forward healthcare system! I love to travel, camp, go on hikes, and attend as many concerts and music festivals as possible! I always had fun taking photos but never imagined it would become something worth mentioning. After doing a photo shoot with Jeremy Kost and having fun with some friends who are photographers, I decided to create an instagram account for fun! Originally, it was a test to see how Instagram truly worked, have fun, and connect with more people.

After about a year, I realized how complicated it is and almost ditched the effort. However, I decided it was too fun to let go and decided to turn it into an outlet to connect with the yoga community, the underwear community, and entertain people who like looking at me. My professional life is extremely involved and serious and at times can be overwhelming, so it has been nice to do something for fun and not take as seriously. I think a lot of people, especially on instagram, could do the same.

BOXERS OR BRIEFS? Definitely boxer briefs! However, I love a good jock strap.

WHEN DO YOU FEEL MOST CONFIDENT? I feel most confident when I’m alone and doing whatever I want. In terms of photography and modeling, I tend to be a little less confident because I don’t necessarily know how I look or what’s happening. This doesn’t mean I don’t have fun, though! I love shooting with people who make it fun and interesting and I will almost always be energetic and fun - there’s always going to be shoots where you don’t think you look good or like any of the photos, so you have to go in with the mindset that that may happen and just have fun with it! When I’m alone taking photos of myself, there’s inherently just a little less pressure and you can do whatever you want and not look for any external source of confidence. Reasons why most of my photos are self taken (:

WHAT DO YOU HOPE YOUR NEXT GREAT ACHIEVEMENT WILL BE? I’m currently working on putting together a poetry and film photography book, if I could get that published I would be extremely happy.

THIS MODELING THING CAME VERY ORGANICALLY AND VERY QUICKLY FOR YOU - MOSTLY AS A JOKE, RIGHT? WHERE DO YOU SEE IT TAKING YOU IN THE FUTURE? You know, I still wouldn’t say that it was “organic” necessarily. I still don’t consider myself to be “good” at doing shoots - real modeling takes a lot of practice, a lot of delicate consideration, and much greater natural ability than I have. I think it seems to be organic because I have done it without a lot of serious effort and have gotten somewhat of a following, but I don’t think I’m a natural by any means. People like what they see and I think can tell that I don’t take it too seriously, which can be more fun to follow. I don’t have too many intentions for the future, but I’m open to possibilities! I still have only worked with a handful of photographers and nothing has been at the level of professional modeling. I would love to be a part of a cool art project or work with a closely with a company I support and believe in. Until then, I’ll continue having fun!

YOU ENDED UP MAKING A LOT MORE FANS AT NASHVILLE PRIDE LAST YEAR. WHAT WAS THAT EXPERIENCE LIKE FOR YOU? Honestly, it was such an awesome experience. I went in with low expectations because I didn’t want to hype up an experience, but I went into it with an open mind and ready to do whatever. I’ve been to Nashville a few times before and loved it, but going for Pride was so much better. Living in LA, you are constantly surrounded by models, guys with six pack abs, perfect hair, and people who are so concerned with their image that you lose a bit of uniqueness. I went to my first LA Pride this past year as well, and was mostly underwhelmed for the most part. It was awesome to be involved in something so meaningful, but it seemed like too many people were taking it too seriously and more focused on pool parties, taking photos, and looking good. In Nashville, it was the complete opposite. Although everyone was beautiful, they were beautiful in their own way. People were more focused on the movement they were celebrating and not the instagram posts, who they were tagging in their photos, or what famous queer person they were hanging out with. I met so many amazing humans and felt more connected to the community than I have before.

WHAT IS THE BRAVEST THING YOU’VE DONE? Oh man, I have no idea. When I originally moved to LA, I had less than $1000 to my name and no credit card and no job. So I would say that was probably the largest gambles I’ve taken, and it has definitely paid off.

WHAT IS AN UNFORGETTABLE EXPERIENCE YOU’VE BEEN A PART OF? I worked in a government-run hospital on a small island in the Atlantic for 5 weeks. It was definitely one of the more life-changing experiences I’ve had and continues to mold the way I approach healthcare and underserved populations.

HOW DO YOU FEEL IN FRONT OF THE CAMERA? AWKWARD. I don’t think that will ever change.

WHICH MALE CELEBRITY WOULD YOU MOST LIKE TO SEE IN A PAIR OF KAPOW MEGGINGS? Christian Hogue 😍