SPORTS ILLUSTRATED SWIMSUIT PORTFOLIO: IDYLLIC SHORES

When Sports Illustrated released its Idyllic Shores magazine special, it was a taste of what was coming.  Well, that day has arrived with the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Portfolio: Idyllic Shores -- and its very familiar to those who read the magazine special.

The Portfolio contains all the photographs of the models that were in the magazine special, plus the exact same introduction and comments that introduce each model's photographs.  So why go with the Portfolio instead or or in addition to the magazine special?  A couple of reasons, actually.

The Portfolio is a coffee table book, meaning the photos are larger -- and the beauty of the models and the locales are brought out more with the bigger area.  Also, there are additional photos for many of the models, giving something with the Portfolio that's not available in the magazine special.

The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Portfolio: Idyllic Shores might have been more exciting if so much of it wasn't already shown in its magazine preview.  But that's doesn't detract from the absolute beauty of these models and the locations -- or the extra photographs of this book.

Overall grade: A-
Reviewed by James Lynch

SPORTS ILLUSTRATED SWIMSUIT 2014 EXTRA: IDYLLIC SHORES

For several years, Sports Illustrated followed its no-sports, all-swimwear Swimsuit Issues with hardcover portfolios collecting photos that didn't make it into that year's issue.  These seemed to stop with the 2011 issue -- until now!  And to tide sports, er, sexy women in bikini fans over until the October 28th release of the hardcover portfolio book, a preview hit the magazine stands with Sports Illustrated Swimsuit 2014 Extra: Idyllic Shores.

Idyllic Shores has photos that somehow didn't make it into the 2014 Swimsuit Issue, featuring nineteen models from that issue.  Each model gets eight pages of photos (except Kate Upton, who got ten pages), along with the names of the photographer and location, plus a few comments about the model.

As always, the photos are absolutely beautiful.: not just the models, but also the stunning locations.  This makes it easy to forgive them when the actual swimsuits are barely in the photos.

Loathe as I am to find fault with a collection of beauties wearing swimsuits or less, there are two slight problems with Idyllic Shores.  The first is that Sports Illustrated could and should have given a lot more pages to each model.  The second is that the first problem may be solved in the upcoming portfolio book (with about 50 more pages), but that book would effectively replace this magazine.  But while this may not be as many pages as the original or the upcoming, it's still quite lovely to look at.  To quote Troy McClure from The Simpsons, "If that's what they cut out, what they leave in must be pure gold!"  And these cut-outs are  pretty close to gold themselves.

Overall grade: A-

Reviewed by James Lynch

SPORTS ILLUSTRATED: IN THE PAINT

It's ironic not only that the biggest selling issue of Sports Illustrated is their annual swimsuit issue, which has nothing to do with sports, but also that since 1997 one of their most popular features of that issue doesn't involve actual swimsuits but instead body paint designed to look like swimwear (or other garments). Sports Illustrated: In the Paint takes a look both at the process of making these human works of art and the glorious results.

Joanne Gair first achieved notoriety with her Vanity Fair cover of Demi Moore in a suit made of paint, but her work on the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue special issues truly brought her fame. She has done all the painting for every issue since 1997, and Sports Illustrated: In the Paint has her, and others involved, discussing the challenges, inspirations, and results of turning some of the most beautiful women in the world into human canvases.

To say creating these works is difficult is an understatement. The models have to remain still for several hours at a time, spending the bulk of the day motionless for one or two photos that will appear in the issue. (The photo at the bottom of this review shows Heidi Klum making the best of an accidental brush with the painting-in-progress.) Gair is a perfectionist, not just tossing colors on models but taking great care with the shading, texture, and style of each work of art. A few props -- such as zippers, bows, or string -- are often used to add a bit of texture, but this enhances the illusion of clothing rather than takes a shortcut to creating the art.

As the body painting feature has continued, themes are used each year to keep the feature fresh (as if seeing these almost-naked women could get boring). Sports Illustrated: In the Paint has collections of the models "wearing" everything from sportswear to rock band t-shirts. There's even a collection where Gair turned the women into living classical statues!

Sports Illustrated: In the Paint is a fun collection. There's not a lot of depth to the process of creating these amazing photos (though the technical details can be quite interesting), but the results are truly spectacular. It's easy to see why Gair has become a staple of this special swimwear issue, and Sports Illustrated: In the Paint is an excellent showcase of her work. Wow!

Overall grade: A-

Reviewed by James Lynch