Thanks for checking me out.

I am a professional photographer, high-end clothier and V.P. of sales for a cigar line I created with two partners. I've been photographing for 20 years off and on. The clothing business I've had for 10 years. I deal in exclusive high-end men's clothing...the kind found at Saks and Neiman Marcus. You can check out my photography website if you wish. It's allenshelton.com.

The cigar venture is fairly new, however. It has taken me to the Dominican Republic, Honduras and Nicaragua in the past few months. We went to blend the cigars, figure out what wrappers we wanted, what binders and fillers went best and so on. We were in Esteli and Managua, Nicaragua and Tegucigalpa, Honduras. We were in Santiago, Dominican Republic seeking a lower bid on tobacco. Nicaragua won the bid!

I love to travel and experience new cultures. I've lived in Germany and France and I've visited Italy, Spain, Monaco, Ibiza, Canada, Portugal, Mexico, The Dominican Republic, Honduras and Nicaragua. In France I lived in Paris for a brief while. Visited Nice, Bretagne, Bordeaux, Fontainbleau, Ile De Re and La Rochelle. In Spain I was in Alicante and Santa Pola on the coast. I visited Elche and Valencia. In Italy I was in San Remo. I absolutely adore the South Of France and the Italian Riviera.

My musical tastes are quite varied. My FAVORITE singers would have to be (brace yourself) Tony Bennett, Andy Williams, Dinah Washington, Billie Holliday and Luciano Pavarotti. I love true vocal talent. The music today lacks that I believe. There seems to be a lack of romance in today's music. That's what draws me to the older stuff and Opera. It's dramatic, it's classic....it has heart. I also love Brazilian Jazz like Astrud Gilberto, Celso Fonseca and the classic made famous by Stan Getz, The Girl From Ipanema. Any downtempo chillout or Jazz are winners to me.

My favorite movies would have to be Fred Zinnemann's classic, Day Of The Jackal. 1972 I believe. Also Au Revoir Les Enfants, The Talented Mr Ripley, Colditz, American Gigolo, and 1968's Pulp with Michael Caine. I love the older stuff.

Favorite colognes....Gucci Homme, Costume National, Anvers, Kiton, the original Giorgio Armani, Kouros, Halston Z-14, Calvin Klein (Original), Carerra, YSL Rive Gauche, Original Gianni Versace and Ferragamo.

Favorite Designers : Brioni, Kiton, Gianluca Isaia, Gucci, Franck Namani, Luciano Barbera and Oxxford. Franck Namani is a designer based out of Paris and Austria. Kiton is from Naples, Italy as well as Gianluca Isaia. These are the finest clothes in the world. Suits are roughly $4,000 starting and sportcoats are around $3K each. I like to wear things the average man doesn't know about. I wear clothes for me and not for others. It's rare that anyone ever knows what I'm wearing at a party or whatever. I don't like tacky giant logos on clothing like ARMANI JEANS or VERSACE in huge letters across the front of a shirt. I'm pretty subtle like that. Casually I like Maus & Hoffman of Palm Beach. Truzzi of Milan and Barrett. In case you can't tell. I love clothes and I'm always well-dressed. I have loads of shoes as well. Alden, Ferragamo, Polo, Gucci and the like.

I'm a one in a million guy. I am always asked why I'm in San Antonio and not LA or Miami. I don't look like I belong here but I believe I do!

First off, I'd like to talk about what I'm looking for in a woman and then I'll get to the date part. I've been called on the carpet by a few women on POF for not being descriptive about who I am looking for. I'm afraid to be too particular because I don't want to paint myself into a corner. I am attracted to a varitety of women so there is no "exact" type I can see myself with indefinitely. So...I can start off with what I don't like and then what I do like...

Dislikes :

Tattoos
Bizarre piercings
Loud/Obnoxious
Non-Religious
Unpatriotic
Non Family Oriented
No Class
Drunks/Drug Abusers
Sports/Spurs/Cowboys Fanatics

What I DO Like :

Christian
Feminine
Classy
Artistic
Beautiful/Elegant
Prefer a Non-Drinker
Family Oriented
Patriotic (Loves the country and not a political party)
Home Body
Creative
Great Cook

Hmmm....I'm pretty traditional. Coffee or something casual. Then we can plan bigger if we click. Attraction is important. Physically, mentally and so on.

I note that some in some profiles women say that they're looking for a "good man" a "decent man" or someone who has his act together. I've got all that. I'm articulate, sophisticated, traveled, educated, polished and self-employed. I don't think I'm bad looking! It leads me to think that women don't really want those things. That's just my take on this.