Thousands gather for nude shoot in Amsterdam

Dozens of women posed nude on their bicycles overlooking one of Amsterdam's most historic canals for the latest work by U.S. photographer Spencer Tunick.

The women were among 2,000 people who shed their clothes for a series of four group photos taken in the city during the early morning hours on Sunday.

Tunick'sphotographsrely on thousands of volunteers to help him stage massive shoots in public places around the world, including London, Vienna, Buenos Aires and Buffalo.

The women on bikes were selected froma larger group that participated in various shoots on Sunday.

The first shoot was the largest composition and took place in a parking garage just outsideAmsterdam.

Participants lined the railings of the garage's twin circular towers, creating a pattern of multicolour stripes against the white building.

Other shoots included a group of men posing together near the parking garage and a mixed group of men and women on another bridge.

Photos from Sunday's session were to be exhibited at an Amsterdam club later in the day.

Tunick has become famous for his nude shoots and set a record for naked photography last year when he took a shot of 18,000 people in Mexico City.

The Brooklyn native previously set a record in 2003, whenapproximately 7,000 volunteers were photographed nude in Barcelona.

Tunick began photographing nude figures in public in the early 1990s and has since staged more than 65 public compositions.

Since 1992,he hasbeen arrested five times in New York for his photo shoots.

Tunick is the subject of three documentaries entitled Naked State, Naked World and Positively Naked.