Natalie

"Happiness radiates like the fragrance from a flower and draws all good things towards you." ~Maharishi Mahesh Yogi

Ash

I believe it was Confucius that wisely said: "time spent researching the best camera models on the internet is not time spent learning a craft". 

Ash

My own opinion is that, in photography, the hierarchy of values runs something like this: subject… composition… exposure… focus. I’m certainly not the voice of photographers everywhere— but to me, small flubs can’t wreck a great photo. In the past, if one tried best with what they had and spent some time learning the camera and the fundamentals— then a little out of focus, enlarged grain, blur… won’t wreck it. On the contrary, it makes the photo easier to look at and love. The newest digital cameras are amazing, but they are often too good. Perfection can take the soul out of an image. Ironically, I have lately been purposely messing up my images a bit in order to give them some more organic feel that a perfect sensor doesn't quite give.

Katie

"No object is mysterious. The mystery is your eye."   ~Elizabeth Bowen

Ash

Upside down Ophelia.

Percolate & Kati Kill

A little baby oil never hurt anyone...

Rachael

Non-representational body painting.

Sophia, Kammy & Percolate

"There is nothing worse than a sharp image of a fuzzy concept."  ~Ansel Adams

PXE

This image is from a shoot with a model who goes by the moniker PXE. It's pronounced pixie, which is fitting due not only to her petite size but her squeaky voice. Her voice is a dead ringer for Carol Kane's voice (from Taxi). She's definitely one of a kind— a fascinating person, capable of switching back and forth between a bubbly cartoon character and intense sexual persona. Speaking of bubbly versus intense, I think this is one of my strongest images— despite the fact that we were both pretty much laughing hysterically the whole shoot. It seems to visually convey a celebration of female empowerment. "I am Woman, hear me roar".

Sable

Going back in time, rather than forward. I tend to be unstuck in time, Slaughter-House Five style.

Katy

Katy is a rockabilly girl who is obsessed with Henry Miller. It’s something that we have in common, among other things. Pinup images are a genre that I've focused on in the past and continue to occasionally create. There have not been any of my pinup pics represented here since it is a style that is so very different from this work. I'm definitely still channeling Bettie Page, though! Katy, of course, has many tattoos- certainly not very (classic) pinup. In the past, I’ve always strived to be dead on as far as re-creating the looks of yesteryear. I feel as though I've been hitting a stride lately in developing my own distinct style. Now I've been trying to incorporate that when doing the pinups, portraits and Hollywood glamour photographs.

Manchester

By the Sea.

Jade Vixen

My list could go on and on as to what draws me to photography. For the sake of keeping your attention, I'll try to keep it short and brief... I love the process of exploration. I love to experience new things— and examine, scrutinize and record those experiences. I love the doors that photography has opened for me— getting to see things right before me that I otherwise might not have and/or couldn't have seen. Photographic pursuit has been my way to understand things. It has been a good constant in my life. It has been my way of communicating my inner self to others in a way I couldn't imagine otherwise (I actually have a poor imagination). It is my escape. It is my way to love life by embracing and creating my own version of trying to achieve aesthetic perfection. I could not imagine my life or my development as an adult without photography. It is so rewarding to be able to present and give someone else images that represent them in a way that they can cherish, and otherwise would not of had. Perhaps its not as noble as it feels, but it does feel wonderful to bring a little more beauty into the world— and even more importantly, beauty as my mind defines it.

 

Hettie

Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there, wondering, doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before. ~Edgar Allan Poe

Christina

Great images transcend time and space. A great image makes you appreciate its impact regardless of where and when and how it was taken. I'm certainly not saying that the images here do that, but it is what I'm always aiming for...

Miera

My lovely, beloved Shag Rug. 15 x 20 feet of handmade lambswool. Classic 1970's throwback, but I somehow manage to make it look very 1940's film noir with, well, 1940's film noir lighting. Everybody wanted one, and everybody adored them at first... until you find out how easily they get dirty, and how murderously difficult they are to keep clean and properly clean completely. I found out the hard way. I actually had it on my studio floor, and it eventually got too nasty. It's perfectly undefiled again, after a lot of hard work. That's the real reason that they went out of fashion. So much trouble. I will never get rid of it, though. It's too wonderful. I just bring it out of it's hermetically sealed storage container for shoots only now and put it right back. I want to put it in my living room so badly, but I dare not...

Lee

I don't like when models pose. Typically, it creates something just simply superficial & soulless at best, and cheesy & fake at worst. While a seasoned poser can possibly lend themselves to a great image, it is usually a dead-end road to travel for me. When I see a model start to pose, I have to start on my whole spiel about how I don't want them to pose for me... just keep moving— I'm quick and I can follow along. Indeed, genuine movement and spontaneity are the most important elements to my more recent style of shooting...

Ajaye

Grrrrrr.

Izzy & Meira

Sometimes two is better than one. This is one of those times.

Sarah

I always try hard to avoid eye candy— a photo that looks fashionably attractive and sophisticated but only has exactly one layer of interest. They look great for about half a second and then there is no reason for your eye to linger any longer. Think of an ad in Vogue Magazine. But if you are a thinking photographer, you soon realize that you need to break free from the "eye candy" genre and start adding substance— without adding too much else. Easier said than done.