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.

Lee

Never push me, because I am a very strong woman. I'm nice, but I'm very strong. When it gets down gritty, I can get grittier. Never, ever underestimate me.   ~Missy Elliott

Shower & Bath Series

I started the shower/bath series over a dozen years ago when someone who hired me asked if I could photograph her in the shower. That particular first shower shoot was actually one of the most intense and sexually explicit shoots I've ever done. Again, that was her suggestion. It's ironic, and most people probably wouldn't guess this, but shoots that I'm paid for are often the most interesting. So it wasn't really my idea (the shower, as well as being sexually explicit), but I ran with it... I've since done many intense and/or explicit shower images, as well as many rather beautiful and/or romantic ones. That seems to describe the two alternating variations in my whole body of work. Another thing of note is that once something is in my portfolio, anyone that sees it wants to try it because they can see that I can do it well. Most people do not want to be the first to try something, as they want the assurance that it will be done well. Back to the shower theme— shooting there seems to access certain expressions which can't be captured without the magical properties of warm water. The comfort of water falling just simply relaxes most people, summoning a very natural body language.

Dessa

Confession— I typically really dislike tattoos on breasts. Sometimes I just cringe. I perhaps shouldn't admit that as many of the models that I photograph have them. I might be burning my bridges. Most of the models that I photograph tend to have very interesting and well-chosen tats, though. I just think that unless you've unquestionably thought it through and chosen something exquisite, that the breasts and the neck should be left alone... or you've finished with the rest of your body and that's the last frontier. This tattoo, though, is one of my favorites. I love how the orchids wrap around and fall down, as plants are apt to do.

Ajaye

Ajaye has my favorite kind of eyes to photograph. In a portrait, they are soulful and expressive. In erotic images, they are bedroom eyes- sleepy, yet they draw you in. From the very beginning, eyes have been the main focal point in my photographs of people, and that has never changed. I can always help someone's eyes connect to the camera better with a few tricks, but there is only so much that I can do. In the end, either someone's eyes connect to the camera or they don't. The eyes are the best non-verbal indicator of our emotional and intellectual state of mind. That is why it is only every so often that I create a portrait where the eyes simply get an intense visceral reaction from most viewers. It's a constant frustration, but when I get it, it's such a joy.