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Misa Martin is a sexy, slender slip of a woman who exudes a sense of fun and frolic. She has a devilish grin and an adventurous appearance: tattoos, piercings and interesting hues in her hair. As one of New York’s most prolific fetish photographers, she often prowls the bars and clubs in search of future subjects, and if you saw her on the barstool beside you, you might mistake her for a model, rather than a shy shutterbug. Her work captures both her lively imagination and the unique personalities of those she shoots. I actually took off all my clothes for her one afternoon, so I can say firsthand what a pleasure it was to be caught in her lens. Afterward I spent some time talking about inspiration, gratification and what makes for a magical photo shoot.

Abby Ehmann: So tell us a little bit about yourself.

Misa Martin: I’ve been working in the field of photography actively since 1992. I went to school for photography and graduated in 1991. I worked with a professional photographer for a year and found a lot of things about the business that I liked and a lot of things that I knew I was never going to be interested in doing. So by the time I made it to New York in ‘92, I was interested in finding other cool creative people. That was a loose plan. And through meeting people out at clubs, the world of SM and pro domination and through that network, I’ve become one of the most popular photographers in the scene.

AE: You do seem to be the most popular photographer for dominatrixes. Is that because of your past work experience or because you’re a woman? Do you think you’re more sensitive to how the women are portrayed?

MM: Yes. I think that your last point is the most important thing. I’ve seen a tremendous amount of insensitivity about what this business is actually about. A lot of people seem to lose sight of the fact that the photography is about the personality of the woman. I’m kind of a purist in that sense. I feel that if you’re working as a dominant woman, no one should be allowed to manipulate or control what you’re all about. If you’ve had experience in the field, you should be in charge of what is and is not okay, as far as portraying yourself and your image. I think that I have the ability to work with women, to answer questions they might have and to interpret what I see. I think that I’ve got a good vocabulary for helping them create an image, with a lower case I. We’re not talking about Uma Thurman here, we’re talking about commercial ventures. I think I’m a good listener and a good communicator. I’m very familiar with the vocabulary of S&M and of portraiture.

AE: So when a client comes to you, say a pro domme, does she know what she wants to look like? And do you help her realize that?

MM: Well, she wants to look flawlessly gorgeous, of course. We all want to look amazing in our photographs. But she’s got other messages to convey as well. Somebody that’s enthusiastic about bondage is typically someone who’s been in the business for a number of years, and they’ve got pretty specific ideas about what they want. I have no ego about letting go of what I would like to see. Because most of the time it’s the same thing.

AE: Do they have preconceived notions?

MM: Sometimes. But I think, at it’s best, a photo shoot with me will also uncover some things that we didn’t know were going to happen when we set up the camera. A lot of times I’ll say “Do you think this element is going to work?” and a lot of times I won’t know until I’m in my place behind the camera.

AE: So they explore other sides of themselves…?

MM: Exactly. The element of spontaneity is really important to a shoot. There needs to be that good creative energy. They should be able to come in with some preconceived notions, but then we build upon that and turn it into something better.

AE: How about the gay male photography? That looks like a lot of fun. Are the men as vain as them women are?

MM: Oh, it’s so much fun! And yes, I had one guy say to me, literally, to only photograph the profile of his erect penis from the left hand side, because the right hand side didn’t look as good. Well, hey, he’s looking at himself a lot more than I am, and I might not know about that kind of thing. I’m definitely not going to know to only photograph someone from the left side. That’s a little bit extreme. But sure, I tell guys the same things. A lot of them are not professional models, thank goodness, so they’re not afraid to get into a kooky, convoluted pose, something different that you wouldn’t normally see in a porn magazine. But I do need to tell them all the same old stuff, like, “Let’s try to smooth out the wrinkles in your neck,” or that kind of thing, because in the end, we’re getting paid by somebody who needs them to look really good. So Honcho needs a certain kind of aesthetic, Playguy needs another.

AE: Do you think that there’s a big contrast between your work and the work of other photographers? I find that so many of the magazines sort of flood everyone with a white light, so you see every pore, which I’ve never found all that appealing.

MM: I think that Doug, my editor at Honcho, enjoys the slight imperfections, so he’s not gonna go home and lose sleep over leaving a pimple on someone’s face. It’s all part of the flow for him. I do need to have some differences, because I’m too proud to allow work to go out that is the same old same old.

AE: The klieg light thing just doesn’t work for me, because if I’m looking at a magazine, it’s hard for me to put myself into the fantasy of looking at that person, because I would never be seeing a person in that light unless they were in a department store dressing room.

MM: God forbid. Although that sounds like fun! You know those Monty Python ladies who say, “Oh that would take the mystery out of life.” I feel the same way. Without getting too philosophical about it, there is a romantic aspect to it, and I don’t mean in a Hallmark sense, but romantic in that there’s a huge desire that comes from discovery. From a technical standpoint, to try and underline that idea by having lighting that is super-bright, not a shadow anywhere, that’s just no fun. It takes the mystery out of it.

AE: And although some flaws and imperfections are acceptable…

MM: They’re endearing!

AE: …sometimes they’re all you see, with those really bright lights. Often it’s the exact people who shouldn’t be under kliegs. But then again, for the person who is picking up the magazine, the flaws may be what they want to see.

MM: Right. You need to understand the combination of things that are attractive about an individual model. That’s the first set of things I kind of need to figure out while I’m getting to know them. There’s a whole set of things that make this person attractive. Their personality needs to come through in some way. And that comes from the shot that doesn’t look like the porn pose we’re all so familiar with. I do that too. But then there are variations on the theme; we kind of go off on a tangent. And that’s when it’s most rewarding for me.

AE: It was enjoyable being shot by you. How did you decide what to do with me?

MM: Well, you enjoy playing characters and having a narrative to follow. Which is another one of the things that makes it good to photograph dominatrixes. Often there will be a story line to photograph. I did a lot of theater when I was a kid, so I respond to that. When it’s a portrait, and when you’re getting across a specific image, we can have a little bit of fun and try some gestures that maybe aren’t so natural. But then there are just nice, relaxed things that happen when we’re just enjoying each other’s company.

AE: Have you come up against politics shooting all these dommes? Any politics between all the different dungeons?

MM: I think a lot of them want to get information from me about what’s going on and how’s business. And I really need to be discreet. My first instinct is we’re all good friends. They hired me and they like me. I’m in a really good mood when I’ve been hired to do a photo shoot. I show up, I’m setting up lights, then there will be that one zinger question, like, “So, have you seen this girl?” or whatever. But I don’t ever spread any bad news, unless it’s some client that stole an address book or something like that. But honestly that type of thing happens so rarely. To be honest, I don’t have any cynical viewpoints like, what do you expect of girls who are in the sex business? No, no, no. I’m not allowed to say that. I’ve been there too.

AE: Tell me about your inspirations.

MM: I remember going over to a friend’s place just after I’d finished school, and he said, “Oh, wait until you see this!” And he pulled out a copy of Bunny Yeager’s book ‘Bunny’s Honeys’. And I was just lost. I was in the middle of having an evening with this fellow when he pulled this book out. You don’t realize how pivotal some things are, but I love the idea of a cool looking woman who went from being a model to shooting. There’s a certain kind of cool notoriety that comes along with doing something like that which I thought was really great. The images were so compelling. Shortly after that I was introduced to this community of women and it seemed as though every instinct I had, from the inspiration of Vargas illustrations, to Bunny Yeager, Betty Page, everything that I took from those people worked well with the work I was doing.

AE: You’ve also shot a lot of unusual rock and roll kind of people and tattooed bartending babes, so you seem to photograph very interesting people. Do you seek them out?

MM: Oh sure. It’s the theater of living in New York City, where somebody like Mike Potter can come up to me with a friend and say, “I have this great idea. Do you think we could do a blonde fantasy look? We’re gonna turn her into a space alien wood creature, but we also wanna shoot her like a cowgirl as well. What do you think about that?” Creating the character that comes out of a person when they’re put in front of a camera is so rewarding for me.

AE: But these people start out interesting, and they all have ideas…

MM: Who else comes to mind? For instance, Mistress Formika and Kembra Pfahler don’t step in front of a camera without establishing a certain trust with the image maker. There needs to be an understanding with these people. Some people might call that quirky, but I call that respect.

AE: When you shoot dommes for their ads, is it a package deal?

MM: Yeah, it seems to be the easiest way for people to understand what I do and what they’re gonna get. You need to get certain results back. You need to have certain goals when you come in. So I will make sure we’ve got the shot you came for. Plus the extra cool stuff that happens. They have a lot more needs than when I first started in the business. When I first started, people kind of knew what web sites were…

AE: Have you had any bad situations, where women are disappointed?

MM: It is hard to look at pictures of yourself. The photographer is going to take some pictures you simply don’t agree with. Some people are able to handle that more easily than others. Some will call back and say, “I only got eight pictures out of this entire roll of 36 that were any good.” That’s par for the course. That’s what you’re gonna get. Especially if it’s the first time we’ve worked together. More often than not, if people get frustrated about the way that something turned out, it’s often because we were shooting for a magazine that made the wrong decision about the final images. So that’s tough. Things can get a little dicey, and it was very difficult to stand up to people who were supposedly in charge and say, “This is not going to be good for the sales of your magazine and it’s going to make the model very upset with you. Please choose a better picture because I will not print this for you.” It’s come down to that.

AE: Have you been doing more fashiony stuff?

MM: I really enjoy that collaborative atmosphere. But somebody like Mistress Nadine from Abasement will call and say, “Listen, we’re going to be doing this suspension bondage thing that is gonna be just killer.” And of course, I will have thought of a lot of different ideas by the time we come in and do the shoot. It’s a similar thing.

AE: Any edgy stuff that you’ve been able to experience?

MM: The piercing shoot for you of Willow and Seven. Photography has really allowed me to conquer a lot of fears. I never would have been able to get near that a few years ago. I have a weird squeamishness. I’ve found that that which does not kill you makes you stronger.

AE: Has photographing all this made you want to experiment more?

MM: With my own body? I went through a period where I was performing a little bit, exploring with piercings and all that. It was enjoyable, but the person I was doing it with is not around anymore. He’s a friend, but he’s not in the city. That was cool and I had a great time doing it, but it was a combination of personalities. So when people ask me if I play in my personal life, it kinda depends on who’s around me at the time.

AE: You’ve got a web site…Is that more for people to see your portfolio, more for advertising purposes?

MM: Yeah, it’s 24 hour, seven day a week representation. It’s really something that, if you’re working professionally as a photographer in New York, you’ve got to have that presence. It’s part of being easy to contact.

AE: Do you see doing a book in the future? Because your photography is a little more on the artsy side and less on the commercial side, in my opinion at least, You could do a really great East Village Kink, and combine the tattooed bartenders, glam rock boys, bikers and dominatrix images all together.I could definitely see a book there.

Misa and the author, Abby, at Mother

INTERVIEW BY: Abby Ehmann

Abby Ehmann currently reviews porn videos for Fox magazine and is compiling a book of her collected erotic works. She has contributed to numerous publications, most recently TimeOutNY. Her inimitable voice has been heard on the radio on Q104.3 FM ’s Radio Chick Show, Ron & Fez Show, The Alan Colmes Show and The Opie and Anthony Show.
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