The following is the first of a series of interviews launched for Fetish Portraiture photography week in Project Educate 2008.

=5yearcheddar is a staple of the deviantART fetish (and photography in general) community, having been on the site for 5 years now. His work reflects a level of skill to which many photographers aspire and not all obtain. I've been a fan for ages, so I was really excited that he agreed to subject himself to my battery of questions!

Basics and Background

Name and location?
Chris Young. I currently reside in NE Wisconsin, USA.

How long have you been practicing photography?
For as long as I can remember. The first camera I remember having was a kodak instamatic with a zoom lens. Anyone remember those? I didn't really start shooting seriously until the late 80's when I "inherited" a 35mm SLR and had to learn how to use it. The rest as they say is history.

Do you have any formal training in the arts?
No formal training. There was a period where I devoured every photography related book or magazine I could get my hands on. That opened my eyes to a lot of "how-to" and a lot of art I'd have probably never seen otherwise. Later I got to work kind of indirectly with a lot of pro photographers through my freelancing. I used to shoot news and features quite a bit for a large daily and was the "staff photographer" for a small publishing company. It's a lot easier now that we have the internet and so much information is right there at your fingertips; and I'm still learning. I don't imagine that will ever change.

What cameras are your personal must-haves on a shoot?
These days I mostly just stick to my DSLR. My film bodies have been gathering dust for quite some time, but I can't bring myself to part with them. As far as a "must-have" goes, anything with full manual control and decent image quality will do. I've been partial to Canon's since auto-focus was a new thing.

How did you come to embrace the genres you prefer to work in?
Good question. I had to think about that for a moment. The truth is that I embrace all genres, and probably dabble in most of them from time to time. I love photographs that are visually arresting, emotionally charged or just plain beautiful on some level. If it makes me smile chances are good I'll want to shoot it.

Art and sexuality

What initially drew you to fetish-related subject in art?
Free-spirited girls and latex clothing. No doubt about it.

How do you personally define fetish fine art versus pornographic imagery? How do you feel about the controversy overlaid on this style of photography?
When I hear the words "fine art", as it relates to photography, what comes to mind is masterful use of light and shadow, compelling subject and composition and the ability to mix it all up in such a fashion that the end product causes people to forget about their world for a moment; to be trapped by the emotional charge or to spark the imagination. For fetish fine art, you would do that with fetish elements; latex, stockings, corsets, long nails, shoes, rope; whatever the fetish is. Pornographic imagery (nothing against it) by nature is something that elicits a more purely sexual response and the primary subject is more likely explicit nudity or aroused sexual organs or various degrees of sex. Obviously there are gray areas between the two, especially if you consider that all fetish is erotica to some. So, is it about the sex or is it about the fetish? The answer depends on the individual viewer. Glamour is porn to some.

Do you find influence from other mediums?
Of course. I'm influenced by anything that catches my eye or strikes me as exceptional in some way. Photography is my chosen medium, but art is art in all of it's forms.

What kind of in-camera manipulations do you perform to glam up your portraits?
I don't do a lot of in camera manipulation. I shoot everything pretty neutral and flat. Try to watch the exposures and shoot to the right as much as possible without blowing the highlights into oblivion. I'll use strobes and big soft boxes indoors as a rule. If I'm shooting available light sometimes I'll use reflectors or bounce a little flash off something to fill shadows if needed. I keep it as simple as I can.

What suggestions would you give other photographers about harnessing light to create a desired mood in their imagery?
Go to galleries, museums and shows. Buy art books. And pay attention to what you see. Shoot a lot too.

Words of wisdom

What advice do you have for beginning photographers?
Get a camera that will give you full (manual) control over it's brain, and learn how it works. Learn to expose well. Learn what the aperture and the shutter control, and how they work together. Just get the basics down. Once you've done that study great photographs. See what makes them work. Try to imagine what the camera settings might have been. Look at the shadows, for they reveal the light. Shoot, shoot, shoot. Don't be afraid to fail. We all do sometimes. Oh, and buy the best glass you can, even if you have to wait a little longer to get it.

What advice would you give to professional photographers in a rut?
Stop thinking about what will sell. That shit'll kill ya. Just make 'em smile.

What advice would you, at present, give yourself 5 years ago if you could reach back in time?
Dude, put some cheese in the cellar so we can have a nice snack while we answer :devopiod: 's project educate questions for fetish week 2008.

What do you hope people find in your art? Or, what do you hope they definitely don't find in it?
Escape, for a moment.

What inspires you most? How do you translate that to your fetish (or nude, or expressive, or other types of glamorous portrait) photography?
The beauty of the individual inspires me more than anything. I try to capture as much of the models individuality or personality as I can. Little pleases me more than just letting an experienced model go with a theme she enjoys while I just work the angles and shoot. Collaborative efforts can be the greatest.

Ego

Who is your favorite deviantART photographer and why?
I don't really have a favorite. There are loads of great photographers here and truth be told I'll remember their work before I'll remember their name. ~stevedietgoedde is one name that comes to mind.

What is your favorite image of your own, so far? Why?
That's tough. It's hard enough to be objective about your own work but to have to choose one over all others..

Right now, this one. Because it was a new spin (for me) on one of my favorite subjects.


Is fetish a lifestyle for you or an expressive art form? Why?
Yes to both, because it makes me smile.

Favorite ice cream flavor?
New York Super Fudge Chunk.

If you could be any other person, who would it be and why?
I'll just be me, thanks. I wouldn't know where to begin with someone else's life.

Do you have your own fetish or infatuation, and if so does it influence your concept brainstorming?
Concept brainstorming really just boils down to who I'll be shooting, in what setting, with what wardrobe, what their comfort levels are and what we want to shoot. That said, I'm better at some things than others. Did I mention that I love latex?

Anything else you'd like to say?
Thank you for showing an interest in my work but honestly, I give all the credit to the models. They work very hard at what they do, the best work harder than I do, and give so much of themselves. Without them none of this happens. They're just the greatest.



#thevaginamafia is the dAmn headquarters for fetish portraiture week. Be sure to drop by this week to meet the artists interviewed in this series, myself, and many other photographers of varied types here on deviantART!