AR: Why did you choose the pinhole camera for this project?
JER: I wanted to try something old-school, unconventional, non-digital, on big film. So I bought an eight-by-ten-inch wooden pinhole camera and fiddled with it on and off for a couple of years before learning two key lessons: you need an astronomical amount of light to make it practical with live human subjects and aiming the thing is impossible unless you cheat like I did, by shooting tests with big Polaroid film.

How does a pinhole camera capture naked skin differently than other cameras?

The thing about pinhole pictures is that everything in the picture, from front to back, is in focus. But nothing is sharp. It’s a trick of optics and it’s a subtle distinction. But it’s true. So if you look at these pictures you’ll notice the grain in the plywood floor in front is in focus, the models are in focus, even the flaws in the wall are in focus. But everything looks soft and that has an especially beautiful effect on skin -- it turns all creamy and glowy and dreamy. The long exposure times, in the two-minute range, resulted in subtle movements by the models and this added to the effect.

Why did you choose the setting and models you chose for your project?

Finding the studio was luck. For my early attempts with the pinhole I used my apartment and studio flash units. They are extremely powerful but the camera requires so much light that I needed to pop the flashes at full power 20 times or more. Not practical, as you can imagine (and potentially blinding for the models). So I didn’t use the thing for a long time until seeing a craigslist ad for a Tribeca studio that had an enormous skylight. I needed all the light on the planet and the sun was the solution. It turned out that studio was used in the 1850s by the great American photographer Matthew Brady -- so it was an amazing feeling to be in that room making pictures, relying on sunlight as he had 150 years ago when he was photographing many of America’s most famous people.

As for the models, I started by looking for people who don’t fit the usual model profile of tall, blonde and absurdly thin. I found curvy, tall (one model was 6’2”), Asian, African-American, older (one was about 50), professional models, non-professionals, actors, porn stars, doms, dancers. And one super-smart and sexy writer who refused to take off her glasses.

What were some of your favorite shoots for the project and why?
Well, you, of course. Amazing curves, brains, glasses... And because you were my first -- a true guinea pig when I really hadn’t figured it all out yet (it’s a shame you’re out of the business). I thank you especially for your patience. Others: Amelia, a dear friend and a brilliant dancer who wove herself into a chair in a way no one else could have imagined; Sativa Verte, a total professional and a true Bettie Page for the 21st century; Kat Love, 6’2”, shaved head and unshakeable ethics -- a remarkable person; Theda and Tia, who came up with that fantastic pose in the steel chairs.