Virtually everything I know about photography I've gleaned from years of modeling for others: whether I was sitting for lovers who painted or doing three-day shoots for up-and-coming photographers, it seems my body was nearly always someone else's canvas. It is also true that I've been taught, in some admittedly strange ways, to be rather cryptic about parts of my past. Using my own lens allows me entry into exposing and expressing parts of myself I don't typically reveal. That, of course, doesn't mean that the viewer ever sees what I intended . . .

Most are photographs I took myself; some few were taken by others, and processed by me, for composition and coloration.

Image above, "Catching Light: Self Study" copyright 2006, 2007, 2008 by Emmanuela, Dust Jacket Web Press.



Series: Another Era. I am often told that many of my femme presentations and general behaviors allude to a time long before my actual birth. In this, my first shoots done entirely in sepia, I investigate the possibilities of seeing myself in "another era." Bourbon; Cohen Sings; Communion with Shadows; Effortless; Elements; Envelope; Fearless Flying; Fleur du Mal; Furl; I Don't Know; I Never Knew; If You Were Here; Listening to Hemingway; Lost Girl; Out of Place; Perspective; Placement; Say It Like You Care; Spoken For; Sun in Rainfall (at left); Unbeholden; Unchained; Veiled II; Waiting for a Lover; Warrior at Rest.





Series: Arrest/Unrest. A collection of moody portraits created during relationship chaos. High-contrast black and white and color. Accept; After I Did Not Die (at right); Certainty; Chiaroscuro; Eclipse; Flaws; Incidental Casualties; Partial View.





New Series: Awakenings. Oddly angled shots, focusing on an awakening of self. At Odds; Balance; Bed Set; Bend 2; Gaps; Glass with Jazz Trumpets; Knowing; Laundry Queen; Lent; Limbs; The Necessity of Desire; Orbs; Partial; Revival; Sacred Song (at left).





Series: Cartography of Your Fears. A few images in response to butch angst. Original photos by La Paloma. Hint; No Arrival; Slope; Solitary Spoon.

Series: Consolation. A small selection of high-contrast monochromatic images in response to femme angst. Original photos by La Paloma. Twist; Unheard; Your Sangria (at right).

Series: Gordian Knot. Knowing there must be some simple way (Occam's Razor?) to cut through angst, entirely. Black Box; Calling Card; Descent; Elation; One Scar Remains; Scapular; Sequin. Seam.





Series: Lineage. Viewing twin interpretations of the word, by examining the lines of my body as it changes, over the years, and by offering up some considerations of my second-generation Mexican-Syrian mestiza heritage. Autumn Gourds; Before the Rains; Escape; Estaciones; Geometry of Promises; Give It; Güera; Hair Play; Horizon; Passport; Reinventions; Rose and Lace; Winter Morn; Witness.





Series: Love Letters to a Saint. A way of reclaiming the sacred in sensuality. Absolution; Acolyte; Into Light; Supplicant.

Series: (Un)Dress Rehearsal. A very difficult shoot for me, this set was created as a gift for a loved one. Not all images from this set are (or ever will be) available to the public. Dance 3; Fling; Lace Exposé 2; Shoulder Lace; Snap; Take Me; Tantalize.





Series: Suspension. Investigating the meaning and sensibility of existing between states, often demonstrated by articles within the photos being literally suspended (and sometimes not). Actualities; And I Give; Apparitions; Beading; Bellydance; Catching Light; Cloister; Dime Un Cuento; Escaped Tendril. Lips; Feather. Gloss. Pearls.; Femme Grasp; Fractal; Glass/Held; Glints; Heel Suspension; Luxor in Light; Mermaid; Mesh Rose; Red Lips; Stroke; Wanderlust; What She Likes: High Heels in Bed; Winter Drape; Winter Scarf.






Series: Indulgences. Richly toned black and white photography, featuring cotton, leather, and lace. Study 1; Study 2; Study 3; Study 4; Study 5; Study 6; Study 7.





For more portraits of Emmanuela, see Photography by PJ Whitt


Purchasing Information

The photographs on this page are available for purchase as follows.

Most photos are offered in two forms.

A single, high-quality standard print, 8x10 or smaller, is typically US $60.

A single fine art giclée, 8x10 or smaller, is typically US $80.

Please contact for quotes.

Actual print sizes are dependent upon aspect ratios and the purchaser's choice to have or exclude borders.

The "(Un)Dressing for You" series is not for sale.

Purchased photos are delivered without the "www.dustjacketpress.com" watermark.


Entire contents protected by U.S. federal copyright under treaty provisions and worldwide copyright laws. All Rights Reserved. Material on this site may not be reproduced, copied, edited, or republished without express written permission of the copyright holders.

All images this page copyright 2007, 2008 by Emmanuela de Leon, Dust Jacket Press.

Web Design by Emmanuela de Leon.

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