Today’s image is from a shoot with Pash, a local actress/model of Iranian descent. She has long, exuberant hair, and in this image it was arranged to conceal much of her face; I was trying to create a sense of exotic mystery. After the fact, I started thinking about the tradition in Iran of women wearing head coverings (and in other Muslim countries where the requirements for female concealment is even more extreme). To me, I cannot help but see these mandatory coverings as symbols of subjugation; in this picture, I hope I am creating a feeling of power emanating from the emodel, with a different kind of concealment.

Mamiya M645, 80mm f2.8 lens, Ultrafine Xtreme 400 film, developed in HC-110 Dilution B