Chapter 1

By Simon Josher Copyright 2007 all rights reserved. No use without written permission of author.

I own a commercial photography studio at the edge of the town of Sugarcreek Ohio. It is located in the heart of Ohio Amish country. Since the Amish do not believe in photos of humans at least most divisions of the church, they generally had no involvement with my business.

As a commercial studio I had limited walk in traffic and few people visited my studio except by appointment so it made for quite a private office setting.

My business was centered on shooting items for catalogs and brochures. For some of the clients I did the layout work for the printers. I tried to provide full service to the clients so film, digital and video were all readily available and the in house darkroom allowed me to get the proofs and images to the client as fast as if I were located in a larger town.

While most of my customers were industrial and manufacturing businesses, one enterprise in Cleveland, 75 miles to the north of me, stumbled into a sideline of dealing in closeouts and liquidations when a debtor defaulted and offered his business as payment. Joe never knew what items or businesses he would own next. In the process of liquidating the liquidator, Joe found that one of the assets was a substantial interest in a wholesaler of adult toys and sexual novelties.

Once every week or two I would get a shipment of products to photograph and once I was finished, I could keep the items or dispose of them any way I wished, so in addition to the props and wardrobe items that I purchased I ended up with enough clothes and shoes to make a small store proud. At the time this story starts, I had 6 full time and 4 part time employees in a 7500 square foot studio. The part time people were generally makeup people for my models and one assistant for large or location photo shoots. Two of the employees, Sandy and Stacy, did double duty as office staff and detailed the models for my shoots. On small shoots, they did the nails, hair, makeup, dressing, and accessorizing of the models.

I was always building new sets for each ad campaign or redecorating larger sets. I got tired of always cleaning when what actually made me money was using my creative skills. I decided I was going to hire someone full time that could do the cleaning, launder and repair garments, get coffee, and to put it simply be an assistant in everything not relating to photography. In the corporate world that position would be called an administrative assistant of some kind. I put the word out to my network of contacts and a couple days later Esther turned up and asked me for the job.

She was 18 years old, a tall willowy blond Old Order Amish girl. She had cleaned house for one of my friends who was getting transferred out of state. She told me that if I would consider her that Fred told her to have me call him. He told me that she was an outstanding worker and that if there was any way possible they would have moved her with them to continue working. He told me that she had a boyfriend who was just recently recovering from an injury and they were dating so forget the moving. He had one last cryptic comment; "don't forget to look beneath the surface. I think there is more than meets the eye."

I thanked him and hung up the phone. I looked at her once again and saw that even with her modest clothing that she had a body to die for. She saw me trying to discretely check her out and did not flinch or draw back but instead slightly thrust out her chest and smiled back at me.

I gave her the tour while I was mulling this over in my mind. You can come along and I will describe it so that you will relate later in the story. I might even post some photos or drawings at some time.

We went from the lobby into the production area where images were sorted to be filed or shipped or most of the time cropped and edited until the final product was polished and ready to be seen by the client. We next went into the shooting area. This was a large open area with sets built on two of the walls and a high key wall on the far end. The next area was a dressing area with a 4 chair makeup area where the models got their hair styled and makeup applied. The walls were hung with tear sheets from our work along with before and after shots of the models.

I could see that she was entranced by all of this and spent some time looking at the before and after shots. She also commented on having seen some of the ads and the sets on billboards and in magazines.

I took her into the prop storage area. There were racks and storage shelves with clothes of all kinds, shoes of all sizes and styles; there was a washer and dryer and ironing supplies at the one end. At the other end, there was a counter from a jewelry store where the accessory jewelry was displayed so that it could be chosen instantly.

There were two doors that led on out of the prop room that I kept locked. One went to where the adult products were kept and the other went to a two bedroom apartment where the previous owner had lived. I didn't take her into either of these areas. Instead we went through the break room/kitchen combination into the hallway that led to the lobby and past my office.

When we got to my office, I explained exactly what I wanted. Keep everything spotless and the props mended or laundered and ready for use. Additionally she would be my helper. Did she think she could to that?

"Oh yes, in addition to cleaning I am a good seamstress."

I told her that I had three concerns. The first was that much of what we did dealt with things that were contrary to her religion and I was concerned that doing that would make her uncomfortable. The next was that in her job she would be spending large amounts of time with me and I wanted her to be comfortable in her work. I knew that her religion taught that she needed to be reserved and keep her distance from males that she was not related to, and certainly from non-Amish men. The last major concern was that when the models are getting dressed and made up, they would be all the way from nude to fully dressed and as the seamstress, she would be making adjustments to their clothes as needed no matter what state of dress they were in at the time.

"When we are doing a clothing shoot the cost of the models alone is from 450-700 an hour so I don't have time to find out then that you can't handle things."

"I want to try it," she told me, "everything looks so exciting and special. I can't believe that those were the same people. I promise that you won't have to worry about me."

It was with some trepidation that I hired her but she convinced me to try her work. After three months the showroom and office never looked better. The shooting room looked like a home instead of a work area that was slightly cluttered just out of camera range. Esther's father, Eli, was a bishop and he stopped by to see where she was working and to make sure that we were a reasonably safe environment for his daughter to work. We sat in front of the fireplace in the lobby and visited. He told me that as long as the photos were not of her that he did not see that there was much sin to be had. One of the helpful things that happened was that we were preparing prints for an antique auction and he was interested in the poster size prints of these items as they were things that he used. The common ground works every time. I told him that when the weather was bad I would pick her up on my way to the store so that she would not risk her health or an injury. When he left he invited me to stay for a meal anytime she rode with me.

As usual work always slowed down after the first of January but it gave me a chance to build new set outlines and design sets for shoots that I knew would be coming soon. One shoot that I knew would be coming soon was the semiannual catalog and quarterly fliers that I shot for a lingerie manufacturer. They always provided the samples and the models and I decided to start Esther with a small group to see how she would react. I had one of my part time women schedule to come in as backup but decided I would use her to help Sandy, the young woman who did the hair and makeup. I told Sandy to keep an eye on her and let me know how things went.

"When she is around, I always keep my eyes on her," Sandy told me laughing, "she gives ME a hard on, the things I would like to do to that girl..."

"Sandy, I know how you like girls, but remember if you are going to fish on the company pier, no means no."

"Don't worry boss, if you watch that beautiful girl, there is a pervert waiting to get out."

At a little after 8:00 am the next morning I was waiting in their drive. I got out of the van and shook hands with her father, Eli, and then opened her door. I told Eli that it would be later that evening when we were done and I didn't want her to be riding her bike after dark on that winding narrow road. He thanked me and we drove off.

Esther was as excited as a child at Christmas. She talked about how she had to see for herself how women were turned into these beautiful images for advertising.

She was fascinated by the whole process of preparation. I storyboarded the shoot so the models and Sandy would know what to expect. The models stripped naked and put on robes while their hair and makeup was being done. Esther was slightly shocked at the absolutely unthinking way they undressed in front of others but she hid it well. She watched in amazement as Sandy transformed them with hair and makeup. I mentioned that we were about ready to get started so she got out the outfits for each of them and when they were ready to try them on waited to see how they fit.

The lace and satin were a world away from what she was used to wearing, but she calmly watched them get dressed and once she understood how everything fitted made slight tucks and adjustments so everything fitted without sagging or puckering.

We broke for lunch and the models and our team gathered in the snack room for a lunch of sandwiches, veggies and fruit that Esther had fixed earlier. They were as curious about her as she was about them. They had developed an easy relationship during the course of the morning that allowed them to ask questions back and forth without being uncomfortable.

One of the models told me that I needed to latch onto that girl; cleaning, cooking, sewing, and all around useful assistant. The younger model that was openly lesbian quipped, if you don't I'll latch onto her. Esther giggled and then a moment later realized what she meant and asks, "you like girls instead of men? Are they as satisfying?"

The model laughed and came behind her and gave her a tongue twisting kiss while caressing her breast through her dress and cape. "You cannot imagine how they satisfy," Sandy agreed.

"Well as you are done eating, I think we need to finish up the last four outfits." I could see Esther blush every time she looked at us.

We finished the shooting and the models left. Esther and I started gathering up everything, placing the props in the prop room to be cleaned and sorted, film and memory cards and video tape on the post production area to be duplicated or sent out for processing. Sandy was busy reorganizing the makeup and hair styling room. The two of us did little talking while we worked. Finally, I asked Esther, "Well what did you think of everything? Was it like you expected?"

"I can't believe how different they look without any makeup on and then when they were made up and their hair fixed. The one girl looked so ordinary when she walked in, but on the set she looked like a queen. Do regular people look that good?"

"People off the street can look that much better. What makes the difference are several small details. First, I have Sandy; she is a wizard with hair and makeup. Second, is body structure, all the makeup in the world will not help someone that is very obese, look thin. Camera angles and posing along with props or sets will help, but to do nude and lingerie photos for most markets requires someone with a specific body style. The last thing that is incredibly important is comfort with the camera and their own bodies. The most beautiful person that is uncomfortable with themselves or in front of a camera will always look ill at ease. Even when you can't see their face, there is awkwardness in their posture. If you think they looked good on the set, when we are done I will show you some of the digital images and the video freeze frames. Cropping and editing will enhance what you saw even more."

"How do you know who would make a good model? Do you have to show their face or what do you show?" Esther asked.

"You don't always, but in over 90% of the time if you look for those things I mentioned, you will have success. There are all types of models, hand models, leg models, foot models, face, the list just goes one. It depends entirely on the product. What you saw today was a wide selection. For most of the lingerie I will crop in close and focus on the product. Only 6 or 8 pieces will show the whole body and the face. We are shooting for catalog use, not advertising or general promotion sheets so we focus on the product more than the person."

"Why did you do the hair and makeup on all the shots if you aren't going to use them, that doesn't make sense?"

"Actually it does. You feel one way in your normal clothes. If you were going to help in the fields and knew that you would likely tear or damage your clothing and have to throw them away, you would wear your oldest clothes and you would feel another way about yourself. If you met a stranger or a boyfriend in your old clothes your self image would be far less than it might be dressed nicely. That is the way it is with models. When their hair is done, makeup is perfect, high heels on, they have a better posture and carriage because of the way they feel and it comes out in the body language."

"Other things that come into consideration are tattoos, and body hair. For the models that I use, I cannot have any tattoos for most of my products and you also might have noticed that they have very little to no hair below the neck. For lingerie shots, pubic hair is a problem. Some women trim very closely, but it still affects the way the clothing lays against the body or drapes."

We did a quick review of the digital images and then I told her that I would finish up in the morning and would let her look at the images with me before I sent them off.

The next day she spent the morning cleaning the shooting rooms and production areas while laundering and folding the items use the previous day. When I finished with my editing and cropping of the images, I called her into my working office where I projected the images in approximately 3x4 foot size so that I could check for details. She was intrigued with the images. Part of that was due to her lack of exposure to photos in her upbringing and partly due to having seen the images made and then displayed cropped and edited.

The rest of the morning she would pop her head into my office and ask question about when I was going to have another shoot with models, how would I be choosing my models, what the next catalog was that I would have to shoot.

Just to tease her I told her that I couldn't tell her about my next product shoot because it would embarrass both of us and the models would have to be very special. She continued to question me, but I had no intention to tell her that I was to shoot a series of adult novelties and sex aids for an online store. Since we often worked a half day on Saturday, I gave the office staff a half day off on Wed. afternoon. After most of the rest of the staff were gone for the day, she came into my office and sat down to talk to me.

"What do those models that you had here yesterday have that I don't have that makes them look so beautiful?"

"Esther, if you ever decide to see what you look like as a model, let me know. I will have Sandy do your hair and makeup and then I will take some pictures of you so that you can see what you look like."

"Would I have to get naked?"

I laughed, "no you don't have to get naked unless you would like to, but you might like to try on some of the clothing in the prop room to go with your new look if you get a make over."

"Ever since I applied for the job, I have wanted to know how I might look. I think I will do that sometime. I might even be a model for you if you thought I was good enough."

The following week while she was working an Amish boy stopped to see her. He was her boyfriend. While listening to them, I came to understand that he had just recovered from a serious long illness that had been both life threatening and had had complications during the recovery. They were starting to get serious in their relationship even though they had shared a close friendship for several years. They had not yet engaged in the time of rumspringa that the Amish youth often engage in because of his illness. Apparently they wanted to sow their wild oats together and his illness had postponed that experience.

Esther told Amos that she wanted to look like a model and that I had told her that I would have Sandy do that for her. He told her that if she did that he wanted to see what she looked like when that happened.

After he left, I got an idea. I took her to the apartment over the photography studio and asked her to clean it. I rarely used it for my business but it was where the previous owner had lived. It had a hot tub and sauna where I would relax before going home. I had intended to move both to my house, but as of yet had not gotten it done. I asked her to clean it as it was dusty from just sitting unused.

She wanted to know why it was empty. I explained the former owner of the studio lived there and when I bought the business I already had a house and didn't need it for myself. She asked me why I didn't rent it and I explained that it had access to the studio and I did not want someone there that could access my business without my knowing it since it only had a lightweight passage door that I kept locked. I had almost $400,000 in cameras and photo printing equipment in addition to the computers that I used for the graphic design and office work. (For you fellow photo geeks out there, I had a full black and white and color photo lab as well as digital dye sub printers etc.) After an employee had started stealing small things, I installed the system that covered almost all the studio. I pointed out to her that she had been cleaning for me for over four months and had not realized where the locked door went. I showed her the cameras that I had installed which were connected to motion detectors that went to my security system recorder so that if someone did get in I could know about it. She asked if it was watching us now. Unless I turn it off, it automatically comes on and records everything as long as a person is in the apartment.