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ARTICLE

Professional Femme Photos

by Adeline (25-E-1)

As might have been the case with many TRANSVESTIA followers, the photographic phase of my femme dressing career began with the inevitable, clumsy attempts at self- portraiture: one hand jerking a string tied to the shutter the other hand steadying myself; while I gazed rather puzzled at the behind-the-camera mirror that was al- ways angled wrong and then the worry and anxiety of having the film developed....

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femme

Later, there was the Polaroid. Still later, friends who sometimes could handle a camera. Then there was color film, and increasingly less anxiety about sending film off for developing. Then the Polaroid Color- but missing was something I always craved; some really professional photographs of Adelaide...

The thought of just brazenly walking into a profes- sional photographer's studio was something I could hardly contemplate. What would you say? How would you begin?

My situation, again like too many others I'm afraid, was complicated by the fact that Adelaide is person-non- grata in our home. Professional photographers charge substantial fees; there would have to be a suitable cos- tume for any professional type photographs; how could one manage all this surrepetitiously, even if you could get up the nerve to approach a photographer?

But you must begin at so me level.

With me, it was the occasion when, for business reasons, I needed some photographs of Adelaide's brother. Someone knew a former neighbor who worked in a photo-

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