Tony Yang

I am sure all regular readers of Asian Sirens are familiar with the work of Tony Yang (a quick search of the archives turns up 134 results). It seemed to me that time and time again the most exquisite photos of gorgeous girls were being taken by the same guy. So many photos, so many gorgeous Asian girls, so many questions! Well to bring a slightly different slant to the usual post, I sent him a few questions that he was good enough to answer, to give you all a bit of an insight into what goes on on the other side of the camera…

You have been taking pictures seriously since 2003 and cover a wide range of subjects, how did you get into photography and did you start photographing models from the outset?

I would like to start before I got into photography. I grew up drawing and doing visual arts as a child. When I got my first computer, I started doing digital art in middle school, playing with MS Paint, and eventually discovered Adobe Photoshop 3.01 when I was 10 years old. I started photo manipulation even before I took my first photos. I took a black and white film class in high school, with some dark room experience. I wasn’t exactly hooked on it, mostly because I hated wasting film, or waiting for processing. When I first entered college as a freshmen I had a digital point and shoot, I would photograph mostly people, events, clubs, friends for fun. There was no real skill, just snapping away, although I was able to edit my photos really well! I just knew I enjoyed photographing people over landscapes or anything else inanimate. I would soon end up being the official photographer for many student run events. I did take more darkroom classes in college, but that didn’t motivate me as much either. It was during my chats with a girl I met online, where she sent me copies of her professionally taken portraits, I told myself I wanted to take photos like that – so I pursued it with my digital camera and a film SLR. I would attend many East coast import car shows to practice, and also asked my female friends to help model for me. Occasionally I would meet an internet model online to also help, way before the days of Model Mayhem. I say 2003 was my official start date because that’s when I bought my first DSLR, a Canon 10D.

Your body of work speaks for itself, but how did you start out getting these gorgeous girls to pose for you?

I am Taiwanese, and I am just naturally attracted to Asian women. Perhaps after studying many modeling and commercial photos, I’ve come to learn what’s accepted as “beautiful” in the media. I look for certain features that I know would be attractive to my audience, but of course I still photograph women who I find personally attractive but might not be mainstream beauty. I first asked my personal friends who I find attractive, but in the end, your quality of work does speak for itself, and more attractive women will be willing to model for someone with the skills. I don’t think I shoot all the cream of the crop women, I think it’s my chemistry and style of shooting that makes the average woman that much more attractive.

You have a gift for capturing beautiful, intimate portraits of Asian ladies, a subject close to all our hearts. What is it about Asian ladies that make them special?

I will keep saying how important chemistry is, and just being able to relate closer to an individual, be it culture, similar interests, or just a love of sexy images that help build the relationship. I think the culture in America still depicts Asians as exotic and reserved. The truth is that Asians are no different behind closed doors as any other culture, we can be kinky, raunchy, wild, weird, or just love sex. I want to bring that light into the bedroom and reveal that Asian girls can be as sexy as the next white girl. I always joke around that there’s nothing sexy about a naked white girl, they’re naked all the time.

What is it that makes a photo great to you?

I love a photo that makes you want more of it. I like to tease my audience as well, I don’t want to reveal everything. I would also love to see some technical photography skills, but not so much that it’s all about showing off the photographer’s skills. I love photos that showcase an amazing location, it inspires me to find places that look just as awe inspiring. At the same time, I also like photos that look spontaneous and first person perspective, as if the boyfriend was the one taking a picture of the girlfriend.

How many pictures from a session end up on the cutting room floor in order to get a good one?

I shoot action, motion, interaction, so I end up with thousands of photos on a good session. I will probably end up with a good 100-200 photos worth editing, although sometimes much less. I will end up showing maybe just 5 photos on my website.

You capture some really sexy poses, is it hard to maintain a level of professionalism?

I get asked this question a lot! Maybe it’s my personality, maybe it’s my Asian reserved upbringing, but I never had an issue with working with nude women not being able to control whatever urges, if any. I don’t understand why men think that if they see a nude woman in the same room they probably cannot control their muscles to stop them from getting physical. I have definitely heard stories of photographers being unprofessional and they think the model will reciprocate their physical desires. It’s one thing to be turned on, and another to keep calm. Basically, I don’t see a point for me to shoot a woman if they can’t turn me on. Sometimes they get turned on too and that’s great, however we might enjoy this feeling, we still get the job done. I always feel a pressure in my head to make sure I produce good results and to always leave a good impression on my reputation. Those two things alone will drive me to be professional and make sure the model comes back for more. I want to establish a good relationship with every woman I work with. After so many years, it’s not that hard to be around naked women!

Some of my favourite posts on Asian Sirens have featured your photos: Shelly Tran, Yennie Hoang, Kyla Gray and Lallana Vales to name a few. Who are your favourite girls to work with?

To start off, some of my favorite women I’ve worked with, their photos have never seen the light of day. I shoot a lot of personal work that is only for the model and I to enjoy. Most women I work with are not aspiring models, but simply women who want to capture their youth and sexiness. I know, sorry for the tease! Some of my favorites are Kyla Estrada, Faye, Yennie and Tanya Dakin.

Are there any girls you would particularly like to work with that you haven’t yet?

Thanks to Asian Sirens’ post about Angie Vu Ha, I had recently contacted her and already had a very sexy shoot with her, I will hopefully edit and post it soon. I have a list of models from the West coast and Canada that I would love to work with, too many to name! I would love to shoot some of the girls from Cafe Lu in OC, CA, but it’s almost impossible to get in touch with them being a photographer from the East coast, and not hiring models. I also would love to shoot some of the more popular AV idols, but I know that won’t happen. I would love to shoot Dirdy Birdy who I’ve contacted on Facebook a while ago, but our distance is just too far.

There is often a bit of controversy over the level of post production in photos, what are your views on the subject?

Not only do I hate over-editing of a model, I also hate obvious/extensive plastic surgery on a woman. Knowing that someone is fake is just a complete turn off no matter how well it’s done. They start looking cookie cutter. I try to edit as clean as possible, removing blemishes or random little bulges as not to distract the viewer, but never making the model not resemble herself. There are a lot of tricks you can do in front of a camera to make the model look as flattering as possible when it comes to poses and camera angles.

I could have chosen any one of hundreds of your photos, but these were three that I really like. Can you tell me a little about these pictures? I’m sure many regular readers can recall this one..

The photo of Kyla Gray has more of a rough candid style. She’s sitting on a kitchen table in a home, legs open and about to take off her top, it’s extremely suggestive without being so. She has an amazingly fit body but totally a girl next door face. Kinda makes you wish you came home from work to this.

Kyla Estrada’s photo was taken at The Standard hotel in Miami. She’s just naturally good at expressing her sensual side and just moves so easily. Her face is so innocent but her body movement just screams out sex, which is why I love shooting her. This is one of my favorite positions, I am standing on top of her and she is just sprawled out, having sex with her hair look, and a little hint of her open panties.

Yennie’s shot is nothing but jewelry. I always love nude shots wearing only accessories. Loose, hanging items barely sitting on the body, easily taken off, easily revealing, yet I don’t reveal anything at the same time. I love suggestive shots. She is in front of my window facing the balcony at my home.

What are a couple of your favourite photos?

Almost impossible to pick out of 10 years of photos! Well I do have this photo hanging above my bed:

My first session with Kyla when she was only 19 and still had the innocent look:

I admit there was a ton of post processing done on this, but it’s one of my favorites of Sabrina, taken in Palm Springs, CA:

Janie here is a mix of innocent and not innocent, which is what I love about Japanese glamour:

One of the prettiest models I’ve been recently working with, and will be posting a lot more of her soon, Phiorella:

Here is Lallana just seconds before her first time getting completely naked for the camera:

Do you have any exciting projects on the horizon that we can look forward to?

I am off to Los Cabos, Mexico in August, so stayed tuned for some more sexy photos!

I look forward to it. Thanks Tony!

The things I would do to see those private photos!! I would encourage you all to check out Tony’s website, but be warned you can get lost there for quite a while. Not only is there vast amounts of gorgeous Asian women, there is a lot of information relating to photography. For example, I found this section relating to editing very interesting.

Links
Website
Facebook
My Pillow and I
Tumblr
Bodyshots
Twitter