“Naked Ambition” captures the adult entertainment industry at its biggest showcase event of the year, the AVN Awards and the Adult Entertainment Expo. The book features a unique collection of photos showcasing porn newbies, legends, directors, personalities and adult products such as props, footwear, sex toys and gadgets.
Grecco told XBIZ that the genesis for “Naked Ambition” came after he attended the 2002 AVN Awards and was compelled by “the Felliniesque nature of this event, the crazy cast of characters and the amazing dichotomy between the brash counterculture of the porn industry and the typically formal award show genre.”
Grecco said he shot more than 13,000 photos using a 35-millimeter Canon 1Ds Mark II in a studio just off the AEE convention floor over the course of two shows. Jenna Jameson, Tera Patrick, Stormy Daniels, Jesse Jane and Seymore Butts are among the high-profile names that Grecco captured in revealing portraits.
“I didn’t want the photos to be so soft,” Grecco said, “I wanted to create this candy, shimmery, shiny color. I didn’t want anything that was super-produced or super-airbrushed, so we [lit it] with softboxes that I removed the diffusers from.”
Grecco said he and his team both chose subjects ahead of time, as well as plucked interesting-looking people from the show floor.
“In the end, I wanted this book to be a social document of this particular subculture,” Grecco said. “I learned a lot from making this book. I stepped into this circus-like atmosphere looking to document this slice of life in this particular time and place.”
“Naked Ambition” features guest forewords by rock-star-turned-porn-director Dave Navarro and Hustler magnate Larry Flynt.
The Santa Monica, Calif.-based photographer’s work has been featured in Esquire, Time, Entertainment Weekly and Maxim. He has photographed Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Will Ferrell and Penelope Cruz and also is the author of the photographer’s guide “Lighting and the Dramatic Portrait: The Art of Celebrity and Editorial Photography.” As one of Canon’s “Explorers of Light,” he lectures across the country.
Grecco said he found that delving deep into the world of adult entertainment was a refreshing experience.
“The mainstream celebrity world is such a corporate machine,” Grecco said. “There are so many people involved in a celebrity photo shoot — publicists, studio reps, personal assistants, image consultants, entourages — [the porn world] was a very unguarded world, which I loved. People came in, did their job, and in fact wanted to do more than what was required.”
Grecco’s hard cover, full color, 224-page book releases Nov. 15 and retails for $40.
