The Photography of Wicked Illusions
Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009 by TheWebMistress
Voyeur's Delight - Model: Sarah Swofford - see full size in gallery below
You’ve seen Jim’s beautiful images in Nos’ Devil Inside features. From the pretty portraits to the dark undertones of the Used and Abused set and the creepy camp of the Transformation set that turned Nos into a hot, fur-encased werewolf, he has been a perfect visual foil for our resident gore whore’s thoughts. Once I started looking further into his work, I found not only some awesome creepiness, but also a selection of purely sexy imagery and portraits with personality and (refreshingly) just a bit of a whimsical eye. Below is a gallery with a taste of Jim’s Wicked Illusions. Visit his website WickedIllusions.com to see more and get information on how to book him (or click the logo).
A little background on Jim (from his website bio):
Wicked Illusions (a.k.a. Jim Wayer) is an award winning film maker who has taken his love for the visual dynamic into the realm of photography. A fairly new comer to the photography scene, he has already had his work published in Bizarre Magazine and Zivity, as well as here on the Lip Service webzine, and has been gaining the attention of many in the Alt/Fetish realm (which is where he feels the most at home).
Nothing shall stop him from bettering himself as an artist and experimenting into higher levels of insanity. So join his demented band of freaks or prepare yourself for battle! He also loves little puppies.
I had a chance to ask Jim a few questions and here’s what he had to say for himself …
Webmistress: How did you start getting interested in photography and who were your influences? I could ask the same about horror … and will … why dark themes and who influenced your style?
WICKED ILLUSIONS: Well my love for photography really spawned from my love of lighting. It all began with becoming a film maker and realizing how the lighting actually affected the mood that you felt when viewing the imagery. My main influences are filmmakers that expand the visual means of their films, which also is a reason I am attracted to horror, because you see this all the time in the genre. You get such beautiful imagery in films like Susperia and The Beyond, that you just don’t see in films like Big Momma’s House. Also, one of the many hats I wear is that of a Special FX artist, so I have a deep-rooted history and love with all things gory and scary!
WM: If you had to describe your work in a sentence or less, what would it be?
WICKED ILLUSIONS: The dark, sadistic side of beauty
Used and Abused with model: Nos - see full size in gallery below
WM: What is your process in creating images and where is the most crazy place you’ve gotten inspiration for a shoot?
WICKED ILLUSIONS: I have multiple processes for creating images. Sometimes, I know exactly what I want and spend hours of adjusting to capture that. Sometimes I have a broad idea of the feel that I want to go for, but let the shoot take on its own life. It’s very enjoyable for me when a shoot takes a turn that I didn’t expect and achieves a greater result! I get very bizarre inspirations from strange places. I tend to see the truths behind many things more than their face value. I see a flyer for a church picnic and what I see is a good marketing idea for the church to make some money. One of the recent bizarre inspirations came from seeing somebody drinking a tropical drink out of a coconut. Still have not planned that one out yet, but it’s coming!
WM: So, how dark are the recesses of your mind?
WICKED ILLUSIONS: Ha! I don’t know what you mean! The recesses of my mind are like bluebirds flying around in an open field…just sometimes they happen to land on a landmine.
WM: What would be a subject or scene you would not do, no matter what?
WICKED ILLUSIONS: I cannot say that there is a specific scene or image that I absolutely won’t do. There are certain subjects that I would never show in a certain light. For example, I would never show a child mutilated or abused simply to be shocking, however, if should that image was more about portraying the evilness of the person inflicting such pain on the kid, then I would be ok with it (of course all implied and not actually hurting a kid!).
One of the more horrifying subjects that I see is that of animal abuse and torture. I am a huge dog lover and seeing such subject matter always pisses me off. However, I also push myself in that way too. If I come across something that frightens me, I confront it and overcome my fear of it. Sometimes the way to overcome a fear of heights is to simply stand on a ledge 5 stories in the air. So there isn’t anything that I would absolutely never show, because I think all taboo subject matter can be shown in certain aspects, where it actually conveys an appropriate message.
Shut up and Listen! with model: Pandora Genocide - see full size in gallery below
WM: What is the most challenging subject you’ve done so far?
WICKED ILLUSIONS: The most challenging subject that I have come across is having to shoot sets that are, as I call them, “Normal photos”. I like shooting fashion photos, as long as I can have my visual feel to it. There are many places that I have come across that immediately dismiss photos because, god forbid, there are shadows!
I don’t care too much for the photos that are all soft and flat. I have a recent love for soft light, but still want to create a more three dimensional feel to a photo in regards of the subject and the scene around them.
WM: If logistics and budget were no object, what would your Holy Grail photo shoot be?
WICKED ILLUSIONS: Well, equipment wise, I’d have about three 27’ grip trucks packed to the brim. However, location wise, I would love to have free run of an abandoned, underground military base. I also would love to recreate the test towns that the government set up for nuclear bomb tests and have a whole mess of models, dressed up, and charred, posing as the mannequins.
WM: On a similar vein, if you could do a portrait of anyone, who would it be and how would you present them?
WICKED ILLUSIONS: It would definitely be Masuimi Max. She has a look that would make a priest have to say 10 Hail Mary’s! I would either present her in a 70’s exploitation style battered victim way, or as a deranged psychopath. Seeing her in a ripped up straightjacket, splattered with blood and holding some form of blunt object.
WM: Beside photography, what are your creative passions?
WICKED ILLUSIONS: The two main artistic releases I have besides photography would be web/graphic design and film making. I find a strange pleasure in typing like a madman in this bizarre coding language and having it turn out all pretty like! A few recent examples of this are My Website, and the new Wicked Pixel Cinema webstore.
On the filmmaking front, I love being on set and simply being a part of such magnificent display of organized chaos! My first major film that I ever worked on was DEADWOOD PARK, where I was Key Grip. That movie also sucked me into joining Wicked Pixel Cinema. That’s when I declared that no matter what, I will be an artist for the rest of my life. Since then I wore many hats through the insane production of Eric Stanze’s current movie RATLINE and manage day to day operations at our studio. I also am happy to say that in two days I leave for New York to work in the Grip/Electric department on Jim Mickle’s film STAKE LAND!
Photo/credit information is as follows:
row 1 (left to right): “Used and Abused” / Model: Nos; “Ugly America” (Merch Shot for Ugly Shyla’s T-Shirt)” / Model: Nos; “Eating Pussy” (Original title) aka “Sweet Kitty” (Censored title) / Model: Nos; “Shut up and Listen!” / Model: Pandora Genocide
row 2 (left to right): “Sexy Domestic (Zivity Set Preview)” / Model: Pandora Genocide; “Infidelity” / Model: Pandora Genocide; “Gossip” / Model: Pandora Genocide; “Ghostly Seduction” / Model: Pandora Genocide
row 3 (left to right): “Flesheater” / Model: Pandora Genocide; portrait of filmmaker Eric Stanze of Wicked Pixel Cinema; “Elegant” / Model: Nos; “BUBBLE (Zivity Set Preview)” / Model: Kaila Marie
row 4 (left to right): “Breezy and Beautiful” / Model: Nos; “Vintage Beard” / Model: Jason Christ; Voyeur’s Delight” / Model: Sarah Swofford; Merch shot for Wicked Pixel Cinema’s Logo T-Shirt / Model: Pandora Genocide
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