Dave Naz
Dave Naz (born September 2, 1969) is an American photographer and filmmaker whose work focuses on erotic themes, sexual situations, and diverse personal identities.[1][2] Self-taught and inspired by photographers such as Larry Clark, Nan Goldin, and Diane Arbus, Naz began documenting intimate and fetishistic subjects after assisting Richard Kern in 2001.[2][3] He has published over sixteen books, including titles like Lust Circus and the 2025 release BTS, often through publishers such as Goliath, exploring raw depictions of performers and landscapes alongside human sexuality.[4][3][5] Naz's photographs and videos have appeared in outlets like GQ and feature series on adult industry figures, emphasizing unfiltered portrayals of identity and persona without narrative imposition.[2][6] Married to performer Ashley Blue since 2006, he maintains an active presence through galleries, interviews, and online platforms showcasing his evolving projects on themes like binary-transcending identities.[1][4]Early Life and Background
Childhood and Formative Influences
Dave Naz was born David F. Nazworthy on September 2, 1969, in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, California.[7] He grew up in the Beverly Hills area, with no publicly documented prominent family ties or notable socioeconomic details beyond the local context of an affluent suburb.[8] Naz attended El Rodeo Elementary School in Beverly Hills from kindergarten through 8th grade, followed by Beverly Hills High School, from which he graduated.[9] [8] His childhood involved conventional activities typical of the era and locale, including playing sports and socializing with peers, reflecting a standard upbringing that contrasted with his later focus on provocative, unfiltered imagery.[9] Early formative influences on Naz's artistic inclinations stemmed from photographers such as Larry Clark, Nan Goldin, and Diane Arbus, whose unvarnished portrayals of intimate, marginal, and humanly raw subjects encouraged his initial forays into capturing people without formal training.[2] This self-directed exposure prioritized personal exploration over structured education, laying groundwork for his independent approach to visual documentation.[10]Initial Interests in Art and Photography
Dave Naz, born in Los Angeles on September 2, 1969, grew up amid the contrasting influences of Beverly Hills affluence and Hollywood's underbelly, which shaped his early creative inclinations. Initially immersed in the local punk scene, he served as drummer and principal singer for the band Chemical People, formed in 1986, channeling his energies into music during his formative years.[11][2] Transitioning from music, Naz developed his photography skills independently, without formal training or institutional guidance, relying on self-directed experimentation to hone his craft. His initial forays involved personal projects capturing human subjects in candid, unfiltered settings, prioritizing raw observation over conventional artistic frameworks. This self-taught approach emphasized direct engagement with subjects, fostering an innovative style grounded in personal curiosity rather than academic norms.[11] Naz's early experiments focused on photographing individuals in intimate and sexual contexts, exploring the fluidity of personal identities and personae through unposed, authentic portrayals. Driven by an intrinsic interest in the multifaceted nature of human expression, these pre-professional endeavors rejected polished studio aesthetics in favor of spontaneous, real-world documentation, often involving friends and acquaintances willing to reveal vulnerable aspects of themselves.[11] Such projects, spanning several years before formal publication, laid the groundwork for his distinctive gaze on identity, transitioning gradually from hobbyist pursuits to opportunities assisting seasoned photographers and edging toward professional involvement.Professional Career
Entry into Photography and Early Work
Naz began his professional photography career as a self-taught practitioner, drawing initial inspiration from artists such as Larry Clark, Nan Goldin, and Diane Arbus, which led him to focus on portraiture of people in unconventional settings.[8] In 2001, he assisted photographer Richard Kern, acquiring practical experience in capturing erotic and alternative subject matter through hands-on involvement in shoots that emphasized raw, unfiltered imagery.[12] This collaboration provided foundational skills in lighting, composition, and working with models in niche genres, marking his transition from amateur to professional workflows.[11] Following this apprenticeship, Naz secured assignments with adult publications, producing early work for magazines including Taboo, Leg Show, and Barely Legal.[12] [13] His photographs documented real models in fetish-oriented and pin-up styles, often featuring elements like hosiery, bondage motifs, and youthful aesthetics tailored to the publications' audiences.[13] These assignments, concentrated in the early 2000s, established his reputation within the erotic photography niche, where he honed techniques for portraying models' personalities and physicality without heavy stylization.[12] Over the subsequent years, Naz's self-directed refinement of these skills elevated his output from commercial assignments to pieces sought by collectors, reflecting a progression grounded in iterative practice rather than formal training.[14] By the mid-2000s, his early portfolio—rooted in the tangible demands of magazine deadlines and model collaborations—had laid the groundwork for broader recognition in alternative art circles, prioritizing empirical documentation over abstract experimentation.[11]Erotic Photography and Adult Industry Involvement
Dave Naz's engagement with erotic photography prominently features behind-the-scenes documentation of sex workers and adult industry environments, emphasizing unstaged, candid imagery that captures operational realities without artistic staging.[15] His access to these settings, facilitated in part by his 2006 marriage to adult film performer Ashley Blue, enabled intimate portrayals of performers in professional contexts, such as preparation for shoots and industry events.[1] This work contrasts with posed glamour photography by prioritizing raw, unfiltered glimpses into the labor and subcultures of sex work.[16] A pivotal project in this vein is the "Candids" series, initiated around 2004, which comprises professional yet spontaneous photographs taken amid sex worker activities, including performers in transitional moments like awaiting scenes or post-production downtime.[17] The series culminated in a 2007 exhibition at the Todd Browning Gallery, showcasing these images as a counter-cultural window into the adult industry's unpolished dynamics, and was later compiled into a 2024 book of the same name, highlighting the persistence of such environments over two decades.[15] [16] Earlier contributions in the 2000s included erotic features in publications like LA Weekly, where his work on themes such as seduction and bondage intersected with adult performer portrayals, as seen in books like L.A. Bondage (2007).[18] [19] Naz's output evolved from early 2000s monographs focused on fetishistic erotica—such as Lust Circus (2002), Panties (2003), and Legs (2004), which documented intimate adult-themed visuals—to more identity-infused series by the 2010s, incorporating diverse sex worker personas while maintaining a documentary lens on industry subcultures.[19] Exhibitions like "Off the Hook: The Mixed Messages of Prostitution" at SK Gallery in Venice, California, further underscored this focus, pairing erotic imagery with proceeds benefiting initiatives aiding sex workers, reflecting a realist acknowledgment of the sector's complexities.[20] These efforts collectively reveal causal patterns in adult work, such as the blend of professionalism and vulnerability, drawn from direct immersion rather than external narratives.[21]Key Collaborations and Projects
Naz's collaboration with punk musician and writer Lydia Lunch included her contributing the foreword to his 2005 photography book Panties, which focused on intimate imagery of women and highlighted themes of eroticism and vulnerability.[22] This partnership bridged Naz's visual documentation of subcultures with Lunch's provocative literary voice, enhancing the book's reception in alternative art circles. A pivotal project was the 2015 documentary Identity: In and Beyond the Binary, directed by Naz, which compiled interviews with 36 transgender, genderqueer, and non-binary individuals articulating their personal experiences of gender.[23][24] Participants included figures like Buck Angel and Jiz Lee, with the 60-minute video emphasizing self-reported narratives on identity fluidity and societal perceptions.[25] The initiative, spanning several years of fieldwork, documented a spectrum of gender expressions beyond traditional binaries, contributing to visibility for underrepresented voices in media.[26] Naz's trans-positive photo and video series, initiated around 2013, involved direct engagements with transgender models such as Mia Isabella, Venus Lux, and Eva Lin through on-camera interviews and shoots that explored their professional and personal identities.[27][28] These efforts extended his earlier inclusions of trans and genderqueer subjects in works like Lust Circus (2002), where models identifying across gender spectrums participated in fetish-oriented photography.[11] Such projects advanced Naz's documentation of adult subcultures, including pin-up revivals and fetish aesthetics, by prioritizing participant-driven portrayals in early 2000s shoots for outlets like adult magazines.[11]Expansion into Film and Video
Naz's transition from still photography to moving images began in the mid-2000s, with short videos that extended his erotic and subcultural themes into dynamic formats, often capturing live sessions or performances akin to his photographic shoots. Early productions included Bondage & Perversion in L.A. (2007), a video exploring BDSM elements such as suspension and fetish play, and Turbo Rock (2010), directed as part of his adult industry collaborations.[29][1] These works maintained a raw, observational style, mirroring the unfiltered documentation in his photographs without heavy narrative imposition. In 2011, Naz directed the short film Mary Jane, further demonstrating his interest in narrative extensions of visual storytelling.[1] A pivotal expansion came with the 2015 documentary series Identity: In and Beyond the Binary, comprising interviews with over 30 transgender and non-binary participants discussing experiences related to hormones, employment challenges, and identity formation; the project emphasized unmediated personal testimonies over interpretive framing, aligning with Naz's approach to human subcultures.[30][31] The full documentary, available online, totals approximately one hour and features direct voices from individuals like Buck Angel, prioritizing experiential accounts.[26] Recent video content has focused on behind-the-scenes footage of photo shoots, serving as extensions of his ongoing photographic practice. A 2024 short, DAVE NAZ PHOTOSHOOT WITH MELISSA DOMINO, documents a session with the model in Hollywood, filmed by Eric Minh Swenson to capture the collaborative process in real time.[32] Naz distributes such material via his YouTube channel, which hosts 239 videos as of 2025 and has amassed 105,000 subscribers, alongside Instagram posts integrating video clips with his gallery updates.[6] These platforms host additional shorts, including interviews and thematic explorations like Eric Kroll - Now & Then, reinforcing the continuity between his static and motion-based outputs.[4]Published Works
Books and Monographs
Dave Naz has authored or contributed to more than 15 books since the early 2000s, primarily self-published or issued by small presses specializing in erotic photography, with a focus on unfiltered imagery of women, sexual themes, and subcultures.[33] His publications often appear in limited editions through niche publishers like Goliath Books and Edition Reuss, targeting collectors in erotic art markets rather than mainstream distribution. Early monographs emphasized raw, candid eroticism, while later works explore specific motifs such as gender identities and behind-the-scenes adult industry portraits. Key early publications include:- Lust Circus (2002, Goliath Books), a collection of erotic circus-themed imagery introduced by Tony Mitchell.[34]
- Panties (2003, Goliath Books), featuring foreword by Lydia Lunch and focusing on intimate apparel photography.[35]
- Legs (2004, Goliath Books), with foreword by Nina Hartley, documenting leg-centric erotic portraits.[36]
- Dressed Undressed 3 (2024, Edition Reuss, ISBN 978-3-943105-69-8), continuing series on clothed-to-nude transitions.[39]
- Naked Girls with Small Breasts 2 (2024, Edition Reuss, ISBN 978-3-943105-72-8), sequel emphasizing specific body-type nudes.[39]