Pinup Pole Show Pinup of the Week: Monica Kay

Click Here to Begin Slideshow This week’s Pinup Pole Show Pinup of the Week is Monica Kay! She’s half Japanese, full vegan and an artist through and through. In this week’s column, you’ll see Monica Kay posing with Chris Geerdes' 1955 Ford, photographed by the great Shane Karns at Tonya Kay’s Pinup Pole Show. Pinup Pole Show has extensive experience working with Shane Karns and when we started working together, he still had a “day job,” but no more! Shane developed his craft and business impressively quickly and now shoots full time, supporting his family and lifestyle in Los Angeles. I love talking to Shane about his work... TONYA KAY: What did your journey look like from initial exploration of photographic arts to a full time profession? SHANE KARNS: Like most, if not all, people, I've always enjoyed taking pictures of those things that inspire me or those moments I feel should be frozen in time. It was the upcoming birth of my first born that caused me to search for a better camera. I wanted to be ready to record those special moments. I ended up getting a Canon Rebel and for the first six months or so used it on automatic. Every now and then the camera would take a particularly great image that stood out from the rest. I started to figure out what settings the camera chose in auto mode for those images I really liked. I realized I needed to learn to take more control of my camera so I could make an image look the way I wanted it to. I began to learn how to shoot in manual, which also lead to learning more about different lenses, lighting, etc. During this learning period I also spent several nights a week shooting blues and swing dancers, learning how to shoot action and how to shoot in very low light environments. I feel that relentless drive to constantly photograph my own family, friends and dancers ultimately gave me a great base for what helped propel me into the solid photography business I have today. TONYA KAY: What type of photography do you normally get hired for and what type is your creative favorite? SHANE KARNS: I'm hired most often to shoot events. Could be a wedding, corporate event, bar mitzvah, party, etc. However, my creative favorite is shooting dancers of all types. Everything from social swing dancers, to ballet, to pole. Love catching the moments dancers create with each other and their bodies. As a social dancer of 20+ years I feel like I understand a lot of the movement that happens between the dancers and the music. I may not know how to dance the particular form of dance I'm photographing, but I always feel incredibly connected to it and inspired by it. It's not uncommon for me to go away with 1,000 images from a one hour session with a dancer. I always over shoot those sessions, as I just can't help myself!

Pinup Pole Show Pinup of the Week: Monica Kay

Click Here to Begin Slideshow

This week’s Pinup Pole Show Pinup of the Week is Monica Kay! She’s half Japanese, full vegan and an artist through and through. In this week’s column, you’ll see Monica Kay posing with Chris Geerdes' 1955 Ford, photographed by the great Shane Karns at Tonya Kay’s Pinup Pole Show. Pinup Pole Show has extensive experience working with Shane Karns and when we started working together, he still had a “day job,” but no more! Shane developed his craft and business impressively quickly and now shoots full time, supporting his family and lifestyle in Los Angeles. I love talking to Shane about his work...

TONYA KAY: What did your journey look like from initial exploration of photographic arts to a full time profession?

SHANE KARNS: Like most, if not all, people, I've always enjoyed taking pictures of those things that inspire me or those moments I feel should be frozen in time. It was the upcoming birth of my first born that caused me to search for a better camera. I wanted to be ready to record those special moments. I ended up getting a Canon Rebel and for the first six months or so used it on automatic. Every now and then the camera would take a particularly great image that stood out from the rest. I started to figure out what settings the camera chose in auto mode for those images I really liked. I realized I needed to learn to take more control of my camera so I could make an image look the way I wanted it to. I began to learn how to shoot in manual, which also lead to learning more about different lenses, lighting, etc. During this learning period I also spent several nights a week shooting blues and swing dancers, learning how to shoot action and how to shoot in very low light environments. I feel that relentless drive to constantly photograph my own family, friends and dancers ultimately gave me a great base for what helped propel me into the solid photography business I have today.

TONYA KAY: What type of photography do you normally get hired for and what type is your creative favorite?

SHANE KARNS: I'm hired most often to shoot events. Could be a wedding, corporate event, bar mitzvah, party, etc. However, my creative favorite is shooting dancers of all types. Everything from social swing dancers, to ballet, to pole. Love catching the moments dancers create with each other and their bodies. As a social dancer of 20+ years I feel like I understand a lot of the movement that happens between the dancers and the music. I may not know how to dance the particular form of dance I'm photographing, but I always feel incredibly connected to it and inspired by it. It's not uncommon for me to go away with 1,000 images from a one hour session with a dancer. I always over shoot those sessions, as I just can't help myself!

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About Tonya Kay 118 Articles
Tonya Kay is a brutally elegant film actress, burlesque headliner, raw vegan renegade and producer of Tonya Kay’s Pinup Pole Show and classic car cruise-in. You’ve seen her hosting Motor Spins, performing on Broadway (STOMP, De La Guarda) and in blockbuster films (Lone Ranger, Muppets Movie). Her pinup and modeling work has been published in magazines, calendars and comic books like Car Kulture Deluxe, DrivenWorld, Grease Inc, Superfly Auto, The SpeedGirls and Garage Latino. And her viscous classic hot rod, the Grape Space Coaster, is even more famous than she is standing out on Discovery’s "Sticker Shock," Speed TV’s "My Ride Rules" and music videos.

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