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Yet even then, guys were like, "Get a picture of this!" It was uninhibited.But leave you should! At least to explore the rest of wonderful San Francisco, with its wealth of historical attractions, miles of gorgeous coastline, unique neighborhoods, a revitalized downtown, and marvelous dining experiences. As a woman, I also gained access to traditional men's spaces, but I knew to leave when it was sexytime. So there was this really fresh and intimate moment with the camera between me and the person, a genuine kind of excitement. You only really had one or two shots, since this was film, and people weren't as experienced at posing as they may be now. It was also a more, let's say, innocent time in terms of nightlife and media. Soon they would see me and say, "I want to be in the paper!" But these young people were celebrating being gay and living in San Francisco - they didn't care, it was a positive thing. Previously, having your face or name published in the papers could bring shame and disaster. And you have to think about what was going on then: This was the first queer generation that really sought out media attention with political statements, outrageous fashion, and proudly being out of the closet. There was one other girl named Polly Polaroid who would take your picture and give it to you for a dollar, but that was it. Nightlife photography back then was non-existent. Some people would be a little hesitant at first, but after a few times seeing me out - and a few drinks - they started trusting me. It was a vital social network for getting information out there. There was a real sense of community in the face of the epidemic, even though people had their differences. There would often be tables with safe sex information or people handing out ACT UP and Queer Nation stickers and buttons. Posters for street actions would be up at the club door, and there was always a big bowl of condoms at the bar.
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Drag queens would hand out safe sex kits with condoms, lube, and hotline numbers for people who needed anything. Protests and actions around AIDS were also a big thing. Drummer, where everyone really dressed up. People would spend so much time putting together their outfits, buying pieces vintage stores or making their own. And the creativity! This was when club kids were becoming a thing. And it all came together at Club Uranus, DJ Lewis and Michael Blue's Sunday night party at The EndUp, which was where you would hear rave music, speed metal, and classic disco all at once. The Stud was more of a punk bar, and The Box played hip-hop and house, and appealed directly to people of color and women. Colossus was an early circuit party, with tons of shirtless men, but some women, too.
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The Rawhide was a country and western bar with two-stepping. I think the thing that struck me most was the sheer variety of nightlife back then. What was the scene like in San Francisco at that time?
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The photos in SoMa Nights include everything from a men's underwear party to the gender-blending "Miss Uranus" pageant. Nothing against it, but I couldn't relate to it in an artistic way. And for me, the digital thing is a different experience. But once digital cameras appeared, they didn't need a film photographer anymore. I left the Sentinel with Michael around 1993, to help him start his own magazine called Odyssey, which is still publishing. I used a Minolta at first, and then a Nikon with a huge flash attachment. We'd go out several nights a week, and I would develop the film in a little darkroom I had under the stairs of my apartment building. We had a full-page spread in each issue called Hot Shots. I would take the pictures, and he would write the captions, which were sometimes pretty gossipy. We would skip the lines and get drink tickets Michael could open any door. They were expanding their coverage to include more nightlife, so they paired me with a sales manager named Michael Everaert, who knew everyone on the club scene. The Sentinel was a weekly paper that covered news and arts, and they took me on.
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I moved to San Francisco from Colorado when I was 22, and my first place was a studio in the South of Market neighborhood - right in the middle of all the action! I got a job at a photo lab, but wanted more work as a professional photographer, so I started knocking on the doors of publications.