A picture is worth a thousand words is as cliché as it comes. But a photograph by Richard Franklin is sure to leave you speechless. In a visual society like the one in which we live, image is everything. Magazines, television, internet and all forms of media flood our psyche with images meant to dictate how we view beauty.

But doesn’t beauty vary? Isn’t perfection in the imperfections? Mr. Franklin has some very unique opinions to these questions and more as they relate to the eye of the beholder. “I never see things as better or worse, just different. Likewise I have never known, seen, or searched for the ‘perfect woman,’” Franklin insists.

As a glamour photographer who is known for shooting women of color, Franklin is adamant that there is no one quality that a model should possess. “I don’t deal in absolutes,” he said. “The ability to turn up on time would be nice.”

Always willing to push himself and his subjects past the point of good and beyond greatness, he makes every attempt to try new and creative concepts that exceed even his own expectations.

No easy feat for a man born into English wealth. His family tree is a who’s who of influential people. Franklin has an aunt who revolutionized the science world with her DNA work, a father who was a successful investment banker, and his Polish mother has a Jewish heritage. Not bad for a self professed atheist with big dreams.

Dreams and inspirations all his own. Franklin is a self-taught photographer who seeks to honor his own unique vision of beauty and art. “However I frequently am impressed by a cleverly executed picture [that] I may come across and it inspires me to attempt to reproduce it with my own interpretation,” he said.

Interpretation is everything in an industry full of opinions. “I don’t see it as an industry and perhaps that’s the answer. In general I have a hard time taking the words glamour modeling seriously,” Franklin ascertains. “High fashion modeling is where the serious money is. Most glamour models and photographers make very little money although it’s a lot of fun.”

But with that fun is a business that must run. Franklin is entertaining a line of calendars and other novelty items that feature the beautiful models he photographs. “I would particularly like to come out with a coffee table book of my work,” he said. “I hope to shoot more Hispanic and perhaps Asian girls. I would like to base myself in Brazil for a while and do some great location shoots. I shall continue to strive towards improving my technique and the quality and range of my work.”

Although Franklin probably has some hardcore fans in men and women alike, there are those who see his work as degrading, offensive, and exploitive. “I don’t think taking a ‘sexy picture’ in general is remotely exploitive. Men are object-oriented and women like to display,” the lens man reasons. “You are dealing with basis genetic imperatives. However there are photographers who go for the lowest common denominator in a shot and I have no respect for that. I strive for that balance between sexy and classy.”

Knowing that part of his legacy will be photos of voluptuous women with mouths agape and bodies that desperate housewives would kill for, he remains firm in his commitment to showcasing the female form in the best possible light. He maintains, “I strive for excellence, work hard and try to give dignity to those who cross my path in life.”