Cobb

It's mock torture.

Mock? I'll have you know it's very much like real torture; it hurts, you can be bruised and bleeding at the end (YUM), and it gives you a very real acquiantance with the business ends of certain implements that are designed to do nothing but hurt people. The major difference from torture, of course, is the torturee (?) can stop it any time s/he wants.

Welcome to the world of the consensual sadomasochist!

The thing to remember is this: most of us spent big chunks of our lives struggling with our sexuality (well, most of us over 40 anyways: kids just seem to leap in these days, the lucky things). Then we finally had some crisis and sat down and accepted it. It gave me a new perspective on what it must be like to be gay: you know what turns you on, its just that half of society finds that sick and disgusting.

Fortunately, these days this stuff is almost trendy: think Secretary, or 9 1/2 Weeks. Which at least makes it marginally easier to buy cheap fetish gear.

"Strange" is a relative subjective. What may be "strange" to one person - is a normal lifestyle or attitude to another. I think its "strange" for someone to spend a sunny day knocking a little white ball around a big grassy field with a metal club. One of the differences being that a golfer doesn't wear a leather mask on the links. But then again, aren't polo shirts from the Gap rather kinky? *g*

Speaking from the perspective of a bondage photographer and commercial producer - much of what you see in images *IS* staged for the benefit of the viewer/camera. REAL 'scening' bdsm is very difficult to properly photograph because of participants getting in the way of the lens, and a multitude of other reasons. Not to say that its all staged - but a lot of it is.

Those "strange" people are quite often simply performers, actors & actresses (of course, not in the traditional Hollyweird sense), providing a form of entertainment service to those who like to vicariously fantasize about such practices.

But it never ceases to amaze me how someone can take a brief cursory glance at a few bondage images...and then write a dismissive or disparaging page or two about it all - as if that's all the evidence the jury needs to make a case against it.

My advice is to spend more time getting familiar with the intricacies of the lifestyle and what its all about - before applying pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard). Anything less would be superficial and misinformed.

Silent Knight
(Kastle Archives Productions Inc.)

I recognized that the scens are staged as I am familiar with some of the bondage tropes in japanese anime & hentai. I have no particular objections and didn't intend to pass judgement. One man's plate of shrimp is another man's gout attack. I simply find such photography, actors and those motivated sexually by it, chuckling strange.

What I truly find "strange" is mostly the contradictory laws surrounding bondage and the associated lifestyle.

For instance, here in Canada - it is legal to practice consentual bdsm, collect imagery of it, produce photography...and lately even to sell it domestically. However, its technically against the law to export bdsm images outside of the country.

Meanwhile, murder is still illegal - yet we can fully depict it in photos and film...and export the images to an international market. Toronto has even become the 'Hollyweird of the north' these days - creating films and TV shows that depict every conceivable type of murder...that get shown to a worldwide audience.

If that's not "strange" - I fail to understand the term :)

Silent Knight
(Kastle Archives Productions Inc.)

I stumbled across the above exchange this morning and had to add my comments. (wave to Silent Knight)

Although I'm a bit confused how bondage photos relate to understanding teenage sexuality (nothing on my site even approaches that subject), I do understand how alternative lifestyles are difficult to understand for some people and how words like "torture" have both denotative and connotative meanings. Simply, it's all in how it "floats your boat."

I do object to your generality that these are posed photos. Many, if not most, are photos of people that (either) I know, or others know, or are sent to me by readers. Of course, some photos are staged, but I don't usually post them because they're copyrighted. Silent Knight was gracious enough to all me to post some of his artwork there a while ago.

If you're not familiar with this world or lifestyle, it's easy to feel a need for "desensitizing," but those who share this kink, this way of living, this wiring? I don't think "desensitized" is the word they use :)

Alas, given the fear instilled in me and others, the photos have been removed. Too much fear here. Canada seems to have not just a few things in order....

Best to all,

Amity

Where can I find out when this was posted?

Great blog, enjoyed browsing through the site