Black Hand--Checkered Rump, N.Y.C.

Larry Fink is best known for photographing people at parties and other social events. He often uses a square-format camera, which he believes eliminates peripheral references akin to normal vision, and allows him to energize geometric shapes within the camera frame. Fink produces the distinctive chiaroscuro—the lush contrasts of light and shadow—with a flash that he can hold away from the camera. This lighting method generates an effect that Fink has described as expressionist, and, along with his compositional strategies, gives the photographer a distinct, graphic point of view.