New York City is a fantastic place it’s the city that never sleeps there is always something going on if you know the right group of people, In the 30 years of me photographing in Manhattan I acquired a incredible group of friends and Connections sometimes I would get a dozen emails a day about some type of event, runway show, even private parties with special code words to get in I always walked around with a spectacular press pass with my photo on it it says in big letters Portraits of New York I never was interested in the runway shows very boring I loved behind the scenes I would go right to the make up rooms were the girls are getting ready And get great photos if you go to my digital library mia5.com you will see over 65,000 images that I edited out of a quarter of 1 million it’s still an art project in the works I spent 30 years taking pictures in New York City they say it’s the largest portrait website by one artist I still haven’t met one artist that matches my numbers sorry about the bragging I am one of those Italian guys from New Jersey we can’t help it This is one of those images with the girls are getting ready at a Herbert Fox Fashion party 2003

In 1949 Sal worked for the bazaar traveling carnival the World of Mirth he went under the name of the great Saltar he did his mind reading mask making, played the piano, and did all the photographs. This portrait right here is of one of the midget clowns that worked for the carnival. Freddy that’s what they called him. he had some other names in the two prison terms he served, back in the day when you got a job with the carnival they didn’t check records too much, anyway my great uncle Sal told me he traveled with a bunch of these midget clown from Canada down to Virginia he said he was never so scared of a human being like this Freddy clown. Sal had to bunk with him when they were traveling a couple times

My great uncle Sal photographed a lot of very famous people and did amazing portraits of them this photo he took right here that made it to the cover of the village voice the number one art newspaper in the world with the most circulation this newspaper is in most news stands around the world The man on the front cover Jack Smith famous artist and producer, he was one of Sals lovers along with Tennessee Williams, in 2004 for the newspaper contacted me they saw Jack Smith photo on my website he died sometime in the 70s and left many unfinished projects The family is fighting over them what’s interesting about this photo is the mask in the background is one of my great uncle Sal‘s number one creations the one that’s at our house she’s the one that was created in 1938 with all the secret ingredients in the papier-mâché mix when the cover was published I can tell the mask was more relaxed in my photography studio in New Jersey and The newspaper bought one of the original prints from me and paid me a nice amount of money to have an image on the front cover

After photographing in Key West for about a year 1977 I took a vacation back up north to see family and friends I couldn’t wait to go to New York City to photograph. I took the train from New Jersey to Times Square. this was one of the first photos I took. I remember it like it was yesterday 43 years ago

That’s my dad And Roy Schrader from Jaws Talking shark stories they both eventually went fishing in Key West

Another one of those times when I almost got my ass kicked for taking a photo of something I shouldn’t have I was hanging out at my friends hat stand on 39th and seventh Avenue This big Escalade pulls up two enormous bodyguard guards get out and tell me no Photos that means I’m going to take photos I don’t like being told what to do it’s an Italian jersey thing After the two big dude got out here comes 50 cents I pulled my camera up like Billy the kid shooting a gun and I took the shot the two big guys started screaming at me

This is one of those great mafia parties at the grand opening of the Strip club Stilettos in Manhattan If you watch a lot of mob movies you will see these two gangsters in the middle as extras They are actually gangsters from New Jersey A good friend of mine Donnie Diamonds knew the owner of the club and got my cousin Greg and me in. Great Italian food open bar top shelf and dancing girls everywhere

American In 2004 the largest photo magazine in the world, American photo contacted me they read some of the articles on my website and saw some of Sal’s work Long story short they gave me a five page editors choice story that went worldwide also paid me which they usually don’t do when that story came out I got so many hits on my website and many opportunities landed a major book contract with check And a half ass movie deal that fell through but I got Paid I am now a free agent and we are currently working on three different books and maybe a Netflix special

I created this site 20 years ago because my great uncle Sal and myself have been doing portraits our entire lives Sal did them as far back as the late 20s till his debts in 1995 and me I have been doing them since 1978 between both of us we have thousands of Portfolios and portraits and hundreds of published photos there was one big difference between both of us he was gay and love to photograph gorgeous men very few women me on the other hand I love photographing women and very few men we were both on the same mission make that person look as spectacular as humanly possible that’s what makes a great portrait photographer I’ll be posting definitely for the next six months I have over a quarter million images between both of us a lot of them I can’t put on Facebook but they will be on this site

They say a photo could tell 1000 words this one right here 5000 words her name was tiny back in the early 70s she was my grandfather’s bouncer I and bodyguard a 320 pound bull Dyke with a knockout overhand right that she used on male customers bothering female tourists the funny thing Is I’m suspended on Facebook right now for a month because of saying 320 pound bull Dyke anyway the stories I heard about her were off the chart great uncle Sal did her portraits above the bar everybody was terrified of her even my grandfather the crazy Italian mob guy. in 1978 when I was working at the door at the bar she came looking for my grandfather I thought that was going to be the first time I get my ass kicked at the bar