For a long time I’ve wanted to make the trek to the Angel Ladies Brothel in Beatty, Nevada. To be clear, I’m not looking for a prostitute. The site is long since abandoned. What it does have, however, is a wreck from a plane crash that is said to have happened in the 1970s. As lore would have it, the owner of the brothel used to use the plane as a marketing technique and there was even talk of men jumping out of the tiny plane and getting a free night with the girl of their choice. However, one day the pilot appears to have gotten a bit distracted and crashed into the field next to the entrance. Now, we are left with the sign for a long-closed brothel and the remnants of a wrecked plane. If this isn’t the perfect spot for a photo-shoot, I don’t know what is. So, one Saturday, my model and I made the five hour drive through Death Valley and into Beatty.
We got there with plenty of daylight left and started shooting some more catalog looks in and around the plane before moving along to some high fashion drag-inspired wear (by Jason Lee Dennis) to close out the day. We ran into the new owners of the space who were kind enough to let us shoot on their property and told us of their plans to convert the old brothel into a retreat in the next year or so. After dusk, it was time to leave the crash-site. With a stop at the largest candy store in Nevada, we were ready to head home.
Some favorite images are below: