What a picture doesnt say

I posted this Rolling Stone cover pic of Gaga a few weeks back. I wouldn't say I was a "fan" of her in that very definite sense of the word, but I liked the image's ferocity and the way it made 'Bikini Girls with Machine Guns' by The Cramps start up in my head like a charm.

I found out today that the shot was taken by major industry snapper Terry Richardson. This article, by Kate Harding, made me reassess the image in a number of ways. As with most products in the Western world, there was a journey behind the item way before it reached our eyes/ears/mouth/hands/body. I wonder whether Mr Richardson made Gaga feel the way he made Rie Rasmussen or Jennifer Peck feel? I wonder what she would have said if he'd asked her to drink tea made from her own used tampon, or give him a hand job during the shoot?