Whitney Houston, Manhattan NY, 1988. Each time I shot Whitney was really unique—different look, different hair, different styling, and a different part of her life. The first picture I did was for Rolling Stone of her and her mom, Cissy. It was really special. We put them in matching leather jackets, and my stylist Wayne Lukas directed them to write “Mommie” and “Whitney” on each others jackets with white-out—I remember that, because it really changed the energy of the shoot. It created this intimacy that cemented this comfortable relationship between us, that remained throughout the preceding shoots to come.On each shoot thereafter, she always had Robin with her, her girlfriend. Everyone in the industry sort of knew she was in this relationship, but it wasn’t this public thing. Years later I shot Whitney again, but this time it was with her husband Bobby Brown. I show up at this shoot, and it’s about her and Bobby for the cover of Essence, yet Robin was there on the shoot, like she always was. I’m taking photos of Whitney and Bobby, embracing and kissing in her house, in her living room. It was deeply special, to be trusted to witness the evolution of her relationships and be a part of those moments, all playing out within the frame of my lens.
