With a pop-up studio at the largest drag convention in the world, I had the pleasure of photographing today’s most iconic drag performers from RuPaul’s Drag Race. Whether they were winners on the show or fan favorites, I photographed over 100 queens throughout 3 whirlwind days. The goal: give the queens a type of portrait they’ve never had before, showing off the beauty of their makeup and garments through bold stripes of light against deep shadows and glowing colorful backgrounds. The lesson learned: there is no subject that quite knows how to work it in front of a camera like a drag queen does, as proven in these striking images.