(Photo: Courtesy of Christie's Images Ltd 2007)

2. Helmut Newton
Self-Portrait With Wife and Models, Paris, 1981. Printed 1984. From an edition of 75.

Estimate: $15,000 to $25,000. What looks like a scene of voyeurism was actually domestic comedy. “His wife was hungry and wanted to go to lunch,” explains Leon Constantiner, a New York collector who bought a print of the image in 1992. “That’s why he was wearing his coat. He said, ‘Just one more,’ which turned into a whole roll of film. That’s the beauty of photography—which one is the One from a roll?”

Market details: The late photographer planned to sell 75 10-by-10½-inch prints, but no more than 25 were released, effectively shrinking the edition.

Prospects: Another Newton, Sie Kommen—Dressed and Naked, is likely his most famous image and has been reaching six figures. This tableau, however, makes the most of Newton’s playful kink. Though fashion work has traditionally attracted less market respect than ostensibly purer fine-arts photography, Newton’s name is joining those of Penn and Avedon as a serious crossover figure, so demand should be there.