A Lake Macquarie photographer has been found guilty of assaulting and raping aspiring models, in a judgement handed down at Newcastle District Court on Friday.
Allan Todd Cameron, 56, is guilty of nine counts of indecent assault and five counts of sexual intercourse without consent, with the crimes committed against seven women over more than five years from 2011.
Judge Tim Gartelmann SC found Cameron not guilty of 10 counts, including seven indecent assault charges, two sexual intercourse without consent charges and one count of procuring a person for prostitution.
Cameron had pleaded not guilty to all charges and faced a judge-alone trial earlier this year.
Many of the charges came over photo shoots at Cameron's studio - in a shed at the back of his Gateshead home - where he told women to remove their clothes and in some cases indecently assaulted and raped them.
In one situation, the court heard, Cameron pulled one woman onto his lap and told her that her genitals were "pretty".
In another, he approached a model and touched her genitals - she told him not to do so.
The court heard that he told the woman he would never have sex with her because he would "have a heart attack" but later pulled her onto his lap and put his hand down her pants before he again touched her genitals.
In delivering his verdict, Judge Gartelmann said the women were genuine in giving their evidence, which had a "ring of truth".
Judge Gartelmann said Cameron misled police during a search of his studio, and photographs of complainants from relevant times were found during a probe into his computer, camera, memory cards and hard drive.
He said "limited weight" could be given to Cameron's evidence.
"In many cases he took explicit photos of complainants, often close-ups of their genitalia, yet he was either unwilling or unable to explain why - or if he did, the explanation was implausible," he said.
Cameron was arrested in October, 2017, after three women went to police with allegations against him - more complainants went to police after his arrest.
He ran glamour photography company Primeval Edge until a few months before he was charged.
On Friday, Cameron's bail was continued and the case was adjourned for sentencing on September 4.
