Annie Leibovitz photographs (almost) naked, pregnant Serena Williams for Vanity Fair cover

Annie Leibovitz has photographed a pregnant Serena Williams for the cover of Vanity Fair, showing the tennis player almost naked, wearing just a nude thong and a body chain. Shot in profile in a confidently casual pose against a grey studio backdrop, the shoot styled by the magazine’s fashion and style director Jessica Diehl accompanies an interview with Serena in the August issue, written by Buzz Bissinger.

In a behind the scenes article on Vanity Fair’s website, Annie Leibovitz comments on the “minimalistic shoot” that: “I’ve been photographing Serena since she was 16 years old. It was wonderful to do these pictures at this stage of her life.”

The rest of the photo series inside the magazine shows more solo portraits of Serena and other shots with her fiancé, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian. The shoot was produced by Vanity Fair senior photography producer Kathryn MacLeod in Florida.

Jessica Diehl also commented on the approach to the shoot: “The thing we all agreed on is the fact that power, motherhood, and athleticism are not mutually exclusive.”