A FORMER glamour photographer has been banned from working as a masseur due to police fears he may sexually abuse clients.

Perry Reynolds, 55, described himself at Bournemouth Crown Court as “like Marmite, you either love it or hate it”, and admitted he would “sail close to the wind” when persuading models to disrobe and pose for photographs. However he denied being a danger to women.

Reynolds was convicted of sexual assault in 2012 after touching the breasts and bottom of a 16-year-old girl working at his studio in Poole.

He was placed on the sex offenders register, but last year set up a business offering sports massage in the Ashley Cross area.

In November, Dorset Police imposed a 10 year sexual harm prevention order to ban him from the trade, saying Reynolds was “preoccupied with sex” and a risk to women.

Reynolds went to court to appeal the order, describing the police case as “a complete pack of lies”.

He confirmed he had told officers he would “sail close to the wind” in the studio, touching a model’s arm and urging her to unbutton her blouse and “act sassy”.

“Models loved coming to my studio because of the fun we had, because of my character,” he said.

“You can’t talk to a female about shoes or life and the universe if you want her to look sexy.

“You have to sail close to the wind to get them to do what they want to do.”

He told the judge “I have seen a lot of boobs”, explaining how he could quickly assess model’s bra size.

The court heard he had touched another model’s breasts while carrying out a “deep massage technique” for 10 minutes in a bid to resolve “a breathing problem”.

Told the 24-year-old had later complained to police, he said: “If she felt uncomfortable why didn’t she find an excuse to leave?”

Asked if he believed most women found him attractive, Reynolds said: “Reality check, I am a brilliant flirt. I have got a reputation for it.”

He said in the later years of his photography career he had become worried models might misinterpret his behaviour.

“I had become so paranoid women were changing. The models were changing. I didn’t have the same trust with them that I used to have.”

He has always denied the assault, claiming he was trying to improve his victim’s confidence and assess her bra size, with consent granted.

In court he said his behaviour when giving a massage would not be the same as in the studio.

He said he couldn’t advertise his massage business for ‘men only’, as suggested by police, as this might be misconstrued, and that because of his seasonal affective disorder it was difficult for him to find other work.

Reynolds, of Poole, was convicted of fraud last year after he failed to inform business insurers Hiscox that he was on the sex offenders register.

Upholding the order, Judge Peter Johnson said: “It appears Mr Reynolds has a very low opinion of women. He has no respect for them.

“He is of the view that he is very attractive to them.”

He said Reynolds’ approach to women was “unhealthy and troubling”.

“At one stage during his evidence he described himself as an extremely competent flirt. He came across as a man with a huge ego.

“He also described how he was able to ‘talk rubbish’ endlessly. With that he finds no disagreement with this court.”