Lydia Panas’s latest book of photographs is called “Sleeping Beauty,” but it is actually more about awakening.

The women photographed are of varying ages, lying down in grass or vegetation, while some are in other poses.

“’Sleeping Beauty’ is meant to represent hidden strength. It’s a negation of the fairy tale,” Panas says.

Panas’s work is in the exhibition, “Hear Me Roar - Women Photographers Part IV,” through May 27, Fairchild-Martindale Gallery, Lehigh University Art Galleries, 8A W. Packer Street, Bethlehem.

The setting for “Sleeping Beauty” is Panas’s Kutztown area farm. The views may appear pastoral and peaceful at first glance. But the women are not necessarily at ease.

“I’m not trying to take portraits. I am trying to say something, to express complicated feelings,” Panas says in a phone interview.

“The looks of the women are vulnerable and defiant, between being hesitant and speaking out, knowing you are in a bind and a way to overcome this bind,” says Panas.

Her photographs have a theme, which she says can be appreciated if they are seen as a group:

“It’s not about the individual person. You can see that something bigger is going on here. There are varying levels of comfort and discomfort, and a feeling of a collective unconscious.”

Panas sees the photos reflecting her own life. “I can see my own inner landscapes, but the issues are universal, like the need of love and affection and the fear of rejection. I bring in my own life and internal experiences, and I recognize what the women have experienced.”

Panas has known some of the subjects in the “Sleeping Beauty” photographs for years. Others were daughters of friends. Some were recommended to Panas. She wanted them to feel comfortable when they posed.

“Some of them know me well, but for all of them, I was openly receptive and unconditionally kind. I felt compassion for them, and had them feeling that they were in a safe place.

“I was not looking for something specific. I was very open to seeing what happens. I wanted to open some kind of connection between us in an intuitive kind of way.

“I wanted to see what they bring themselves and how it affects our common humanity, who we are and who we want to become, and what we have in common as human beings.”

Panas, a daughter of Greek immigrants, attended Parkland High School. The farm where she lives with her husband was a weekend getaway when they lived in New York City. They moved there after they had their second child.

Panas’s photography has appeared in the New York Times and the New Yorker. She has received many awards. She has lectured, taught or exhibited at all of the colleges and universities in the Lehigh Valley. She has published two other books of photography, “The Mark of Abel” and “Falling From Grace...”.

Panas uses film instead of digital photography.

“Film is magical, I love it. It has a different look than digital, not better or worse, but in the way the light falls and the colors come together.

“It is a very different process. It feels slower, with more breaks in having to change film.

“I can’t see what I am doing or how faces will look on a sheet of paper. I have to send it out and wait until it comes back a week later. But I am always surprised. There are wonderful surprises.”

“Sleeping Beauty,” which has a satin book cover, includes a poem by Monae Mallory, an analysis of the photographs by Marina Chao, and a story by Maggie Jones relating to the photographs.

Videos made during the photography sessions can be viewed at the website where information about purchasing a copy of the book is available: www.lydiapanas.com

“Literary Scene” is a column about authors, books and publishing. To request coverage, email: Paul Willistein, Focus editor, pwillistein@tnonline.com