US celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz risks losing the copyright to the images - and her entire life's work - if she doesn't pay back a $24 million loan by a Tuesday deadline.
Art Capital Group, a New York company that issues short-term loans against fine and decorative arts and real estate, sued her in late July for breach of contract.
"We have clear contractual rights and will protect them in any scenario," said ACG spokesman Montieth Illingworth on Friday. "Our preference is for this to be resolved."
Some experts say filing for bankruptcy could be the best option for Ms Leibovitz, 59, who has put up as collateral her three historic Greenwich Village townhouses, an upstate property and work. She bought two of the townhouses in 2002, embarking on extensive renovations to combine them into one property. That spurred protests from historic preservationists and a $15 million lawsuit by a neighbor.
"Based on the magnitude of her obligations and the facts as they are publicly known, that would be the best option," said art lawyer Peter Stern.
Ms Leibovitz's images of musicians, presidents and Hollywood glitterati are cultural touchstones. One of her earliest photos is of John Lennon curled up naked in a fetal position with Yoko Ono, taken just hours before he was assassinated in 1980.
So to many, her decision to gamble the rights to her work seems inexplicable. "Jaw-dropping," Mr Stern said.
Her editorial agent, Contact Press Images, has declined to comment on the case, saying it is a private matter.
Leibovitz, 6 feet tall with long blond tresses, joined Vanity Fair in 1983. Over the years, her lens has captured the rich and famous: Barack Obama, Queen Elizabeth II and Bruce Springsteen among them. She gave the world its first glimpse of baby Suri, newborn daughter of Hollywood's superstar couple Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, on the cover of Vanity Fair.
Her Vanity Fair salary has been reported to be about $2 million, according to New York magazine. She also has done work for Louis Vuitton and American Express; she charges $100,000 for private portraits.
A meticulous and demanding artist designated a "Living Legend" by the Library of Congress, Leibovitz makes her photo shoots lavish, sometimes theatrical affairs. For a portrait of Kristin Dunst as Marie Antoinette, she flew the actress and a crew to Paris for a shoot at the Versailles. She put Whoopi Goldberg in a bathtub of warm milk. Many of her images are provocative and controversial, including those last year of 15-year-old Miley Cyrus exposing bare shoulders and back, and a portrait of a very pregnant and nude Demi Moore in 1991.
Her financial problems escalated in 2003, during the renovation of her Greenwich Village townhouses. A neighbor sued her for $15 million after a common wall between their buildings was damaged.
Ms Leibovitz eventually settled by buying the neighbor's property for $1.9 million.
AP