Story highlights Robert Benson photographed a sex-doll factory in Southern California

The nine-person team at Abyss Creations produces 300-400 dolls a year

(CNN) Inside a nondescript building in a Southern California business park, a small team assembles some of the most expensive and sought-after sex dolls in the world.

Abyss Creations makes RealDoll, a life-sized silicone figure with a fully poseable skeleton, interchangeable faces and penetrable orifices starting at $6,500. The company says it rarely pays for advertising, relying on word of mouth and a steady stream of press coverage since its first celebrity endorsement: shock jock Howard Stern in 1996.

Photographer Robert Benson discovered the factory last year. He had been searching for a sex-doll manufacturer to photograph during a visit to Japan. Much to his surprise, one of the most famous manufacturers was just a few miles from his San Diego home.

During a shoot in April, Benson captured the process of making a single doll from mold to makeup, and he met the team of nine that produces 300-400 dolls a year.

Photographer Robert Benson

"Everyone was super passionate about what they're doing, and they take the work seriously," Benson said. "I guess the fascination wears off after a week and it becomes like any other job."

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