Sexy Photos of Adriana Lima

Like her Brazilian counterparts Gisele Bundchen and Ana Beatriz Barros, Adriana Lima hails from a small town, far from the glamorous life she inhabits today. Her climb from obscurity to glam girl occurred after placing second in the Ford Supermodel of the World Contest. This came after she had won the 1996 Ford Supermodel of Brazil Contest.

She signed with Elite Model Management at the age of 16 and moved to one of the fashion centers of the world, New York. Once there, her modeling portfolio only began to expand exponentially, after appearing in Vogue, Italy in 1997, as well as Vogue, UK, I-D, UK, Marie Claire, Brazil, and Vogue, Italy in 1998. Adriana has also appeared in Vogue, US, Germany, UK and Marie Claire (Italy) all in 1999.

As for fashion shows, the Vogue girl has walked down the runway for the following designers: Cynthia Rowley, Vera Wang, Christian Lacroix, Emanuel Ungaro, Betsey Johnson, Girls Rule, Richard Tyler

, Emporio Armani, Giorgio Armani, Fendi, Randolph Duke

, Ralph Lauren and Valentino.

She revealed in the April 2006 cover feature of GQ magazine that, per her Catholic beliefs, she was still a virgin, explaining: "Sex is for after marriage. Men have to respect that this is my choice. If there's no respect, that means they don't want me."

She has dated many celebrities in the past, including an engagement with rocker Lenny Kravitz (ended in 2003), the prince of Liechtenstein and Major League Baseball player Derek Jeter.

Adriana Lima does charitable work by helping with an orphanage, "Caminhos da Luz" (Ways of Light), located in her hometown. Practically, she helps with construction to expand the orphanage and buys clothes for poor children in Salvador, Bahia.

Adriana Lima�s modeling career began at a young age. She was only 13 when an agent discovered her at the mall. At 15, she won the Ford Supermodel Of Brazil contest and placed second in the Ford Supermodel Of The World contest. Shortly after, speaking only broken English, she moved to New York City and signed a contract with Elite Model Management.
Adriana�s first big break came when she appeared high above New York�s Times Square on a Vassarette billboard. She quickly gained worldwide recognition for her work in the GUESS? Wailea , Los Angeles, and Costanoa campaigns. Within a few years, Adriana was a star in the modeling industry.
She�s worked with some of the world's great image-makers: Steven Meisel, Patrick Demarchelier, Peter Lindbergh and Ellen von Unwerth, and appeared in the world�s top magazines: Vogue Italia, Marie Claire, Elle, Harper�s Bazaar, and others. She has been profiled on E! Entertainment Television, The Travel Channel, Viva, Extra, and had a starring role in the BMW short film, �The Follow.� Adriana is currently engaged to musician Lenny Kravitz and appears in his video for the song Yesterday Is Gone.
Born in northern Brazil, on June 12, 1982, this 5'10'', brown haired, steel blue-eyed beauty is an eclectic mix of French, Portuguese, Native American, and Caribbean heritages. As a child, she dreamed of helping children and is now using her celebrity status to aid orphanages in her homeland.