Learn Pinup Photography

My obsession with pin up photography started accidentally. In the early 1980s, while spending summers at my grandparent's house, I had a room with a cable-connected TV and, instead of sleeping late at night, I would sneakily watch television. I was lucky enough that my grandparents had the AMC movie channel (American Movie Classics). In those days that channel showed almost exclusively movies from the late 1930s to the early 1960s. And that is how I discovered Betty Grable.

While flipping the channels I came across this picture of a woman with her back to the camera, legs that went on forever. and smiling over her shoulder at the camera. AMC was doing a biography on Betty Grable before showing her next movie.

 While watching her biography they showed all of her pin up photographs and thus I learned about pin up girls From that moment on I was hooked. I stayed to watch her movie and spent every summer from then on watching AMC and gobbled up every bit of information I could on Betty.

In the early 1980s there wasn't a lot of information or people on the Internet so my information came from my grandmother, the local mall and AMC. When you're 14 and trying to collect pin up girl posters, there aren't many options. There was a local collection shop at the mall which had a Betty Grable full size poster.

Pin up girls began a lot earlier than the 1940s. They actually started back in the early 1900s, but my particular love is the pin up girls of the 40s. Mainly the all-American girls like Betty Grable, Rita Hayworth and Esther Williams. I particularly love Betty Grable and Esther Williams because, while not particularly beautiful, they were incredibly fit and glamorous. Rita Hayworth is one of the most beautiful pin up girls in my opinion. I think I loved her most because of her red hair (like mine).

The 1940s aren't the only famous pin up girl times. Of course everyone knows the most famous pin up girl of all time Marilyn Monroe. She opened the door to a sexier pin up pin up girls like Betty Page and Jayne Mansfield. Betty Page was famous for her very unique noir photographs. With pin up girls becoming sexier and women getting bolder, the onset of the women's movement ushered in a new kind of pin up girl and became branded as cover girls. Today we call them super models.

Recently the pin up girl market has gone back to the ideal; beauty and glamor (although you'll still see a pinup girl tattoo once in a while). Older 1940s and 50s pin up photography has sprung up in pop culture in recent years .In 1996 a company established a pin up girl clothing market. Dita Von Teese, a famous Hollywood writer, is in the news all the time dressed in glamorous 1940s clothing and even known as a pin up girl for the modern age. Katy Perry, a famous pop singer, is a consumate pin up girl, even appearing on American Idol.

The Internet has been a blessing for collectors like me. Nowadays, the Internet has all the information you could ever want about Betty Grable or Katy Perry.  Retro pinup is alive and well.

The first step is to have a plan before you get ready to snap your photos. If you don’t spend the proper amount of time planning your shot, you’re sure to end up with a pinup photo that neither you nor your subject likes.

Be sure, too, to include your subject in your plans. She needs to be comfortable with the photos you’ll be taking. If she’s not, it will show clearly in the final product. The classic pinup girls were always at ease with themselves. You want your model to show the same sort of innocent yet sexy confidence as she models.

Next, select any props or backdrops that you want for your photo. Much classic pinup art is well remembered for its inventive use of props such as brooms, mops, motorcycles, car hoods and soda pop bottles. To make a more interesting pinup photo, you might consider bringing in some props of your own. These will give your model something to play off of. It also might make her feel less self-conscious, if that is a problem.

It’s now time to think about how you will frame the shot. Remember, don’t place your model directly in the center of your shot. This usually leads to boring photos, no matter how attractive your model might be. Instead, place her slightly off center. This will make your pinup photography more visually appealing.

You may also need to direct your model to stand a certain way or to use a prop in the right way. Pinup girls weren’t just pretty. The classic ones also had a certain way of posing. They held their bodies in just the right way to be suggestive without being too aggressive. You’ll have to coach your model to do the same.

Above all else, this  takes practice. Don’t expect to learn pinup photography and get a classic shot the first time you snap some photos. Be prepared to experiment. You’ll find, over time, that your pinup photography skills will improve, especially if you follow these tips for pinup photography for beginners.