Old Hollywood Glamour & Pin-Up Boudoir Photography in Charleston, SC
Have you ever wondered what it would feel like to be a movie star?
Not the fame. Not the paparazzi chasing you down the street.
The other part. The glamour. The gowns and the satin. Being lit so beautifully that it makes you gasp at the photos that you see. Standing in front of a camera and, for once, being the one everything in the room is arranged around.
That feeling has a name. It's called Old Hollywood glamour, and it is the whole reason I do this work.
The star treatment, for one afternoon
Think about the great screen goddesses. Rita Hayworth. Lauren Bacall. Jean Harlow..
They were beautiful, yes. But those glamourous photos didn't happen automatically. There was a whole team behind every one of those portraits. The lighting. The styling. The photographer who knew exactly how to direct a woman look like the most captivating person alive. The hours of editing the portraits to make them look like painted artwork.
That is what a glamour boudoir session gives back to you.
For one afternoon, you are the one getting the star treatment. You are styled. You are lit with intention, the same dramatic light those studios used. And you are guided, pose by pose, by someone whose only job that day is to make you look and feel extraordinary.
You do not have to know how any of it works. That is the point. You just get to be the woman in front of the camera while I take care of everything else.
Glamour has a playful side too
There is no reason to do one thing only. After all, there are many side of your personality and a portfolio that shows them is going to be so much more interesting that one with a single theme.
Old Hollywood was not only smoldering and serious. It also had that other, brighter energy. The wink over the shoulder. The pin-up spirit. The moment when you dare a bit more. The hint that there is "something risque" ahead... or maybe not 😀 . The woman who knows she looks incredible and is having fun with it.
We can explore all those sides. In fact, that is one of the subjects of the styling consultation that I do before every session. This is done generally one or two weeks in advance so that you have the time to plan your wardrobe and possibly add more pieces to it.
We can lean into the drama, lean into the play, or move between the two as the mood takes you. It's your session, and part of the fun is finding out which version of glamorous feels most like you.
Made the way they made the real ones
In this era of fakery and emulations I want to give you the authentic experience and results. Because there are thousands of filters to simulate film but there is only one authentic way to get the film look and that is to shoot film. But not only film, film on vintage cameras of the era.
I photograph in the true classic Hollywood style, on real black-and-white film, the same way those studio portraits were made in the first place. If you want to understand more about why the film and the era matter so much to me, I wrote about that on my vintage boudoir photography page.
For glamour, though, the thing to know is this: that dramatic light was designed to make a woman look like a goddess. It sculpts the face. It flatters. It makes the photoshoot cinematic. You will be, literally, on the spotlight, because there no way to create the real Hollywood look when using flash. I don't use any flash. We have real halogen, glowing lights. Not only they are the real thing, but you can actually feel them on your skin. Just like the divas of the past.
That is my promise to you: the Hollywood glamour experience for the everyday woman.
You do not need to be a model. Or twenty-five.
I have been aging for the past 30 years alongside my wife Holly who is my same age. Through her, I know how women feel about aging. And it saddens me because I know that so many women in their 40s, 50s, and 60s are absolutely stunning. They have defined a new level of beauty that is just waiting to be celebrated.
There is a presence that comes with having lived a full life, and glamour loves it. The screen goddesses everyone remembers were not girls. They were women. Poised, knowing, completely in command of the room.
It's my mission to show you how amazing your are at any age. Your beauty doesn't have an expiration date, it just evolves through the years.
That woman is who I photograph. And she is stunning.
Your glamour session in Charleston
My studio is here in Charleston, and it is a private, comfortable place. Here we work at our own pace, enjoying every moment, slowly and deliberately.
Before your session we sit down for a styling consultation and plan the whole look together. The gowns, the mood, how tame or how risque you want it to be. There is no set of rules except that I don't shoot full-on nudity. I find the layering more interesting. I believe that the tease is more powerful. The hint more titillating. Having said so, you set the tone, because I had several clients who, once they got their level of comfort, asked to dare a little more. That is perfectly OK.
Anyway, I will prepare a set of pose ideas just for you, and I walk you through each one, so you are never left standing there wondering what to do.
Here are some "behind the scenes" photos that show you moments from different sessions.
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And here are the faces of happiness of the women who came to the studio. All those smiles where captured after their session.
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Here are some of the testimonials from past clients:
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You have spent years making sure everyone else was taken care of.
Maybe it's your turn to be the goddess for an afternoon.
This Boudoir Session Is Made For You. Discover Why.
Everything that you wondered about a feminine, empowering, fun boudoir session for the everyday woman in a discreet, easy to read guide that you can take with you everywhere.