Puppy Pinups: Merging Two Creative Passions

Many photographers go through the purge status in life with the "out with old and in with the new" mentality. So what started out as a fun and playful idea from award-winning boudoir photographer Beth Claire of Lost Highway Imaging, turned into a lucrative niche for her already thriving boudoir company.

Claire is well known in her circle for her love of all animals as well as her previous history in the animal care industry. Later in life her passion turned to boudoir photography, specifically pinup images, for some time. She wrote in an email this week that she has had a fond adoration for this genre since the days of looking through her grandfathers collection of vintage pinups since she was just nine years old. “Of course, he quickly snatched them away and stored them on a way higher shelf in his library!” said Claire. “But I never forgot them.”

The collection spanned about half a century starting in the late 1920s right up to the 1970s. She was fascinated to see the changes through the years as she flipped through the pages; the hair, makeup, wardrobe, and even the body style changing. Pinup was very dedicated to all body shapes and sizes yet tended to lean towards the curvier size. Claire gravitated towards this genre as she never felt she "fit in with my ultra-thin friends." Seeing the pinup women of this time changed the way Claire looked at herself and the media. It also sprung a long-term love of pinup imagery.

Prior to becoming a photographer, she was a pre-veterinary major and veterinary technician. She started out her new career in pet photography until she came back around ot the idea of shooting pinup women. She wanted to help women feel empowered, strong, and secure with their own image. While the work was beyond gratifying helping these clients hold their heads up high by facing their fears, she started to miss working hands on with animals on a daily basis. The constant nagging in her head that made her question if she chose the right path or if she should resume her time back in the animal health care industry.

Back in December 2016 she found true love. Not a man, but a dog. While she adored all dogs, this one was beyond compare: a German Shepard puppy named Draco. She was moving toward less pinups and into more traditional boudoir at the time when she was purging through some pinup wardrobes. About to sell off many of the items in her fully stocked studio in the pinup genre, she noticed Draco playfully intertwining himself within the props and boas. For fun, she decided to dress him up and take some fun shots of her new dog and post for some laughs online.

That is when it took off. Social media went crazy on this once just for fun idea wanting this look for their own pets. Claire said the “how” was a little more challenging as her boudoir studio was not exactly dog friendly and had some hurdles to overcome. Yet she felt this was a perfect melting of the two passions and so “Puppy Pinups” was born.

If you have any fun ideas that turned into more than just a one shoot shot leave a comment below.

All images used with permission.