The dawn of Hollywood’s star system created women who were larger than life, glamorous, magnetic, and unforgettable. These portraits capture the drama, mystery, and romantic power that defined the earliest silver screen legends.
Bette Davis
Known for her roles in many classics, such as Jezebel and All About Eve, Bette embodied strength, ambition and defiance using her piercing eyes, expressive face and unapologetic command of the screen. This shoot should express the dramatic and magnetic theatrical brilliance she portrayed.
Joan Crawford
Icy steel wrapped in satin, Joan was in direct competition with the fiery Bette Davis, as can be felt in the film Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? with Bette’s explosive energy and Joan’s controlled elegance. The feel for the Joan Crawford shoot should emphasize her strength, authority and old Hollywood magnificence.
Rita Hayworth
Rita Hayworth, known as the ultimate “love goddess” of the 1940’s brought elegance and fiery sensuality to the screen. Known best for her roles in Gilda and the musical Cover Girl, her essence is about mystery, drama and irresistible charm. The shoot should feel like stepping into a smoky nightclub in the 40’s, with a focus on glamour and allure that borders on hypnotic!
Ginger Rogers
Best known as Fred Astaire’s dazzling dance partner, she exuded a radiant effortless grace, highlighted with flowing gowns and feathers. The feel of this shoot should be charming and joyful.
Vera Ellen
Vera-Ellen rose to stardom in the 1940s and 1950s, appearing in major musicals like On the Town (1949) with Gene Kelly and White Christmas (1954) alongside Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, and Rosemary Clooney. These decades marked her as one of Hollywood’s brightest musical dance talents. This shoot calls for a physically fit subject with an energetic vibe that exhibits a graceful vitality and a joyful love of performance.
🔥 THE MID-CENTURY ICONS (1950s –1960s)
As Hollywood entered its golden era, women embodied a new blend of sophistication, sensuality, and iconic style. This period gave us some of cinema’s most beloved and enduring images from playful chic to commanding glamour.
Vivien Leigh
Her career spanned from 1935-1965 including the classic film Gone With the Wind and a second Oscar-winning role in A Streetcar Named Desire. Her porcelain beauty, expressive eyes blended grace, passion and a touch of tragedy. The feel here will be dramatic, emotive and yet fragile.
Audrey Hepburn Theme
Audrey embodied a unique blend of playful charm and refined sophistication. From Breakfast at Tiffany’s to Roman Holiday, she radiated both youthful freshness and aristocratic grace. She wasn’t just glamorous; she was approachable, delicate, and unforgettable. The vibe for this shoot is classic elegance with charm and poise.
Marilyn Monroe
Marilyn Monroe was most famous for her career as a 1950s Hollywood bombshell, known best for her status as a sex symbol and pop culture icon in comedic roles like Some Like It Hot and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. The vibe here is flirty glamour with a hint of softness..
Elizabeth Taylor
Regal, commanding,and a dazzling beauty, She wasn’t just a star, but a legend of Hollywood opulence and fierce femininity. Known best for her roles in Cleopatra and Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. This shoot should feel magnetic with drama and regal decadence.
Anne Bancroft Theme
Best known for her role as Mrs. Robinson in The Graduate, she exuded a confident, smoldering presence that was both alluring and unapologetic. Unlike many of her contemporaries, she wasn’t just glamorous she carried an air of mystery, sharp wit, and independence. The vibe is a powerful femme fatale sophistication. The feel is both intimate and slightly confrontational, like she’s letting you into her world while daring you to keep up.
Sophia Loren
This Mediterranean goddess was statuesque with magnetic allure. Starring in films like Houseboat and Marriage Italian Style, her acting career and her exotic beauty continued seven decades from the early 50’s through 2020, including Aida, Two Women and the comedy Grumpier Old Men. The feel of this shoot will be fiery and richly sensual.
Jayne Mansfield
An over-the-top playful, sex symbol with exaggerated glamour, humor and spectacle, she starred in films like Promises, Promises! And Too Hot to Handle. The feel of this shot will be bold and flirty with a campy glamour.
Carmen Miranda
A superstar in Brazil and then Hollywood from the 1930’s - 1950’s, she was a leading samba singer and film star and the highest paid woman entertainer in the country in the 40’s! Her style and feel of this shoot is over the top tropical costumes with fruit hats, turbans and floral crowns and bright tropical colors.
Natalie Wood
She began acting as a child starting in Miracle on 34th Street and rose to prominence in Rebel Without a Cause and Gypsy. Radiating innocence, vulnerability and luminous beauty, she balanced a youthful sweetness with a growing sense of depth and elegance. The vibe for this shoot is romantic, delicate and gentle allure.
🌹 THE MODERN CLASSICS (1970s –1990s and beyond)
By the late 20th century, Hollywood glamour evolved into something freer, more natural, and boldly sensual. These women symbolized confidence and liberation, redefining what it meant to be iconic.
Zha Zha Gabor
She was the epitome of European glamour in Hollywood. Dripping in diamonds, she cultivated the charm of a larger than life irresistible heiress wrapped in furs. The feel of this shoot is just that with loads of sparkle and glamour.
Raquel Welch
This glamorous siren embodied bold sex appeal in the 60’s and 70’s but carried it into this era as well, from Fantastic Voyage and One Million Years BC to Tortilla Soup in 2001. The feel of this shoot is sultry and almost primal.
Lena Horne
A trailblazer for Black performers, her years of fame as an iconic singer and actress spanned over six decades from the 1940s-60s with most notable roles in Stormy Weather (1940’s) and The Wiz (1978). This shoot will emphasize her soulful intensity in a smoky jazz club atmosphere.
Bo Derek
This golden beach goddess became an instant cultural icon with her role in 10 (1979). She radiated a fresh, natural sensuality that was both playful and bold. The vibe is carefree and liberated and sensual.
Faye Dunaway
Best known for Bonnie and Clyde and Chinatown, she embodied a more modern, razor-sharp kind of glamour icy, dangerous and impossibly chic. The vibe is glamorous and dripping with sophistication.
LIza Minnelli
Daughter of Judy Garland, her major fame spanned the 1970s through the 80’s with her Oscar winning role in Cabaret. This shoot will portray her expressive and most theatrical raw charisma and dramatic performance energy.
Diane Keaton
Making her debut in The Godfather, she starred in Woody Allen’s Annie Hall wearing quirky menswear-inspired fashions radiating intellectual humor and a bold refusal to conform to typical Hollywood glamour. This shoot should feel fresh, natural and candid.
Farrah Fawcett
Farrah Fawcett is an essential icon of the 1970s–1980s she embodied a new kind of star power that mixed California sunshine, natural sensuality, and pop-culture glamour. Her look, especially her feathered blonde hair and glowing smile, became one of the most defining images of the decade. The vibe is bright, athletic, sexy and athletic.
Julia Roberts
The perfect representative of the 1990s contemporary Hollywood era she embodied a unique mix of girl-next-door warmth, radiant charm, and star power. Known for her megawatt smile and natural charisma, she became one of the defining faces of modern romantic comedies and drama. The feel of the shoot is romantic with a touch of sophistication.
Natalie Portman
Natalie has been famous for nearly her entire adult life from 1994, reaching global recognition by 1999 and continues into the present, with an Academy Award win for Black Swan. The feel for this modern icon will showcase her subtle power, emotional depth and timeless elegance.
Margot Robbie (as Barbie)
In 2023, Robbie starred in and produced the fantasy comedy Barbie, which became a cultural event and the highest-grossing film of her career. Her performance as Barbie was praised for combining humor with a heartbreaking earnestness. The vibe of this shoot leans into that classic, whimsical and colorful aesthetic of the Barbie universe.
