Retro Lovely Magazine

Been meaning to post about this wonderful new magazine for a while; it's the least I can do given that, along with Alt Exclusive, they have apparently designed it just for me :)

With issue #6 imminent, Retro Lovely has fairly quickly settled into a style of showcasing the best pinup photography; features largely focusing on photographers rather than models. It's an approach that works well for me; I do like to follow some of the more well-known models such as the Mosh (as regular readers may have noticed), Masuimi Max and Angela Ryan - all favourites who you see on these covers; but just as much, I appreciate the style of individual photographers, and it's good to discover new ones.

Regular photographers include Robert Alvarado's very glossy, very classic and glamorous style; Mitzi & Co's cheekier retro look; Roy Varga's hotrod-inspired work; and the wonderful, inimitable Viva Van Story who has almost redefined and updated the concept of pinup photography. There's also a regular look at community site PinupLifestyle.com, and more great photos from it's creator, Edson Carlos.

There's also a good mix of models; well-known as mentioned above, and those new to me, who perhaps we wouldn't see anywhere else. Highlights from #4 and #5 include the ever-lovely Jade Vixen, shot in pink retro underwear by Gary Heller; Celeste Giuliano's Jessica Rabbit look for Samantha SamSam; Viva's shots of Tali De Mar; DC Imagery's Notorious Ang; bob-haired Staci Louise by Girlie Show, and Vestige Photography's great pics of Kitty Kosmo - who I'd so love to see more of (however you care to interpret that). There are just too many great artists to list, but one more special mention to Mitzi & Co's shot of Angela Ryan - who, despite being fully dressed by Heartbreaker, looks ever, ever so naughty. And of course, no pinup-related post can be complete without another mention of Mosh - who had the cover and a photo feature feature by Redrum Collaboration  in #2, along with a great interview.

The printing also does the material justice; perfect-bound thick, glossy, almost book-quality paper more than justifies the $15 price - although be sure to get new issues as they come out; older ones get pricier as they become scarce! But the price is very reasonable; a magazine like this is not cheap to produce, and each issue certainly deserves its place among my largely hardback racy book collection.

I can only think of two possible shortcomings of Retro Lovely, and those are really just for the sake of argument. Firstly, that there is very little editorial; an intro, perhaps a couple of short interviews, but each issue is pretty much entirely devoted to showcasing the models and photographers... but I'm guessing that like me, most folk are just there to look at the pictures :) The second is that it's not as racy as I'd like - there's no nudity, but everything looks so good, and the models so alluring, that it hardly matters... and besides, this is addressed in Retro Lovely Taboo Edition - which qualifies for a separate, forthcoming, post!

Although I can't claim to have seen every example of the genre, I'm fairly confident that Retro Lovely is the best pinup magazine there is; everything about it is spot-on. Fans of pinup and glamour will love the photography, and the tactile pleasure of leafing through each issue. Recommended; visit Retro Lovely.

Viva Van Story's Everything Mosh

Given my penchant for racy material, be it glamour or erotica, I've found many photographers and models who I've liked; although I appreciate the work of both, I tend to follow photographers more and don't really obsess over models. Obsession aside (although a friend pointed out to me a tumblr blog devoted entirely to her), however, I am hugely fond of Mosh - aside from being stunning, she's hugely inventive, lending herself to pinup, latex fetishism, erotica - and her pictures really give the feeling of being collaborations with the photographer rather than just a model.

Viva's work is equally inventive, and I enjoy everything she does - from the technical excellence of her classic cheesecake to the more contemporary, fetish-y and erotic shots such as as she recently did for Alt Exclusive. The latter, as I mentioned in my review of her book, embodying more the original racy concept of pinup art. Put these two icons of modern pinup together - and fortunately for us, they often are - and the results are a combination of entertaining, exciting, arousing and breathtaking.

So, when I saw industry-leading photographer Viva Van Story had created a commemorative booklet devoted to Mosh, I was (at least I like to think) the first to put my name down for one - and it arrived today! A 16-page booklet showing the lovely Miss Mosh in clad in various states of undress, and in various combinations of retro girdles, latex, nylons and sheer lacy numbers. Some scenes are familiar from Viva's book; and as a volume it is slight; but the print and paper quality - not to mention being signed and numbered by these two wonderful ladies - makes it a collector's item (albeit one to be enjoyed, I'm not precious about such things). I'm even suffering from mailing-label envy, and indecision as to what to do with the Viva's Pinups sticker that was enclosed.

Perhaps my favourite thing about it is the - rather small - 'Volume 1' on the cover, and what that implies. Actually, I think Mosh should have a whole book devoted to her; but meantime, I have a suspicion that we'll be seeing more of her (and Viva) in Goliath's Latex Fashion Photography, and Viva's forthcoming sheer-themed book. The latter being head and shoulders above the top of my must-have list!

Site review: Alt Exclusive

I chanced upon Alt Exclusive last month, and - as I strongly suspected - I couldn't resist the immense lure of so many lovely models, and so many great photographers. Although I don't have the physical magazine, I signed up to the accompanying site is where they post more full sets of the magazine shoots - including more nudity than makes it into print, together with some out-take videos and the like.

Alt Exclusive is a relatively new venture - now on the third issue of the magazine - devoted to pinup, fetish and tattoed glamour. That being the operative word here - I'm tempted to dispute the 'Alt' label since to me that suggests more punk/emo-type alt porn, along the lines of Suicide Girls, God's Girls and Burning Angel - which are all great sites, but this is definitely high glamour, albeit with tattoos and latex.

It's hard to know where to start describing the work here, because there is such a concentration of talent; somehow they've managed to get the top names in models, photographers and clothing designers all in one place - and I'm hugely enthused about it.

To start with, Viva Van Story has some amazing work here. Some wonderful pictures of Laura Dore, Marlo Marquise and Sharon TK, in her trademark evocative retro kitchen and bedroom scenes; but perhaps even more interesting are her more recent shots of Mosh, Jade Vixen and Angela Ryan, in more contemporary settings and in and out of some very seductive latex dresses.

And some great shots by Shannon Brooke - who I'm very fond of, since seeing her work in Korero's Kustom Kamera - including Sabina Kelly, Notorious Ang and Lourdes. Some of Ms Brooke's photos are done against a plain studio background; generally I prefer more context, but in this case, everything is spot on and they look amazing. But others are even better, contrasting the beauty of Mosh, Masuimi Max & Darenzia with harsh industrial backgrounds.

Continuing the who's-who theme, models you'll also find here include Ludella Hahn, Lauren WK, Vanessa Lake - and great to see Cervenna Fox & Ulorin Vex from the UK. And photographers Redrum Collaboration (Ludella in blue latex, on the left), Lithium Picnic (Mosh and Masuimi Max as geishas is inspired) and Monique Antoinette (Mosh and Bernie Dexter in bondage is very racy). And there are some fun behind-the-scenes videos, where we get to see the models chatting and posing for the camera.

Although the content can't be faulted, I have a couple of gripes about the site itself. It's a bit glitchy; some links to zip sets don't work, and the downloadable videos are smaller than the streaming ones. More annoying is that membership only gets you 1200 pixel images; the much-vaunted high-res, 3500 pixel versions are pay-per-download - that's per picture, not per set. The membership fee of $15 is relatively modest, but I'd have been much happier if either this restriction was obvious before joining (I see no mention of it); or if the membership was a bit higher but with access to the high-res pictures.

But, with those caveats aside, this is a good site with unparalleled and unique material. Although it's fairly new, and there are only about 80 picture sets of approx 15 pictures, they are stunning and worth joining get - and to support such a good venture, and all involved.

Mosh in motion @ Holly Randall

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Book review: Viva's Pinups

I discovered Viva Van Story a couple of years ago, and my first thought was “Why doesn't she have a book yet?” Fast-forward a bit and that's just what the ridiculously cool UK publisher Korero came out with a while ago - much to my delight.

On a simple level, Ms Van Story does retro-style pinups. Now, I like old-style pinups as much as the next guy (well, actually, probably rather more than the next guy) and I'm genuinely more than happy to look at racy material of years gone by. Having said that, things have moved on a bit in the last half a century, and Viva expertly blends the titillation and sauce of the classic pinup, with the edginess of alt culture and fetishism. And in doing so, I think she very much captures the spirit or the original era, when you had to be a lot less racy to be more racy.

A look at her site - and at Korero's page on the book - will give you an idea of what to expect. Lots of gorgeous girls, including many familiar faces (and figures, of course) including Mosh, Angela Ryan, and Masuimi Max - some inked and pierced, some not - but all looking equally ravishing. And plenty of new (at least to me) models - one standout was Kitty Kosmo, although sadly there was only one shot of her.

And all are wrapped up in a dizzying array of nylons, fishnets, sheer and high-waist panties, corsets, boots... (er, I'll stop now). And with a moderate level of explicitness - plenty of toplessness, not much full-frontal nudity... but who needs it when the girls and the outfits are as good as this?

What won't be obvious until you get the book in your hands is the progression through her changing styles and moods as a photographer. It starts out with some studio cheesecake, then goes through a hotrod/kustom phase (girls with  welding torches, oilstains...) and then finds it's feet in a perfect range of sets - retro interiors, kitchens, boudoirs - where the lace, silk and tassels alternate with latex and PVC.

Towards the end of the book, we see a different, darker angle to Viva's work - some bondage, blindfolds, abandoned buildings and much moodier lighting... which doesn't work quite as well for me but is still exciting stuff and no less interesting for it.

I'll go so far as to say that Ms Van Story is undoubtedly the queen of contemporary pinup photography - the book is a perfect sampler of her work and ranks among my favourites.