A Throwback to the 1950's

A 1950's themed Swing Dance - what better reason to hit the vintage clothing stores, find period outfits and get made up to re-create the looks of our mothers and grandmothers? Oh yeah, and have a photo shoot to document it all! Having two teenage daughters to play with made this so much fun. Gabriel and I were blown away at how incredibly gorgeous and true to the era Ashley and Alyssa looked after getting their hair and makeup done and stepping into their 1950's party dresses. It was an amazing transformation!

There is something very captivating about the Hollywood glamor shots of the late 1940's and early 1950's, and I knew I wanted to re-create this look with the girls. We found a very dark, narrow hallway and used our video light to provide the source of illumination for these shots. I think we came very close to capturing the look and feel of the era with these images...

Before the party started, though, we made our way to downtown Seattle for a photo shoot. We were disappointed to get kicked out of one hotel for now obtaining prior authorization, so instead we walked along 5th Avenue and - doing things the right way - asked permission to use the lobby area of the 5th Avenue Theater. It actually was cool to use their billboards as a backdrop...





When it got too cold on the streets, we slipped into the Hilton to warm up. Fortunately, we were allowed to take a few quick pictures inside, and found it interesting that the furnishings were actually more retro and like a 1950's interior than the hotel we started out with.


Onto the party...a gymnasium filled with 200 teenagers, live music by Route 66, a big band creating sounds from the Swing Era, fog machines, soda fountains...it was a great evening!