R.I.P. Bunny Yeager

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Model and pin-up photographer Bunny Yeager, most famous for her photographs of Bettie Page (she was also instrumental in getting Bettie Page the Playboy cover), has passed away at the age of 85. She tended to photograph her subjects outside, at the beach, in the trees, with animals. She said only last year, “I’m not doing it to titillate anybody’s interests. I want to show off how beautiful my subjects are, whether it’s a cheetah or a live girl or two of them together. That’s more important to me than anything.” Yeager said of Bettie Page, “She was the best model because she not only had perfect facial features, but a great body and wasn’t ashamed to show it. It was impossible to take a bad photo of her. Bettie Page was always ready for the camera’s eye.”

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Yeager’s pin-up photos are eye-catching, and so are her self-portraits. She was able to bring things out in models that other photographers couldn’t. Perhaps it was because she was a woman, so the models could relax in her presence, be themselves, be playful, be funny, be goofy. She was working right up until the end, planning her next shoot. While she will always be known for her collaboration with Bettie Page (my review of the recent documentary Bettie Page Reveals All), her work encompasses much more than that. She worked out of South Florida, and so her photos are often drenched in sun and natural light.

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Her photos still live. You look at them and you can hear the laughter that must have gone on during the shoot, or you can hear the waves crashing in the background. There is life there. Lightning captured in a bottle.

A true pioneer. Rest in peace.

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Bunny Yeager, Bettie Page, cheetahs

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