/ic/ - Artwork/Critique

You need to learn how to humanize the model. If you go into a pin-up treating the subject as just a doll to be bent and twisted then you'll never come up with anything interesting at all because dolls aren't inherently interesting. Treat them as human actors, learn how to direct them based on who they are and how they act. I'm reminded of something that one of the Famous Artists Courses said on the subject of models (This is a rough paraphrase): A model that cannot act is of no use.

If you're using pre-established characters, you need to learn about their personalities and temperaments, and if your just coming up with one, then you need to make something up. An excitable person is far more likely to have an energetic and lively countenance and gesture, so you need to invent (this is important too) a post that will bring that across. A moody person is more likely to be dour and less expressive, so you need to think about how you can make this interesting and engaging while still bringing across that personalization. A sultry person is more likely to be more open sexually and physically and will have an entire set of actions and mannerisms than the previous two that can be used to enhance and individualize his or her performance. You can also, of course mix and match, but the idea remains the same.

tl;dr learn to direct and treat your models and subjects as living beings, even if they arent