An illustrator known for his depictions of beautiful women in love stories, J Frederick Smith did work for "Good Housekeeping" as well as other magazines. He was a native of California and in 1938 moved to the East Coast where he quickly found work in the illustration field. After serving in World War II, he signed with American Artists agency, and worked as a pin-up artist for "Esquire" and also did illustrations for calendars, playing cards, etc.

In 1947, he was elected a member of the Society of Illustrators, but in 1947, he left the field of illustration and started a photographic ad service and switched many of his clients from painted images to photographs. He became the photographer for the first Sports Illustrated Swimsuit i...