An Exercise in Boudoir

Recently I did a boudoir photo shoot for one of my best friends as a wedding gift to her. It was only my third ever boudoir photo shoot ever and I think I rocked it. Well, she and I both rocked it. I learned a lot of tricks of the trade since my last one and I learned a lot of new things this time. It was a great experience for the both of us.

It was such a positive experience for me as a photographer because I got to try something new and learn some new posing techniques and post processing techniques as well. I found out a lot of what angles work really well and what don’t work well at all. I got to practice posing a little  bit. Usually when I take photos, I just go for it. I like to take more natural photos but when it comes to boudoir, the client usually needs to be posed. I learned some new techniques in Lightroom when I was processing her photos as well. It’s always a good thing to learn new things in both the session itself and post processing to continue to grow as a photographer.

It was also a positive experience for my friend because I got a chance to make her feel beautiful and sexy. It made me feel good to make her feel good. She got a chance to forget about all the stress in life and just let go and get some photos taken. It was a fun experience that made us both feel good about life. 

When I gave her the photos, she was very happy with them. She kept saying things like “ooh I like this one!”, “this one is really pretty!”, and “I look sexy!” I was quite proud of myself and this photo shoot. (I wish I could share some of the photos I took, but they’re for her and her husband’s eyes only, you’ll just have to take my word for it.)

I really enjoyed making my friend feel beautiful the week before her wedding. It was awesome being able to make her forget about all the stress and stuff that comes with planning a wedding and all the things still not crossed off the to-do list. I feel like when you’re feeling overwhelmed and stressed, the best thing you can do is spend some time with a friend doing something fun. Doing something that makes you feel good is so important in this life. We get so caught up in our day-to-day lives, stresses, work, kids, etc. that we forget about taking care of ourselves.

This boudoir experience was a positive experience for me as a photographer and a woman. I feel like making other women feel beautiful and sexy, whatever that means to you, is important. Women today need to focus more on building each other up and making each other happy.

 

It’s a…???

Last weekend I had the opportunity to photograph a gender reveal party. It was a lot of fun! There was so much excitement and anticipation leading up to the final moment of what the mom is having. It made for a really fun experience, one I haven’t had before. I have seen gender reveal photos on Facebook and they are super nifty. I really like gender reveal photo shoots and hope to do some in the future. This photo shoot was an event, however. There were tons of friends and family all gathered in one place to hear the announcement of what gender their loved one is having. 

I was very impressed with the whole thing. The set up was perfect. I didn’t realize there were so many gender reveal party decorations available in the world! They had the room set up with half pink balloons and half blue. There was a question mark made up of pink and blue balloons. They had cupcakes with blue frosting on one side and pink frosting on the other side. Even balloons that said “boy or girl”. There was a banner that said “what will it be, boy or girl?” It was impressive!

They had a whole table full of different games for guests to play too and towards the end of the evening, they handed out prizes. There was a game called “let’s make a baby” that the adult couples played. They made little babies out of play dough and the mother-to-be chose the winner. There was a “price is right” game where the guests guessed the prices of various baby items such as diapers and bottles. They played a game of “what’s in my purse” where the ladies tallied up points for items they had in their purses.

Towards the last half of the party, they divided up the guests between who was guessing she was having a boy and those guessing girl and had them play fun games against each other. They played a game where there were six guests on each side and they were blindfolded and had to change the diaper  of a baby doll. Then they chose 4 of men from each side to chug soda out of a bottle and the first group of four that finished won. The last game was a jeopardy themed game that had trivia questions about the mom, dad, their son, and random.

At the very end of the party, the time we all were waiting for the entire time, we got to learn what she was going to have. They brought out a big black  balloon with a bunch of question marks on it and a stick with a pin on the end that was decorated in pink and blue. Their son was up on the table, the mom and dad were right there, the mom held the son’s had with the stick and 1, 2, 3, pop! It’s a boy!!

It was a lot of fun shooting this party. The guests were all in high spirits because of the anticipation of the reveal and all the fun games to play, not to mention the delicious Indian food that was served. I had a unique experience myself as I normally only shoot between 1 to 4 people at a time. Shooting so many people and interacting with so many people made me leave my comfort zone for an evening and get some fantastic memories for that family.

List of Tips to Prep for your Senior Session

 

You only graduate from High School once in your lifetime, unless of course you’re a vampire on Twilight, then you can graduate as many times as you want. But since that’s most likely not the case, you’re going to want your senior photos to show who you are and be memorable and awesome (just like you!) I have compiled some tips for your session to help you prepare.

1. Bring a few outfits.
   You wear different clothes on a daily basis, bring a couple of your favorite outfits to your session. You can bring your sports jersey, letter jacket, favorite dress, etc. Just make sure what you bring is reflective of you as a person. This session is to show off who you are as you graduate from High School.
   
2. Accessorize!
   I don’t mean just some jewelry or a belt (although if that’s what you want to bring, then by all means, bring it!) I would like to see musical instruments, pointe shoes, footballs, dogs, horses, books, skateboards, headphones, whatever emphasizes You. You are what is important, this time of your life is important and I want to capture it so that you can look back and remember who you were and see who you have become. I want to see your hobbies and loves. I want you to be enthusiastic about your photos! These are for you and you’re great!

   

3. Ladies, pamper yourselves
   If you’re into makeup and manicures I would suggest you go for it. Little details help make photos great. And if it makes you feel great, your photos will reflect that. I want to reiterate though, this is for you, if you’re not a makeup and updo kinda gal, then pass. Do you! You’re beautiful no matter what! I want you to feel good and sometimes make up and getting our hair done makes us ladies feel beautiful. What makes you shine is what I want coming out of your photos.
4. Guys, pamper yourselves too!
   Again, make yourselves feel great. Get a nice haircut and style before your shoot. Or get yourselves some new clothes. I want you to do what makes you feel great!
   
5. I know I said that these photos are for you, and they are, however, they’re for other people too. Your parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, and other friends. One of them is going to be displayed in your yearbook for all of eternity. That being said, make sure you get plenty of rest the day before your shoot. Eat a healthy meal or smoothie or something. If you’re planning on getting a hair cut, make sure you get it a few days to a week before the shoot to make sure it relaxes down and looks peachy. If you’re going with a new outfit, make sure it fits comfortably and looks like you. If you’re going to get a facial or your brows waxed, do it a few days before your shoot to make sure you don’t have a reaction or redness when you show up for your photo session. If you come looking and feeling your best, your photos are going to reflect that.

   

I hope that these little tips help with your planning and prepping of your senior photo shoot. If you have any further questions, hop on over to my contact me page and shoot me an email, I’d be happy to answer any questions about your photo session.

I am currently accepting clients for the class of 2018 also, so if you would like to book with me head on over to that contact page and let me know where you’re located, when you want to schedule your shoot, and we will go from there!

Check out my Pintrest board for a little more inspiration:

(I don’t claim the rights to any of the photos on that board)