why I was wrong about boudoir photography.

When I first started thinking about offering Boudoir style photography I believed that the reason women did these type of sessions was to gift their partners for special occasions. That is how it was sold me when I did a Boudoir photoshoot to gift to my husband the morning of our wedding almost 5 years ago now. After having my own disappointing Boudoir experience (read more on blog ‘The importance of a personalised Boudoir session’) I wanted to offer the kind of session that I wish I had had.

I decided to ask questions and listen to my clients; why had they chosen to do a Boudoir session? I helped them choose their outfits, come up with unique concepts that were tailored to them, asked them about their relationships with their bodies and what they loved about themselves. I was able to learn about my clients stories, build trust and give them a session that reflected who they were. In doing this something shifted. I felt a Boudoir session should be more than about just turning up and posing. There is a whole process that involves me asking you and then you asking yourself questions that you may have not asked yourself for a while. What clothes makes you feel good? What is your version of sexuality and what does that look like? Lingerie? S & M vibes? Nude? Something a lot more subtle like draped robes around the shoulders. What do you love about yourself? We’ve all had moments when we’ve felt amazing and we know that their are parts of us that rock! It’s about getting in to a head space of self discovery, self love and acceptance.

For both me and my clients it soon became clear that the Boudoir sessions were actually more for them than anyone else and that the outcome of the photo shoots was a lot more than just beautiful photography. The process was helping women to positively connect with their bodies, remind themselves of their inner sexuality and fire that may have been put in the back burner for many years through the busy demands of work, parent hood and our ever increasingly hectic lives. They came away from the sessions having had fun, feeling braver and empowered having challenged themselves to feel confident at their most vulnerable and saying this is me and I am awesome!

Then came the extra sprinkle of magic on seeing their photos.

I had also started to received messages from clients partners. I had a clients husband message me, not to say thank you for the photos of his wife but to say thank you for making his wife feel incredible and that it had made a huge impact on her self confidence. It was feedback like this encouraged me and inspired me to keep working with women within this style of photography.

There was no denying that a Boudoir session was much more than just photography and gifts for others. A Boudoir session is about you and for you, whether you have a partner or not. It’s about self confidence, self expression and self love with beautiful photography to remind you of that so those that those incredible feelings don’t fade long after the session is over.

So yes, I was wrong about Boudoir shoots and I on this occasion I have never been more delighted to be wrong!