Welcome To My World....

Hello, hello. I’m Christie, the hand behind the trigger and the voice behind the brand.

Welcome to my world and ultimately the entire contents of my brain. What I share here is authentically me, I don’t have much of a choice to be honest, I only have one speed.

I am an artist, but that’s only part of it. I’m obsessed with the depths of the human experience– the journey a person goes on in their lifetime, partly a physical journey and partly a journey of the mind. Unraveling insecurities, concepts of the world around them, perceptions of experiences and the process within.

This art, photography, is the vessel. It’s the way I am able to open my mind and reveal what’s inside. It’s a gift I never take for granted. This gift, the ability to literally show you what I see, is something I believe only a photographer has. Perhaps a skilled artist can as well, but when I pick up that camera I am literally and physically able to capture what my mind sees when I see you. I use lighting to capture an emotion that isn’t a tangible element. Every single detail is for that purpose, to use the tangible to capture the intangible.

There’s so much more to you than your insecurities. There’s so much more to you than the things that have bogged you down, suffocating you and lying to you. The darkness of our minds knows no bounds, it will fester and take hold until you feel like you have lost control. If this gift can have even a fraction of an impact on such things, I will continue until I can no longer hold my camera.

I hope you are relentless in your pursuit of healing. Whatever you are healing from; trauma, self doubt, insecurities, anxiety, depression… I hope you seek victory. I hope I get to meet you on that journey and share in your stories along the way.

And.

I hope I get to capture such a bold and courageous woman.

I see you, because I am you...

I’ve pinched and pulled all the parts of me

Frowned at the mirror

Hid under clothing

Made impossible promises to myself that I would achieve a version of my body that I deemed perfect

Longed for moments of worthiness

Acceptance

Wondered what it felt like to look in the mirror with approval

I’ve sat jealous of women around me

Wondering if they felt the same about themselves too

I am my clients. 

I am you.

I am her.

I am all the women that are sick of being told who they are, who they should be, and what box they belong in.

I am on a never ending journey to accept myself for all that I am. The good, the bad, the ugly, the brilliant and the beautiful. 

I am your ambassador. I am there to represent your deepest insecurities and your greatest fears. I stand on your behalf as someone that has felt the depth of the insecurities that rule us. I hold your hand as we cross bridges we’ve never crossed before. Overcoming fears and insecurities to place yourself in front of a camera. I am alongside you as the emotions of an experience so huge come crashing down around you. The excitement, the nerves, the fears. 

And it is my greatest joy to be your partner in such an important journey.

Celebrating the big session giveaway winner!

My beautiful giveaway winner came in yesterday and WOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOWOW. @sam_amerman absolutely crushed it, did she not??!

The whole session we focused on embracing the soft with the bold as we always do but it was really at the forefront of our minds.

Sometimes the wardrobe is just as important as everything else. This pink sweater felt so soft and delicate yet her tattoos and confidence add to the dimension and depth that is femininity in itself.

We are complex, we are bold and we are soft, we are strong, we are emotional, we are loving, we set boundaries. These things can all exist at once and all I ever want to do is capture all the complexities that live inside you.

When you book a boudoir session, take all of these things into account when shopping for your wardrobe. What pieces bring out the different parts of you? The texture of a sweater against the smoothness of your skin, the pale pink color subtly living in cohesion with your skin’s undertones and yet in contrast with your long, dark hair. Each outfit helps us tell the story of who you are.

Each woman enters my studio at a different place in her self love journey. Some are at the beginning, stumbling on baby deer legs into a future where they can finally embrace who they are. Some come to me towards the end, celebrating the laborious journey of learning to love themselves and actually sitting in the truth that they are worthy. Wherever you’re at in your journey, that’s where I meet you. This session either sheds light on a piece of you that has been living in the dark for too long or it confirms that what you’ve been working towards all along is worth celebrating.

“Ahh I did it!”

“One of the best experiences of my whole life!” - Sam A.

12 years as an editorial makeup artist in NYC, here's what I learned...

Can I brag for a little bit? I know I know, that’s really uncomfortable. But I stand around and preach that we’re allowed to be proud of ourselves and that we’re allowed to speak highly of ourselves rather than self-deprecating, so I have to walk the walk.

I just wanted to share with you one of the things I’m extremely proud of and realized that I don’t usually speak about this side of what I do. There’s always talk about the emotional impact associated with my sessions, but there’s a bit of a technical aspect that I believe brings all of those things together.

I spent about 12 years of my life as a commercial/editorial Hair/Makeup Artist in NYC. I was agency represented, I worked live TV shows, celebrities, magazines, brands. I spent the entirety of my adult life in an industry that almost prides itself on its exclusivity.

The entire process is so “other”, so unattainable to the average woman. It’s big and grand and outside of most people’s day to day life.

I won’t lie, that’s one of the things that I loved about it. It was exciting and new everyday. But for all that it carried with it the outward appearance of prestige, behind the curtain it brought endless frustration.

There’s a reason I have positioned my business towards the “everyday woman” and have no desire to pursue the commercial photography industry that I knew so well. The prestige of working for magazines, brands, etc doesn’t hold a candle to the feeling of bringing this “unattainable” experience down from its own high horse straight to women everywhere.

I won’t lie though, my years in the commercial side of the industry have given me all that I need to know to bring you all of the good and fun parts. Which means an experience with me is a little different than what most people in my industry can provide. The hair and makeup is done by yours truly, the kind of application I would do on my clients while on set for big brands and magazines. The lighting I set up for you comes from the knowledge that I unlocked in my brain from all those years in studios working closely alongside some of the most amazing photographers in the industry. My retouching is either done by myself (where I again studied under some amazing photographers and retouchers) or the incredible Honor Heymann who currently retouches for J Crew (and has retouched for brands such as Coach and Josie Maran). The standard I hold my work to is high which is why I won’t settle for anything but the best. 

[By the way, if any photographers out there are looking for an absolute superior retoucher, it is without a doubt Honor.]

Apart from the incredible impact these sessions have on the women I am fortunate enough to work with, THIS is what I feel makes a session with me special. I’ve plucked this exclusive editorial industry from its pedestal and have presented it to you in full, something not many people can lay claim to.

Alright, alright I’ll put my ego away for a bit. 

Why are my NAKED sessions so important?

You might have seen me promote a round or two of these sessions I call “NAKED Sessions”. First, we’ll go over what exactly they are.

You don’t actually have to get FULLY naked, I suppose it’s a bit metaphorical. Unless you want to, literally, of course. These events called NAKED are a little way to capture a snippet of my clients.

NAKED is a 15 minute session, one look on a black backdrop.

No Makeup.

No frills.

Just you, me, and the simplicity of it all.

These sessions provide an opportunity for people to gain a tiny understanding of what it is that I do. It’s so important to me that my clients are confident in their investment when they book with me and sometimes people need a little taste to really be sure. To be honest, I don’t even think it’s the photography that they’re actually worried about investing in… it’s themselves.

Most people come to me with things like “I could never do that”, “I’m just not photogenic”, “I need to lose some weight first”, “insert self deprecating insecurity driven excuse here”.

NAKED Sessions are a low stakes way for me to shut down that horrible voice inside your head. You come in and with the simplicity that a NAKED session provides and I’m able to show you that none of that stuff is true and none of it matters. In that short 15 minutes I show you that you are stronger than you realized, bolder than you ever knew, beautiful in ways that other people see you but you struggle to see in yourself.

These sessions are so important to me and I hope you’ll consider taking a tiny step forward to see why.

If you’d like to snag one of my current rounds of NAKED Sessions happening on March 12, click the link below! Hurry, there’s only THREE spots left!! As always, I’m available to answer any questions you might have.

MARCH NAKED SESSIONS

Do I need heavier makeup than normal if I'm going to be on camera?

Okay I’m here to set some records straight. 

For the love of god, you don’t need to wear more makeup just because you’re getting your picture taken. If you cake on makeup, contour, whatever “just for photo” it’ll still look like you’ve caked on makeup. It won’t magically appear “natural”. No, the lights won’t make it all disappear. Repeat after me: That’s. not. real.

On top of that, a lighting change can dramatically impact the look of the makeup. If you’re in natural or moody lighting, it’s going to look darker than it is. If it’s bright, straight on lighting it’ll make it look exactly as it appears in person. 

Now, let’s not mix things up. PROFESSIONAL makeup application is a lot different than most people’s everyday makeup application. But to be clear, it’s not the AMOUNT of makeup that is different when a professional does it, it’s the proper skin prep, the right products, the right application, and the right colors for your skin tone.

Not for nothing, but there is a lot of bad information out there about what kind of makeup you should be wearing, so I never ever ever ever let anyone do their own makeup to my sessions. If I had to choose I’d rather someone wear absolutely zero makeup than do it themselves. Too many foundations that don’t match, blush colors that aren’t complimentary (or way too strong), bad eyeshadow, uneven eyeliner, too much contour... I could go on, but I’ll spare you.

The right makeup makes a huge difference. My photography wouldn’t be what it is if the makeup was strong and aggressive. Dark eyeshadow and glammed up contour… the message is “effortless beauty” not “night at the club”. There are different looks for different vibes, but simply being in front of a camera is not reason to add more than you’d normally feel comfortable in.

So let’s say it together! If it looks good in person, it’ll look good on camera! If it looks like a lot in person, IT WILL LOOK LIKE A LOT ON CAMERA.

The woman who embodies Silk + Audacity...

Silk and Audacity: Where the softer side of a woman meets bold confidence.

It’s  a woman embracing the shadows, as they contour your body. Letting the light dance on your skin and reveal only what it touches.

It’s a woman’s infectious smile, wild and free.

It’s a woman who is unafraid to be herself.

It’s a woman with so much fire inside of her, it burns through her eyes and into your soul.

It’s a woman with so much kindness, it ripples through everything she touches.

It’s a woman whose body has carried her through highs and lows most people have never known.

It’s a woman in celebration of herself. Her achievements. Her gifts. Her hopes, dreams and everything in between.

It’s a woman who mourns the things she’s lost, embraces her emotions, and allows herself to be both silk AND audacity. 

Soft and ferocious.

Silly and charismatic.

Emotional and strong.

Kind and stern.

Fearful and brave.

A woman who understands you can be all of those things, sometimes at the same time, and it’s a woman who deserves to be celebrated.