Boudoir Photography vs Intimate Portraiture: What's the Difference???

Boudoir Photographer orrrr? 

So I am naturally lumped into the Boudoir photography category because I’m not sure there’s really another widely known category that I fall into (fine art nude? portraiture?). But of course, I’d say there are some notable differences between my work (that I’ve affectionately named Intimate Portraiture) and the more straightforward Boudoir Photography. There are also some pretty clear similarities so I figured it was a good opportunity to get to expand a little on the differences and similarities of boudoir photography and intimate portraiture. 

First, I’ll outline a few differences (of course there’s always exceptions to the rule, this is just a loose collection of thoughts).

Intimate portraiture

• Pulls inspiration from the editorial and fine art nude world. It is more studio focused and often uses artificial lighting to create a mood and sculpt the body. 

• Wardrobe is simple, effortless, “casual sexy”

• The editing process is a bit more extensive than with boudoir photography, so while I provide the gallery to my clients the same day, their final images have a longer turnaround time.

Boudoir photography 

• Is mostly natural light and in an atmosphere that feels a bit more “lifestyle” in nature. 

• Wardrobe is usually more ornate, lacey and “overtly sexy”

• Same day turnaround

Similarities

First the biggest one– both intimate portraiture and boudoir photography are an absolute empowering experience. Whether a woman sets out to do a boudoir photoshoot for her husband/partner as her motivation for booking the shoot, it is clear that the real gift was to herself all along. That is identical to how my clients feel after an intimate portraiture session as well. All of my clients leave empowered with a new sense of self.

Second, well this one is obvious. We both shoot various forms of undress/nudity. The tactics, lighting, even atmosphere may be different but you better believe you’ll be almost nude (or fully nude) in both experiences. We all love the body in all its shapes, forms and sizes and squeal inside (and outside) when you start feelin’ yourself!

Third, we all generally encourage our clients to print their images in beautiful heirloom albums. I think it is just the most beautiful way to display such an intimate and vulnerable collection of images of yourself and usually all boudoir photographers feel the same. 

In both cases it’s a full experience. Hair and makeup, wardrobe, the photoshoot, the album. From start to finish, you’re a queen for a day and you get more than just images out of it– you get a whole once in a lifetime experience (or maybe not just ONCE since I’ve had many clients come back again and again!).

What it comes down to at the end of the day is you and your overall style. Most of my clients come to me because they share the same love of subtlety as I do. If you’re drawn to a less obvious approach to sexuality, it’s usually me you’ll be contacting. 

If you are drawn to more traditional boudoir, you’re better off seeing some of my friends.

Katie at KB Boudoir. www.kbboudoir.com

Brianne at Satin Dauls Boudoir. www.satindaulsboudoir.com

Firas at Boudoir by FJ. www.boudoirbyfj.com

Let me know your thoughts in the comments!

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.

"I could never do a shoot like that!"

I see you.

Sitting over there on the fence.

Thinking to yourself, “Wow those women are all so beautiful BUT I could never do a shoot like that!”

Of course this session feels like a death sentence for whatever shred of confidence we have left after society’s expectations have battered us. Showing up in this capacity means sending us into a spiral of insecurities, highlighting all the worst parts of you as you stand in front of a stranger with flashing lights. Only to find yourself with a gallery full of images you can’t stand looking at; a reflection of our worst ideas of ourselves glaring at us unapologetically. You’re then left with the confirmation that your most terrible thoughts of yourself are true. Or worse, you are faced with new insecurities to carry with you.

Did I nail it? That’s exactly how you’ve imagined this experience going for you if you did take the plunge, right? 

It breaks my heart a little bit. What has society done to us to make us feel so horribly about ourselves? Or more specifically to be so afraid, literally terrified, of our bodies. 

I can tell you this with absolute certainty. When you show up in that body that carries you around throughout this life, you step into a world that denies the expectations society has forced you to believe. It is a powerful, yet vulnerable place to be which is why I handle my role with care and humility. As you step in front of my lens, I am there to see you. Not just with my eyes, not just with my camera. You are seen on a bigger and deeper level. I am a catalyst to your self discovery. I am a vessel that guides you through more than just photos, but on the journey towards shedding the weight of the insecurities that you’ve been carrying around with you. 

I can tell you with absolute certainty that the story your mind has made for you about this experience couldn’t be more wrong. But the only way to prove that voice wrong is to jump off the fence and show all the way up.

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

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.