About a year into my boudoir photography business, I was being asked to teach from all over, to host workshops, to speak at events, and so I went with it. I taught my first boudoir workshop in Atlanta, GA in 2015. Here we are almost five years later, and I’ve traveled across the country to speak, teach and inspire. But how did I get here? I’ll tell you one thing—it wasn’t easy. If it were easy, everyone would be doing it.
So, you would like to branch out into the boudoir market and are wondering how to get started? Here are some tips and observations from what I have learned over the years that might help you achieve your goal. In many ways, I had to unlearn some things in order to shoot intimate images that clients enjoyed, and I wanted to share a few of those with you here.
I’m not going to give you 10 poses to memorize, or give you different posing ideas for different body types. While these kinds of tips are certainly helpful in expanding your posing repertoire, they don’t help you understand how to flatter the female body. Instead, I’m going to give you my favorite posing tweaks to help you learn to think critically about ways to make any body look longer, curvier, and more feminine.
I have worked on fine-art nudes for the past two years. Not because we have a huge demand for it from clients, but because Alissa and I find it challenging and rewarding. This year, we will be introducing this type of portrait to our wedding clients. How will it go over? That has yet to be seen. I am hopeful that instead of the boudoir lingerie shots that are typical, this niche will allow us to yet again stand out from our competitors. Here are some tips for finding your niche in the beauty market.
Boudoir photography makes a great gift for a loved one on the wedding day or a stocking stuffer on Christmas Day, but to me, boudoir photography is much more than that. It is not just about the end product, but more about the experience each client receives along with their beautiful images.
When I found my new studio, I fell in love. It has huge factory windows on the second floor that give me privacy. I have north-, south- and west-facing windows. As we all know, being a professional means delivering a consistent product. When I moved into my studio, I found myself using only natural light because it is so beautiful. I know what time of day and quality of light I need for any photo my clients might pick out as a favorite. But what happens when you have a dark, dreary day, and your client wants that hard-light look?
It sounds like every man’s dream job: Stand around all day shooting beautiful women in skimpy lingerie as they throw bundles of cash at you. Let me tell you firsthand that there is a tremendous amount of stress when one ventures into this alleged dream job. In this article, I cover tips, tricks and traps of boudoir, with a focus on male boudoir photographers.
When you hear the term family photos, you know what family photos are; when you hear the term business headshot, you know what a business headshot is; and when you hear the term newborn pictures, you know exactly what that is. Two genres that are harder to pin down because they are always evolving are boudoir and glamour. This month, we look at my idea of glamour photography and some of the ways I shoot it.
I remember my first boudoir client. I had previously photographed her wedding, and she wanted to do a shoot for her husband as an anniversary gift. My studio was awkwardly laid out, and it had almost no natural window light, but I did my best to create beautiful images.
There has always been disagreement on the definition of glamour photography. While art is subjective, the modern-day definition that’s most embraced goes something like this: The focus of glamour is on the model, the subject, with a strong sensual tone and aesthetic.