Tips to ROCK Your Boudoir Session | Victoria BC Boudoir Studio
Tips to ROCK Your Boudoir Session
& get the most out of your experience
You’ve booked your boudoir session, and you’re ready to do the damn thing! As a professional boudoir photographer who has shot over a thousand clients, as well as someone who JUST did their own boudoir session a couple of months ago - here are my tips on how to rock your own boudoir session so you can get the most out of your experience.
Don’t fight the nerves!
There’s a 99.9999% chance you’re gonna be nervous leading up to your session. This is NORMAL and part of the process! Don’t spend more energy guilting yourself over being nervous, or getting more nervous because you’re nervous (that is a negative feedback loop you don’t need in your life). Just let those nerves be! Let them tell you what they are there to tell you: that you are excited (nerves and excitement are physiologically almost identical), and that you are doing something outside of your comfort zone that is new and wonderful! Breathe, relax, and lean into the excitement you are feeling around your session.
2. Find ways to connect with your body leading up to your session
Boudoir sessions are a wonderful mind-body connector, but you can even deepen that experience on your shoot day by doing some work before your session. Take yoga classes, book a massage, do a dance class, find ways to connect with your body that make you feel good doing them. A boudoir session should be all about celebrating yourself – and you can really elevate that experience by prioritizing ways to connect with your body that bring you joy!
3. Pick outfits that make you FEEL good
I have something controversial to tell you. I know this might come as a surprise, but what you wear to your boudoir session is ultimately not that important. THERE I SAID IT.
But it’s really not. So, you know when you’re nervous about something, and your brain picks ONE thing to obsess over and fixate on? For boudoir shoots, it tends to be your outfits. And I’ve seen a lot of people’s anxiety fixate on what they wear. But ultimately, if you picked a professional trustworthy photographer, it doesn’t matter what you wear. We want you to FEEL good in what you wear, because if you FEEL good in what you wear, you’re gonna look good. You can honestly wear anything to your session. Ratty old t-shirt? Yup. A robe? Yup. Bra and panty? Yup. Super expensive lingerie? Sure! Dusty ol lingerie that’s been sitting in the back of your dresser for 5-10 years that you never get to wear but hey you finally have an excuse to wear it? THAT WORKS TOO. Or the classic: if you don’t know what to wear… don’t wear anything at all!
Just focusing on finding things that make you feel good in them, that FIT right. It’s better to have outfits that are slightly too big than slightly too small. We a’int shoving ourselves into clothes that are too small anymore. It’s 2023. We aren’t meant to fit clothes, clothes are meant to fit us.
4. Moisturize, moisturize, and then moisturize some more
You want your skin to glow and catch the light and look luxuriously soft in camera? It’s time to whip out that body butter, baby. This is also a great opportunity to connect more with your bod and create a lil ritual around moisturizing your skin. Spend time indulging in this process, being intentional, and thinking lots of good grateful thoughts around your bod while you lather up that moisturizer.
5. Spend some time the day before your session grounding into your body and the experience
Stretch lots, dance in your session outfits, moisturize, breathe, meditate, and maybe even journal about your upcoming session. The more time you can spend letting those nerves out through intentional movement practices, the better set you will be the day of your session. Movement is SUCH a great way to work out those anxieties, and let yourself feel into that excitement leading up to shoot day.
6. EAT before your session!
Posing may look effortless, delicate, and natural. But it a’int. Posing takes work, there’s a lot more arching and holding mildly-uncomfortable positions than you think. And we want you to be prepared! Your body is a beautiful fire that deserves to burn bright, and food is the fuel that will help you do just that! We highly recommend having a nice high-protein breakfast the morning of your session. Like we said before, it’s 2023 and we are so past starving ourselves because we’re worried about bloating. NOPE. We are here to celebrate the best version of yourself – and that version requires some sustenance. If you aren’t much of an eater in the mornings, pack a high protein snack for later in the morning once you’re in the hair and makeup chair.
7. Last but not least - trust your photographer and listen to any prep guides they may have!
If you’ve booked with a professional and reputable photographer that you trust, now is the time to just lean into that trust and know that they have got you, boo. If they have prep guides, follow the advice they give. Let them lead you through this experience! We are here for YOU!
