Bridal Boudoir

I'm coming back from my bad blogger hiatus with a post on why bridal boudoir is a good idea. I know I already touched on some of my feelings about boudoir in this post. Boudoir gets a bad name - some photographers post about it on Craigslist looking to get young girls scantily clad, and nobody leaves the shoot happy except for a creepy photographer. Some photographers don't know much about posing for boudoir, and bad camera angles or inappropriate poses leave a woman feeling much less confident and maybe a little bit trashy. Sometimes when a bride hears boudoir, she automatically thinks, "No way, my fiance will not be needing any naked pictures of me, thankyouverymuch."

But boudoir is SO much more than naked pictures. Really, nudity is totally optional and is not pushed on anyone. And I think that they should never be trashy. Boudoir should be a great experience all around - your photographer should have fun and know what they're doing and in return you will have fun and get some romantically sexy images that leave you feeling like a supermodel, no matter your body type.

And why do I think brides especially should have a boudoir shoot? I'm not sure where to start organizing my thoughts, so I guess I'll start with some reasons I've heard for brides to NOT have a boudoir shoot and then I'll counter them.

No way! I hate my body! I'm not a size two, why would he want pics of me?

Let me tell you a little secret: he loves your body. He wants to see it as often as possible and in as little as possible. A lot of brides work out before the wedding and are in some of the best shape of their lives - why not show that off? It's not only a gift to him, but also preserves how hard you've been working! And here's a neat use for a boudoir album: if he's pestering you to wear a cute little nightie some day and you just aren't feeling it, you can slyly hand him the boudoir album and say, "Remember page 7?" Then he'll be able to look at you in a nightie and you can sit in your sweatpants with your legs not shaved - perfect!

I don't have time before my wedding to get everything done, I can't squeeze in an extra shoot!

Taking this hour or two for yourself before your wedding can actually be a great way to de-stress. Schedule a shoot the same day as a girlfriend (you'll both get a discount) and you can have a relaxing girls day. Or you can do it by yourself and just have time to feel like a supermodel and unwind a bit. It'll take your mind off of some of the stress, and then seeing your sexy self in the pictures afterwards can boost your pre-wedding energy. Orrrrrrr (and this is my favorite) you can schedule a boudoir party and have the perfect groom's gift AND the perfect bachelorette party! If you'd like more info about the parties, check out my boudoir website.

You're on location and my apartment is tiny and not gorgeous.

I do prefer to be on location but am able to shoot in my small "home studio" (ok, it's a spare bedroom but it works really well!). Your home does not have to have damask furniture and sexy striped walls like a Victoria's Secret catalog to be perfect for a shoot. We can also talk about a hotel room for your shoot - I have a few recommendations, and some special rates with a great downtown hotel.

I just don't want to spend the money.

Ok, I really don't have much of a counter for that since I'm not gonna provide everything for free. I will say this though: spending money on a boudoir session is NOT something that you or your fiance/husband will regret. I still feel new confidence when I look at my Coquette pictures by Kelley Photo & Design. And my husband definitely still loves them. It was worth skipping out on an oil change and turning down a few dinner invitations. This is not a wedding gift that will break, will go out of style, or will be put aside and forgotten about.

And here is a picture that I haven't gotten to share yet. Not a bride (since I can't share those until after some weddings), but still beautiful!