#3 Holiday Season Self Portrait Boudoir session
Thank you for being here, whether you came here because of something you saw on Insta, were browsing my site or just authentically stumbled upon this, thanks for taking the time to read this.
I had done a little self portrait boudoir session earlier in the year, as a Valentine’s Day gift for some loved ones, and also to get a taste for myself what it feels like to have one of these sessions, and hopefully build some trust with my clients.
Now though, my skills have improved, I have some new equipment, I wanted a little confidence boost, I was home alone on Christmas, and ultimately it was just time to update my spicy pics. I decided to have a little boudoir sesh for myself with a vague idea in mind.
I have this cute little onesie that’s kinda cosy and Christmas-y and has a flap on the butt. I knew I wanted to capture my butt through the open flap. I also wanted incorporate my Christmas tree to help build holiday vibes and lean in into a “I’m all alone on Christmas, I wish you were here” story. I also knew I wanted to shoot in colour- crazy, I know.
The entire gallery was shot using film simulations, resulting in work that was only very lightly edited (culling, lowering the blacks) and images that looked great, straight out of the camera (SOOC). I wanted to keep things as simple as possible, knowing it was already going to be difficult to take pictures by myself, of myself, so I stuck to only one lens, my 35mm 1.4.
I’ve been trying to be more intentional with light in my photography, so I wanted to use it to sculpt my body and hide distractions. Keep in mind, none of this was in a professional studio, just my home.
This first image is to set up the story and environment. My camera was on the floor, lens angled up with some PS5 games, which created this blurred reflection at the bottom of the image. It was a cool effect, so rather than try to keep it out of frame, I actually shifted things to get a bit more of it in.
I had to connect my camera to my phone, in order to be able to control the settings and trigger the shutter remotely. You might see my phone in some of these images, but rather than use AI to remove it, I just composed the image so that it wouldn’t be a focal point and/or something you hopefully don’t notice. Yes, I could use a timer, but unfortunately it kept playing up and not working properly for me.
I love the warm lights on the Christmas tree, the halation around the lights is due to my diffusion filter on my lens.
My light was placed in front and to the right of the camera, you can see the result of it on my hands and the presents.
This one is for the people who love hands. And bokeh bubbles!
I really enjoy incorporating “anonymous” images in my boudoir sets, ones where my model’s face is not in the frame. It allows our eyes to wander and to allow focal points in other places.
Again you see the effect of the PS5 games in the lower portion of the image.
Here’s where I brought my original idea to life with the cheeky (pun intended) butt flap.
I’ve recently started learning to play the piano, I used my keyboard to not only hold the camera but also help create a bit of a frame, and I looooved the way the image is reflected off the keys.
I played around with different placement of my light, in the end, I decided I liked how it was giving more power to the lamp in the background, rather than aiming it at me. The available natural light (winter solstice sun setting at like 4pm) was more than enough. With my body correctly exposed (again, pun intended) it made the background under exposed, appearing darker. This creates more negative space, minimizes distractions and turned my bedroom into a studio.
It was time to shake up the camera position and orientation, give the people some images that fit nicely on the cellphone.
Keeping in mind who these photos were primarily for, I captured this set through their gaze… and that meant a pose capturing the feeling of yearning.
I really loved the drama of the shadow on my face and the shape of my jawline.
At this point I’d shifted a little closer and was out of the natural light, so I moved my light to give me some side lighting, to create some shape and definition in my body.
This is the final image that I’ll share here, this time moving the light again to create focus on my hands and add my definition to those V lines.
I gotta say I’m not someone who’s overly confident in their body; there are many things I would change if I could. But also… I LOVE the way the person looks in these pictures. And it’s me! It’s really wild to see yourself in this way. Through a “different lens,” if you will. Intentionally carving your body shape through light and shadow, highlighting the parts you love. Seeing yourself look like a model. It’s amazing.
Do yourself a favour, book a boudoir session today. Use this coupon code to get 25% off an hour boudie session, coupon is limited quantity:
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