Miss A. was another of my brilliant Regina boudy babes and my last shoot of 2015! We had an incredible time together and Miss A was full of energy, excitement and brought ALL the lingerie to her session! She had a surprising amount of confidence for someone who was doing a boudoir session for the first time and I found out later, that she followed the ol' adage of "fake it 'til ya make it"! Regardless, she jumped into her session full force and I was not aware of the huge difference this session made for Miss A's confidence in herself. For someone as young as she is, she is very much an old soul who eloquently shared her feelings about her session with me.
"In all my wildest dreams i could never see myself doing something as crazy and unexpected as a boudoir shoot. I came across your images on Facebook, and could not believe how beautiful all the different shapes and colours of girls you were able to capture. I was mesmerized. When i dug deeper into your Facebook wall, i noticed you were coming to Regina soon and my excitement grew, i knew instantly that you were the one for me (kind of like seeing that pair of shoes in the store window, and knowing you just had to have them).. after further discussing with my partner (who of course was ALL FOR IT), i took the plunge and put my deposit down. Instantly after doing so i had this incredibly nervous feeling. I had just signed up to stand butt naked in front of a stranger (WHO AM I, and WHAT had i done with Alii.... was all i could think).. as time passed, i followed your FB and kept seeing all the gloriously pictures. I kept thinking to myself that there was no way mine could turn out as good as those ones.
The morning of the shoot, I went and got my hair and make up done (by Amanda Gibson, Pure Beauty Regina) and instantly felt pretty (she did an amazing job).... however, i only got more nervous as i knew it was show time soon. When i arrived, Terri... instantly made me feel comfortable. I knew right away I had made the right choice in asking you to be apart of something that would change my outlook on myself... forever.
I dove into the shoot as if I wasn't nervous.. I changed in front of Teri, noting I would soon be posing naked (minus we'll get the naked out of the way early on)... and the shoot came natural. Teri helped me with my horrible "open mouth" poses... and my not so arched back... in the end I was empowered and felt so comfortable!!
As I left, I was excited and nervous all at the same time. I knew their was no way my images would turn out like the ones I seen on her FB. I patiently waited for the pictures... UNTIL... I seen them. My goodness, I was not looking at myself when I first glanced through the pictures. Some, I instantly fell in love with, and till today I still love them.
Getting to show my significant other pictures that I called myself beautiful in was a whole new experience for me. Together, him and I picked 60 favourite pictures, eventually narrowing them down to 40 (which was extremely difficult.. which is so unlikely for me... I'm lucky if I usually like half of a picture of myself).... SOOO, after this, I have nothing left to say but thank you. Teri was able to make me see myself as no other had, I hold my head high, and feel more confident in my daily activities. I no long want to be like the girls I see on tv, rather, I am so extremely content with the beautiful I have created all on my own."
Women comparing themselves to others on social media, TV, or anywhere is a huge waste of energy when we could spend that time loving and embracing the uniqueness that makes each of use individually beautiful. Acknowledging another woman's beauty does not take away from your own and I think this is an important thing people need to understand. We need to stop trying to achieve J Lo's ass, Kendell Jenner's lips, and other body parts that A) are not meant to be ours or we would have them and B) are probably fake. Dr. Seuss said it best when he said:“Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.”
And Miss A, I am extremely proud that you have come to realize the beauty and strength that comes from owning and appreciating your youest you!
She Is Strong ~ Regina boudoir photography
Miss N and I go waaaaaay back to when I used to live in Regina, but we connected on a deeper level because she had relatives from my hometown! What are the chances? Anyhow, I have done photos for her on numerous occasions, but ever since I have known her I have been immensely impressed by her strength and resilience. She is not one to back down easily (which might be why loves husky dogs...she can relate to them), she is always strengthening herself, whether it be physically, mentally, or creatively.
When we first met, I think her "thing" at the time was triathalons, which took so much dedication and more recently she has lost herself in dance. Not only does she professionally dance herself, but she also teaches clients in Regina. More than that, though, she has found yet another outlet for her soul.
Miss N is one of those girls, that if you looked at her you would say she has the "perfect body", "gorgeous hair", etc. but she has endured so much more than just her kick ass looks and her strength comes from a place deeper than her tightly toned muscles.
The past year hasn't been the best too Miss N, but it really hasn't slowed her down. In fact, she has used it to fuel her passions and her dreams and is moving on and moving forward.
The type of stuff that has plagued Miss N's life is the type of shit that happens to a lot of people and while I don't need to share the details of her personal life, I can tell you that it doesn't matter WHAT the scenario is, but if it drags you down, makes you feel like shit, and puts you in a dark place, it is not a place that you should dwell. It's never easy to get out of what we know for fear of what other people will think, it's comfortable, it has become the new "normal", whatever, but you need to take a chapter from Miss N's book and move into the light. Shitty job? Start planning your escape! Horrible relationship that is not doing either of you any good? Get the f* out! (ps. it's not love if either of you are suffering internally) No money? What are you doing to change? You get what I am saying.
Move on, and don't look back.