Miss S. was a beautiful angel brought to me for a fun shoot day, post Oklahoma City workshop. Not only was she incredibly confident in front of the camera, but had a smile that could light up the room (as you will see in the images below). We didn't have too much time to chat about her life, but I did find out that this babe kills it at cross-fit and loves to eat! The location we were provided for the fun day was a sweet artist's loft in OKC where we not only had access to an open space, but also to the artist's studio and I was deeply inspired to create images in there. At the time, I had just finished watching Dear White People and LOVE the cinematography with it's framing, color tones, and overall vibe, so I threw a bit of that into this session as well. Lastly, the few images of Miss S on the rug inspired me to get a sweet patterned rug for the studio! It's sessions like this that remind me that boudoir or intimate portraits aren't always about looking sexy, pretty, or sensual...sometimes it's just about existing, finding the light and looking like a piece of art. When it comes to designing your session, I want you to think beyond the boudoir, so to speak. Some of my favorite images involve small patches of light and blurred creations that capture movement and emotion.
Freedom Sessions ~ Winnipeg Boudoir Photographers
It was late august 2017 when I realized I had only ventured outside to shoot 3 times the entire summer and I felt crushed. I remember when I started photography and summer would roll around, I would be so grateful for the beautiful light and would shoot almost every night because I didn't want to "waste" the light...but last year, I didn't make it a priority and literally felt like I had wasted the light. Well, fast forward to March when I went to visit my friends in Florida and all of our sessions essentially took place outside. It was so refreshing to get outside, to play with the natural light, the landscapes and have my subjects interact with nature. I had forgotten how pure it was...how...free. So this summer, I am scheduling time to do limited night sessions with babes in flowing dresses to play and reconnect in nature. And now you know my selfish reason for these sessions, but there's another reason why they are so important to me.
PLAY.
It's not very often that we, as adults, play. Let go. Spin and jump and run with joy. Especially when a camera is on us. We have become such a society and culture focused on CREATING and PERFECTING moments instead of CAPTURING moments. Freedom Sessions are designed to capture you exploring, playing, breathing, laughing, and experiencing joy. We will capture movement. We will capture emotion. We will provide you with beautiful candid images that make you FEEL. So, lemme answer some of the questions surrounding these sessions!
What will you wear?We will provide the dresses for you to frolic around the forest/fields/beach (wherever we choose) and we have dresses all the way up to a size 5x! Every woman is worthy of experiencing nature, and more importantly being photographed. Hair & makeup doesn't come included with these sessions because they are more of the natural variety, but if you decide you want to glow for your session we can hook you up with Nicole or Kylie!
When will these occur?These sessions will occur towards sundown, starting at 7pm and last for about 30-45 minutes (depending on location). We want to take advantage of that beautiful golden sun in the evening and even if storms are rolling in, we will have some amazing clouds to photograph as well! You can check out our availability here (and book if you feel so inclined!)
How are these sessions different then fempowerment sessions?While the intent of empowerment is, of course, prevalent in both sessions, Freedom Sessions have a few differences. First, they are much shorter as mentioned above! Second, you get to wear clothes-WOOOO! Third, they are extremely limited (only 15!!)! Four, these are more fine art inspired and less about looking and being sexy. It's about existing, feeling, playing, and therefore the images will reflect this much more than our traditional fempowerment sessions. Sometimes your photos may not be in focus (like the one above) because it's about telling a story and capturing you....being free. During Fempowerment Sessions I provided specific instructions for posing to CREATE an image, whereas Freedom Sessions are designed to CAPTURE an image, so you will need to prepare yourself for letting go, feeling silly, and enjoy the freedom of playing.
How much are these sessions and what's included?Freedom Sessions are $275+tax and that covers my time & talent during and after the session. Images are NOT included in the session fee. After your session, you will receive a gallery 5-10 days later featuring 25-35 images from your shoot and upon seeing them you will be able to select a variety of methods to have your images finalized. You can check out our full Freedom Session pricing guide here!
So, that's the news, my friends! A fun new session to liberate you and help you reconnect with nature and yourself! If you want to play with me this summer, book your session here!
Both Sides of Her ~ Winnipeg Boudoir Photography
It's not uncommon for me to receive a number of emails leading up to a client's shoot, but Miss J and I corresponded quite frequently. Her, voicing her concerns about how she saw herself, how others saw her, how seeing herself this way would make her feel, should she wait until she lost weight, etc. etc and me, calming her nerves and advised her that her fears shouldn't be strong enough to stop her from doing something epic for herself.
The day of the shoot came and Miss J. soothed her nerves with some Baileys in coffee (hey, it's the holidays!) while my makeup artist Nicole did her hair and makeup. It was during this time, that Miss J and I realized just how much we were alike and loved being within each other's energy fields!
So, Miss J's fears were mostly twofold. First, she advised me, almost everyone knew her as smiley, loud, and happy...but she knows herself deeper than that and within that smiling shell, she houses a woman of strength, sexuality, and deep emotion. THIS was the Miss J she wanted me to capture. So, she took a chance on my Black Friday special (hence all the black and white images) and we made absolute magic in the studio that day. She entertained the parts of her that she had kept hidden from others and she gave me the go ahead to share that side of her with you. She let herself be vulnerable and within that space, we explored beauty in sadness, captured raw sexuality, and reintroduced this mother and wife to all aspects of her being.
There is nothing saying that you can't be all the things. Happy and smiling, while sexually charged and full of emotion. All of these adjectives only describe parts of a person, not their whole being and that is what I love about the challenge of my profession. I get to see ALL the parts of my boudy babes: physically & soulfully and while it's hard for someone women to confront those areas of themselves, it's almost a sense of relief when they realize there is no judgement and there is nothing wrong with being strong and powerful, but raw and emotional at the same time.
I wanted to start the year off with Miss J because I believe that she fully represents the women I see. She had every fear possible before coming to see me, yet she fought through the fear because she knew she needed to explore a side of her that doesn't get out as often as she might like. During her shoot she fully trusted me to do what I do best and let herself be guided by my direction. And after her shoot, when she finally saw the images, she fell in love with herself and all the parts she originally told me she was fearful of exposing. And, ladies and gents, THAT is why I do what I do.
"As a woman, I am many things. A mother, wife, friend, artist, business woman, daughter,...the list goes on. Endlessly. Also...I am extremely sexual. That usually raises a few eyebrows...and quite frankly...I love to raise eyebrows. But what an amazing thing! To be alive and embrace your sexuality without shame or fear of judgement. Teri was not only able to capture my dark, raw sensuality in a beautiful way...but the entire time I felt as though she was cheering me on, encouraging me to love my body with all its lumps and bumps, and channel my sexual ferocity and embrace that power I have as a woman! Own that shit!!! I look forward to shoots with her for decades to come!"~Miss J.~