So...did September even happen? It was pretty much a whirlwind for me. My first adventure found me in Jersey City, Brooklyn, and Time Square X 3 times in the span of 5 days while I hung out with some of the best people in the world. When I first found out about the Safehouse Workshop: NYC through the Babetown Collective (an amazing group of photographers on Facebook/internets) I knew that without a doubt I needed to get there. So, I contacted Babetown's fearless leader Lola Gilbert and I told her that I would do whatever I could do to come play in New York, so she hooked me up with a teaching job for the workshop.
I was beyond ecstatic and actually recall screaming the good news while I was in a hotel room in Vancouver in April! While I knew this week was going to be epic beyond measure, what I didn't expect was meeting SO MANY incredible, talented, passionate, and inspiring people from all over. The coolest thing about Babetown is that it is not specific to one genre of photography, so this workshop was unlike any I had attended before. We had instructors for headshots (#chadshots), self portraits, silhouettes, intimate male portraits, family portraits, maternity sessions, engagement, same sex couples and intimate storytelling, and plus size boudoir by yours truly. So, when I wasn't instructing I was able to partake in the other instructors' classes and at first I was like, "that's silly...I don't shoot X,Y,Z, so maybe I should just hang back"....but quickly I realized just how awesome it was to be a noob at different genres of photography. I'm not saying I know everything about boudoir, but if I'm teaching on the subject, I best be somewhat of a specialist on the topic....but I definitely was not a subject matter expert in the other genres. It was awesome to take little bits from each instructor and see how I can apply it to boudoir. In fact, I have noticed that my work since attending the Safehouse Workshop has been a bit more playful, intriguing and exciting...pulling from the inspiration of those amazing people I met in NYC.
While I am thankful for the opportunities that have come out of this workshop, I am mostly thankful for the amazing friendships that I have made in a relatively competitive industry. I have people I can message on FB, strike up a ZOOM chat, or just send random voice notes to in an effort to make mine and their days better. Since coming back from this Babetown workshop, I am already signed up to instruct at the next 2 Babetown workshops in Idaho and Maine in 2018 and I am so beyond blessed for these experiences. I am so incredibly excited to meet up with my buddies and help inspire and educate other photographers to do the things that make their soul happy.
On the last day, I was watching my new friend Jessica teaching her course on Self-Portraiture (while sitting in a copper tub, mind you) and I was moved to tears. It is such an honor to be able to see people speak with such passion about their lives. It made me happy to be surrounded by people who are just as motivated as I am to never settle for the status quo. The coolest thing was, that almost all of the instructors spoke about their journey to their niche in photography and what set them apart and it was the fact that they were able to see the good in the struggles of their lives. I like to reference it as turning their kryptonite into their superpower....because it's in their vulnerability of sharing themselves and their passion for working through "the mud" and sharing this with their communities that they have become successful and well known in their industry. It has nothing to do with their camera equipment, the amount of $$$ they bring in with their business, or how long they have been doing photography...it has everything to do with the fact that each instructor literally throws their whole being, heart, and soul into their work and into inspiring and helping others in the industry. I am beyond privileged to be part of this Babetown crew.
In addition to all the inspiration, photography, and creativity, there was A LOT of play time. We did a Facebook Live for the Babetown crew where we had to ask each other questions, but it really only resulted in Chad and I deciding we need to have our own podcast, we got lost LITERALLY every time we drove home from the studios (but in doing so had the privilege of seeing the NYC skyline and Time Square multiple times), I got to eat some chicken and waffles, I photographed my babely instructor friends (their shoots to come later!), and of course, we learned that maaaaybe you shouldn't host a mixer the night before the first day of teaching and instead, perhaps should leave it until the last night to avoid epic hangovers and regret.
I always say the sign of a good workshop is when I come home with laryngitis and a sore stomach from laughing so hard, and Babetown DEFINITELY delivered both of those! Is it April or May yet??? I will stop babbling now and inundate you with photos from the amazingness that was The Safehouse Workshop. If you are a photographer and want to get in on this amazingness, you can check out the other Safehouse Workshops here and come see me in Maine or Idaho (or both, heh heh heh).
Stephanie {Pittsburgh Travel Diaries} ~ International Boudoir Photographer
Every now and then you meet the people that are just....your people, you know? Well, little did I know when I went to a Boudoir Retreat in San Fransisco that I would meet 2 of my kindred spirits. I have already introduced you to Paige, so today I will be sharing the other bad ass babe with you, but I want to start with our initial in person meeting because it's super cute. So, I had arrived to Denise Birdsong's Modern Love studio for my photoshoot the same day that Stephanie and Paige were also having their sessions done, so I had quickly met Paige while she was in makeup and Stephanie was just wrapping up her session when she walked past me in the waiting area. All I heard was "Omigodiloveyourposingguidehiiiiiiiiii" and with a little hand wave she disappeared. We joke that her fangirling over me was one of the funniest moments we shared together and I know I will definitely never forget it. Throughout the weekend, however, Stephanie, Paige and I just bonded with each other. We had similar sense of humour, we vibed with each others' energy, and we managed to get our poor male model to wear nothing but a hand towel (#handtowelheroes). We were so sad when the weekend came to an end and as soon as we got home we started making plans for our next meet up and before you know it, August was here and we all met at Stephanie's house for a few days. We had such an incredible time hanging out, drinking wine, photographing models and then photographing each other (oh! and they took me to Target, yay!) We laughed until our tums hurt, we cried about our life experiences and we helped build each other up. This is what I love about #communityovercompetition in photography. When you find your people, hang onto them and hold them tight because entrepreneurship is lonely as fuck and you will need some trustworthy peeps in your corner when you need to have a bit of a breakdown. So, for Stephanie's shoot we decided to channel more of a retro vibe and styling, thanks to Dessa Marie Artistry, and while we started in her studio, I wasn't about to leave her gorgeous character home without shooting in it, so we pulled together a few amazing looks for there as well. So, without further adieu, here is Miss Stephanie in all her beauty, glory, and magnificance. I love her sooooo much.
"I had the privilege of meeting Teri at a workshop and was instantly attracted to her fizzy fuzzy bubbly personality. I’ve followed her work and each and every time, I have found myself impressed if not in total awe. Her work is incredibly sexy and raw. She was so much fun to be with that I could see her models not even spending a moment in their heads. By the close of the workshop we had made plans to collaborate further.
It is quite the faux pas as a boudoir photographer to have not put yourself in your clients shoes. Just like my own clients, my fears and my insecurities about my body run deep. My session with Teri wasn’t about fear or insecurity. It felt an awful lot like Teri herself, fizzy fuzzy and bubbly.When I hold the finished product in my hand,I literally can’t even :)I look at these photos and I can hardly believe it is me!
I was there, I remember getting all dolled up, I remember posing but what I don’t remember is any concern about my body. Not a fear about how I looked or most importantly, as a photographer; not a worry about the actual photograph. There wasn’t any time to worry about my body because I was already having too much fun. Teri’s energy and direction easily overrode my insecurities.
Now I get to look at images of myself and see sexy and raw. It isn’t just something reserved for someone else. That feeling, that experience and the pride is now mine as well. And I can’t stop staring!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Dayum, Teri.
But I Don't Want To Have Babies (Can I Still Love My Tummy?) ~ Winnipeg Empowerment Photography
As a photographer that has the privilege of photographing women on a weekly basis, I get to hear about the insecurities, the concerns and the way they feel about their bodies. I'm also a trend/statistic geek, so I enjoy keeping a mental tab on the parts of the body that women detest the most. I don't think it will surprise anyone to hear that the majority of women loathe their stomachs. It doesn't matter what size a woman is, the dreaded tum is the body part that gets the most hate from the most amount of people....unless they are carrying a baby. I have had the opportunity to photograph countless maternity sessions in my time, and women can hardly wait to show me their tums....cooing and awwing over how much they love this bump (which I get because the bump symbolizes what is INSIDE and of course, babies are awesome!). But as soon as the baby is born, moms and women are quick to cover up, squish and rage on their beautiful stomachs. And I get it, change is not easy. You go from being one size, to growing a baby, to loose skin, stretch marks, and an "transformed body" which you maybe weren't prepared for....but what stumps me, is the celebration of all tummies when it is for someone else (the baby), but a shaming of tummies when it's for the individual (because God forbid a woman love her tum [insert eye roll] and you may be the type of person that wants to start in with how concerned you are for my health and the health of other chubs, so if that's you, then kindly remove yourself from following my blog, my fb, and maybe just get a life in general...if that's not you, then YAY! You are an awesome human!)
And then, there are those of us that will never experience the joy of childbirth and seeing our tummies expand because of growing a human being...does this make me less valuable? I don't think so...I pay my taxes, empower women, am nice to humans, and do my part for the environment...I think myself and my tum are okay! But when women come in for their consult they talk about wanting to cover up their tummies...REGARDLESS OF WHAT THEIR TUM LOOKS LIKE!!! This drives me crazy, because first of all, when you are naked at home you will see the truth...you will see your tum as it is: this could be rolly, soft, tight, ab-ed(?), squishy, marked up, loose, swollen, flat, etc. so wouldn't it make more sense to get comfortable with what your tum looks like so that it's not "shocking", as many women have apologized to me about (which btw, bodies aren't shocking to me!)
So, when I was in Pittsburgh, I enlisted the help of my friend Paige Rynberg of Fearlessly You Boudoir to create what we affectionately nicknamed TACO-TERNITY photos. I don't have a blessed baby in my tum (and never want to), but I have a fat tum that is the result of probably too much sitting at my desk + Skip the Dishes food + genes.
Just because I didn't get impregnated with a human being does not make my body any less valuable to the world....just because I choose not to have a growing baby in my womb doesn't mean I can't celebrate the tummy that I do have, that allows me to go about my day empowering women left, right and center. I just think we need to be more okay in celebrating our bodies at all junctures of our lives and not just when we create life, because whether or not we choose to, it's just not in the cards for some of us and to think that we can't have celebratory photoshoots with our tums is kind of silly, don't you think?
Essentially, what I'm saying, is that there ain't no shame in the tum game regardless of what your tum looks like. It's there, it's keeping you alive, it adds about a foot to your height, it's a nice soft spot for cuddles, and most importantly, it's JUST a tum. YOU are more than just a tum. I'm not saying you have to do a taco-ternity shoot, of course, but you should be allowed to document and show off the body that you have right now because it is keeping you alive and providing you a vessel to move about the world affecting others in a (hopefully) positive way. If you are wanting and ready to celebrate your body as is, in all it's perfection, then hit me up with an email and let's document your amazing self!
Wild Thoughts {Editorial Session} ~ Winnipeg Boudoir Photographer
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Summer Daze {Editorial Session} ~ Winnipeg Boudoir Photography
model: Jade W.bodysuit + choker: Forever 21fur jacket: Yandy.comice cream: Scoopsrollerskates: Ebay
Editorial sessions are now available for repeat clients! You can check out the pricing & details here.