Behind the Boudoir Photo Shoot at Pixies Photography (My Amazing Experience!)

Yes, I did this. A boudoir photo shoot.

Up until a few weeks ago, I’d say I had given a passing thought or two to doing a boudoir photo shoot, just for fun and for myself, especially after seeing one Groupon deal after another for local sessions.

But I have never gotten close to actually doing one for about a dozen reasons – not having the perfect body, not having the perfect features, not knowing what I’d wear or do to my hair and makeup, not knowing whether to do it alone or who I’d invite to do a session with me, worrying what people and the photographers would think of me (Would I feel like a sexual object? Isn’t this just for size 0 models? Is this really something moms can do, especially busy, working moms who barely get to the gym like me?), etc. etc. etc.

Then I saw an invite for local bloggers to do a free mini-session together at Pixies Photography in Chaska – for fun, for confidence, and to share our experiences on our blogs.

So along with several other moms, I took a chance and signed up. I figured if other newbies-to-this-kind-of-thing were going to say yes, I certainly could too…at least to see what it’s like – and share all the dirty details with you!

The Experience

Four other bloggers and I got together on a weekday evening at Pixies and were warmly greeted by Stephanie and Kelly, the owners/photographers, and Kate-Madonna Hindes, the fellow blogger who had coordinated this opportunity for us. Kate-Madonna’s motivation for putting this event is nothing short of amazing – Kate is a beautiful young woman who has gone through cancer multiple times, but still was facing additional risk for cancer, so she wanted to capture her body (cancer scars and all) with a professional photo shoot. She did a shoot a few months ago at Pixies and was so happy with her experience that she wanted other bloggers to experience it as well and write about it!

This was the first time any of us had done this, and we were all nervous…but Stephanie and Kelly were so supportive of us and made us all feel beautiful, and we were soon at ease and laughing together (of course it helped that they offered us snacks and wine!).

We chatted a bit and toured the place. The studio is in a quiet office building, but is 100% private with curtains on all the windows. The dressing room had lingerie, shoes, accessories, and two salon chairs where Stephanie and Kelly do your hair and makeup themselves.

There were so many things to choose from to wear, and in all sizes! Pictures of women of all sizes adorned the room, and all of them looked fabulous, whether they were a size 2 or a size 20.

They recommend bringing something you feel beautiful and comfortable in, so I had brought some things of my own, but nothing compared with the choices here. I had a hard time deciding but finally picked out a cute black and pink teddy with stockings and matching pink heeled shoes.

The five of us got all dolled up together while laughing and exchanging “oohs” and “aaahhs” at each other’s amazing transformations from “already beautiful” to “WOW.” I was so happy that I knew some of the other bloggers, including Aimee from whyileftmyjob.com (and working together at Twin Cities Kids Club)!

When you’re doing a photo shoot wearing not much more than your underwear, it makes a HUGE difference to do it with one or more friends you know well and trust! We all were experiencing this together and all had different reasons for doing this – to boost our confidence, to celebrate a weight loss, and just to see just how FABulous we could really look for a camera.

After dressing, getting our hair curled, “poofed” and sprayed with LOTS of hair spray, and having makeup put on us (so that’s what fake eye lashes feel like!), I think the results were pretty amazing.

Stephanie and Kelly talked us through every step…including posing, so it couldn’t have been easier. Some things you’ll learn:

Your makeup needs to be bold so your features “pop” in the photos (no different than how stage actors have done it for centuries to bring out their own features)
You’ll feel weird and contorted with some of the poses but it won’t look that way

Everyone’s individual mini-sessions went so well. The backdrops, the lighting, and the photographers themselves couldn’t have been better. We all had such a good time. I arrived nervous but left confident and can say that I would definitely do this again! Maybe to celebrate a birthday or some other special occasion, or just for fun!

Want to give boudoir photography a try? My advice? DO IT. You won’t regret it. As Jamie from ToysintheDryer.com says, don’t wait until you lose the extra weight (Jamie looks great but hasn’t yet hit her goal weight), or until your baby is a bit older (Aimee just had a baby a few months ago!). Whatever excuse you may have, throw it in the garbage and call Pixies Photography.

If you need even more incentive, Pixies has a special just for you!

The Silver Package is only $149 with code Feb165 and you get:

Choice of wardrobe
Choice of set
Professional hair, make-up & lashes
Multiple guided poses
Approximately 50 proofs to choose from
Including a 11×17 12-month/6 photo calendar (a $155 value by itself!)

Pixies also has some tips for preparing: