“This sounds awesome! Just let me talk to my husband about this.”
“Wow! I really want to do a boudoir photoshoot! Just let me see if my work will allow me to take a day off.”
“Oh, I LOVE this! Just let me get back to you after I have prioritized a few things.”
Woman, what the hell?
You DO NOT need your husband/boyfriend or anyone else’s permission to feel sexy, empowered, and fulfilled. You only need to GIVE YOURSELF THE PERMISSION to feel full. To feel beautiful. To do something for yourself. My Toronto boudoir photography studio is an all-female, safe, body positive and sex positive space. There is nothing you need to be afraid of when you come in for your magazine-style boudoir photography session in my studio. If you still feel like you need your partner’s permission? Use this an excuse not to wiggle out of the shoot but to actually DO IT and then gift these saucy photos of yourself in an album to them!
Are you going to tell me that you have NEVER taken a personal day from work or made a “sick day” excuse to do something that needs done? If you have never taken a personal day, YOU ARE SO DUE FOR ONE! And if you have made up an excuse to get out of work, why would you not do it again to come in for a day that’s dedicated to celebrating YOU and is entirely focused on you? Boudoir photography is all about you and you can rest assured that this experience in my Toronto boudoir photography studio is the best experience you will ever have.
So you’re saying that the wellbeing of your own self is not a priority for you? We need to change that. We need this fixed. Because you cannot give to others what you refuse to have for yourself: A little investment to love yourself and to document exactly where you are in your life will go a long, long way into how you see other things and other people in your life. I will be there along with my all-female team to guide you and create the best boudoir photoshoot ever!
Honestly, I am so tired of women making these excuses and feeling guilty. You are not splurging on an overpriced handbag that has a lifespan of maybe a couple of years. You are giving yourself the GIFT of pictures of yourself for how you want to remember yourself and be remembered.
Photos are a forever gift and that’s why I treat your photoshoot no less than a wedding day photoshoot.
This is an event, a CELEBRATION of your life.
And you are ALLOWED to be a part of your own celebration.
"My 20s were about my career, my 30s were about my kids, and my 40s are going to be about me."
This beautiful woman came to my Toronto Boudoir Studio all the way from Vancouver, BC to do her Boudoir photoshoot. Among other things, she wanted to mark her 40th Birthday, a milestone birthday, which she has dedicated towards self-love and self-care. I would like you to read the following or watch the video where she tells her story in her own words. I would like to warn you that her story contains elements of a traumatized childhood brought on by sexual abuse, arranged marriage, and forced cultural conservatism. I hope you will find it in your heart to watch this story and fine hope and inspiration from how Nasra beat all odds and became this strong, independent, successful woman.
“My name is Nasra and I’m 40 years old.
I’m a single mom of two kids and I live in Vancouver, BC. I’m an IT consultant.
I’ve been very bitter about my upbringing and my marriage. Stories that I was told growing up about what it means to be a woman.
The first thing was that I would be protected by the men in my life. Primarily things like hijab, I was forced to wear hijab when I was 13. And I was definitely raised to be a modest Muslim Pakistani girl.
All of that was irrelevant because I was molested by 8 different people growing up.
From the time I was 4 till I was 16. And all of these people were the people that I knew. Some of them family members. One of them went to prison for a couple of years for what he did. And so, to me, you know, that protection was never there.
I was groomed to be a housewife.
I was not allowed to go away for university. I could only attend university if I paid for it myself, which was hard because I was not allowed to work. And I could only do it if it didn’t get in the way of me getting married.
So halfway through my degree, which I ended up going to my local university, even though I had opportunities to attend great universities like U of T, I got married to a man who had an engineering degree from the US. And he ticked all the boxes that he would make a great provider. And 17 years into the marriage, he never had an engineering job. For the first 10 years he didn’t work at all or had odd jobs. During that time, my career took off and the more I got promoted, the more he felt insecure about himself and the more insecure he felt, the more he put me down. So those last few years the gap had become so huge that it became unbearable.
Two years ago I decided to buy my own house and move out with my kids. And ever since I’ve done that, my life has improved by leaps and bounds.
And right now I feel free, I feel empowered, I feel like I’ve never felt better.
So this photoshoot was definitely a culmination of all those feelings.
When I first saw the proofs right after our session I was very critical of myself, like I always am, Like, you know, I wish I had lost a few more pounds before I had the shoot. I was very critical. But now, after, you know, a couple of weeks has passed looking at the photos now I’m like, “I look pretty good!” Being really analytical after I became single again I was like I need to look really good if I wanna have a chance finding love again. I had this really high bar that I had set for myself.
Looking at those photos I think I feel like I’ve met my bar.
I’ve lost 50 pounds over the last 5 years. I’ve been really into health and exercise and that shows in those photos.
I feel triumphant.
When I was young, I had no idea that I had a great body. Now that I have dated a few men, they’ve all told me that, “you have great legs!” How come I didn’t know I had great legs when I was young? When I could’ve, you know — it took away so much of my power. And you may think like, “you’re only validated when a man thinks you’re hot?”
Well, no.
(Sexual confidence) gives you confidence in all areas.
When you are young, that sexual power is very powerful. And to be stripped of that — That’s what patriarchy’s goal is, to strip women from that power from a very young age. So, yes, I’m bitter that I was not able to choose when I could have when I was younger.
I’m very hesitant to spend money on myself.
And for the last few months I have been telling myself that hey that I’ve met all my financial goals. I had a 20 year plan. You know, I have a house, I have a healthy RRSP fund, I have RESPs for my kids, I basically bought a house for my ex so that my kids have a nice place in the same neighbourhood to go to when they are with their dad.
So I checked off all those goals.
And now, it’s time for me.
So, my 20s were about my career, my 30s were about my kids, and my 40s are gonna be about me.”
Once you have booked your session, you will receive three beautiful e-books to help you prepare and select the right wardrobe for your shoot. But use this article as a supplement to my e-books to pack your suitcase to bring into the studio!
1. Crop Top
You have seen these pretty beauties all over in the mall this summer… but GODDAMN, you dread buying these because what if you can’t pull it off?!
ACTUALLY, these seemingly-skimpy puppies work on every body type if styled right. And they are hot AF for a boudoir photoshoot!
Pair them with high-waisted lace undies or jeans, or leave your bare midriff for my camera — so many ways to (and excuses ;)) to grab these from the rack and bring it over to my Toronto boudoir studio for your sexy photoshoot!
2. YOUR FAVOURITE OLD SWEATSHIRT
No, ma’am. This is not a drill.
Bring your most comfy sweatshirt over to my studio and let me throw you on my chaise chair set and watch your true, inner beauty COME ALIVE!
My love, I won’t even have to pose you because you will be in your element. You will be surprised that what you thought of as a ratty old sweatshirt you wear on late night weekends when binge-watching Netflix with a tub of ice cream can become a super-hot, super-cute part of the images you will LOVE forever.
3. JEANS
When I will take a high-angle shot of you teasingly opening your fly button, HOT DAYUM, GIRL! These plain, blue staples won’t remain plain, blue staples anymore!
With a sexy bra or bralet, these every-day skinnies will really bring out the hottest of you.
White, black, red, mustard, maroon, and olive green bras go really well with a pair of bright or dusty navy blue jeans. Got a pair of sexy ripped jeans? ALL THE BETTER!
4. ONESIE
Yep!
That sexy one piece you picked up from the mall but have NOOO IDEA what to do with it can be your best friend for a boudoir photoshoot!
Blacks, reds, pinks, blues, reds, sleeveless, full sleeves, high neck, low-cut, you name it — they come in all the colors and all the styles!
Also great for those of you who are a bit conscious of their muffin top like me, these gorgeous pieces keep everything in place and give you a beautiful, natural shape to show off!
These also make for great butt shots!
Reminds me of Ricky Martin’s Shake Your Bon Bon!
5. YOUR FAVOURITE SCARF
That impulse-purchase on your last vacation where you bought a delicate scarf from a local vendor might be the most beautiful part of your wardrobe.
Paired with your birthday suit, it can really bring character to your images and add the sweetest, softest romantic touch to your forever Designer Album story.
Haven’t got anyone who you could give these images to to show what a fabulous woman they have in their lives?
Okay, then how about doing this photoshoot to REMIND YOURSELF about what a FABULOUS woman you are?
Do this photoshoot so you feel EMPOWERED.
Do this photoshoot so you START LOVING YOURSELF AGAIN.
Do this photoshoot so you can HAVE CONTROL OVER HOW YOU SEE YOURSELF.
I suffer from the photographer’s curse because, dear lord, I hardly ever like the pictures I see of myself from the phone cameras often taken by friends and family who love me. But I don’t let it trick me into thinking that I look bad.
Because I know that my social media images are not going in my LEGACY ALBUM or on the walls of my home and that my friends and family can’t possibly know the difference between the wrong angle and the right angle; the right light and the wrong light, the right distance and the wrong zoom… they aren’t paying attention to my hair flying in all directions or the food stuck between my teeth. They don’t know how to focus the lens on the right part of my features…
Don’t let these constant phone-tapped pictures take over your life. Let me show you what you really look like, you gorgeous woman!
BEAT THAT FEAR.
Take a leap of faith.
And I will be here, on the other side, to catch you and make you feel as wonderful as you deserve to feel by giving you the most beautiful picture you have ever seen of yourself.
Seriously. The answer is: You need to lose 0.00 lbs to have GREAT images of yourself.
If you find yourself saying, “I totally need to do a shoot but I need to cut down my last 5/10 lbs,”
THEN I WANT YOU TO STOP RIGHT NOW.
Do you think that the love your partner, parents, siblings, friends, family will increase or decrease based on a few extra pounds of love and life?
Nope.
They will love you just as much!
And get this — If you still feel bad about the 5/10/20lbs you feel like you need to work on, BY ALL MEANS keep working on your personal goals but keep this in mind:
After shooting 100s of women, I know EXACTLY how to shape, dress, pose, and light you to shave off what you need to for the pictures 😉 I’m not kidding! You will still look like yourself in real life when you are at your VERY BEST! So keep hitting the gym but do it because it’s a good habit and not because you think you are not ready for gorgeous photos right now.
Trust me, you are perfect right now.
And how about you do a shoot now to get in the mindset of loving yourself no matter what and another shoot when you have reached the health goal you have set up for yourself?
Oh, get over it, you beautiful woman! We live in the era of body-shaping undergarments like SPANX. To let you in a secret, I use these myself from time to time when I want to get into a particularly clingy dress 😉 We can put you in a nice babydoll or lacy leotard and underneath your skin-tone matching, confidence-boosting undies! Also, I know two amazing boss ladies who handcraft AMAZINGLY SEXY shape-wear (so much better than the plain nudes of SPANX) right here in Toronto. Head over to the following two sites to find a piece you love:
Mayana Geneviere— A line of sexy black lace shape-wear perfect for a photoshoot!
Ohhh Lulu — This woman makes CUSTOM lingerie! Like TAILORED lingerie! Let your imagination run WILD!
Mayana Geneviere’s sexy lace shape-wear
I CANNOT say this enough: Wardrobe makes all the difference in the world. This is the reason I do a full hour of video/phone consultation or an in-person fitting appointment before your shoot. And this is the reason I have designed THREE E-BOOKS which you will get when you confirm your session booking with me. The right wardrobe will help me put you in the poses you love regardless of your dress size.
Go to Victoria’s Secret and have them properly measure you (I have like 5 different sizes of bras! Only recently did I finally found out my right size and I have never looked better ;)) The right bra will give you the right perks and make you feel thirsty sexy!
You can bring an entire suitcase of wardrobe if you want and we can go through creating wardrobe for you. Maybe we will mix it up with something that i have in the studio and maybe it will give you an excuse to go shopping!
My answer is always: Exactly the way I pose every other woman.
My Toronto boudoir studio is home to women like you. My job is to photograph you exactly like that woman you saw on the billboard. Your photographs will be just as good as your photographer. It is MY job to make you photogenic.
