Melinda is a fellow wedding industry friend, as she is an extremely talented florist. She and her family were visiting Jupiter Beach from New Jersey and decided they wanted to find a Jupiter Beach Family Photographer while in town. We decided to do the session at the gorgeous Admirals Cove Country Club. Bennett was just about the cutest baby and I had a blast photographing this gorgeous family!
Have you ever connected with someone the very instant you met them? This is what happened when I first met Taliah. We met when working together in a restaurant 15 years ago. She was someone that I stayed in contact with on social media, but I hadn't seen her much since those days. There has always been an energy about her that has caused me to gravitate toward her. She's been through a lot, but still maintains such a positive outlook on life. More than that, she maintains a positive outlook on people.
I had been craving a personal shoot. My blood needed something that made my veins feel alive. I knew that I wanted it to be boudoir focused and that I wanted to photograph a woman of color. Of course, Taliah popped in my mind. She lived in Atlanta and I happened to be traveling up there for a wedding. I reached out, nervously asked if she would be interested, and was delighted when she said,"Hell yeah!" I knew that we would create magic together.
I showed up to her house and she was finishing up her hair and makeup. As soon as I walked in, I was greeted with the warmest full-body hug. My whole being felt warm and welcome; she has that way about her. She has an infectious love and I wanted to convey that through these photographs. I wanted her to just "be" and stand before me. My job was to be still and listen to everything she had to tell me through her movements. I don't know if I did her justice, but it was my goal. I left this session with a feeling of wholeness and hope.
I love being a West Palm boudoir photographer, but I also love that it affords me to travel to people like this goddess.
Erin's Tallahassee boudoir session is still one of my favorites. She came into my home a little unsure of how the session would go. She, like every woman, has insecurities and doubts. This is honestly why I believe that every woman should do a boudoir session at some point in her life (if not multiple times). She showed up with her sister who ended up being her biggest cheerleader. It was such an encouraging and empowering session. It was three women constantly praising Erin and letting her know just how phenomenal she is. It was something that radiated so far beyond her beautiful face and elongated body.
People joke a lot about me having the best job in the world being that I get to photograph women on a regular basis. I truly believe my job is stellar, but I'm also realistic about the reasons women come to me to be photographed in this way. Some are in a beautiful and healthy relationship. Some women are going through changes with their body and want it documented. I have mothers come to me who are unsure of how they feel about their "new"shape. I have women experiencing divorces, breakups, engagements, marriages, babies, milestones, birthdays, and so much more. I have women who finish their session and tell me,"I've never felt beautiful before" or "That's me?!" How have you never seen yourself this way? The truth is you can be told this your entire life, by other people, and still not feel it or believe it.
IT'S MY JOB TO SHOW THESE WOMEN THEY ARE SO WORTH EVERYTHING WONDERFUL IN THIS WORLD.
If you follow me on Instagram you will notice that I love adding moving quotes to my images. I'm going to add empowering words to my boudoir blog post, as well; something I feel really paints a picture of each woman that dances in front of my camera.
For the lovely Erin:
“A strong woman understands that the gifts such as logic, decisiveness, and strength are just as feminine as intuition and emotional connection. She values and uses all of her gifts.” — Nancy Rathburn
Today is a day that I can truly get behind. Celebrating National Women's Day is something that comes so naturally to me, as I celebrate women every day. Every part of boudoir is about embracing and celebrating women. It's about finding our voices. It's about bringing light to the dark. It's about figuring out what we, as individuals, deem worthy of our love and grace.
Boudoir is something that I hope every woman experiences at least once in her lifetime. So many of my clients tell me that they are scared. These women express to me that they have parts of their body that they are afraid to have photographed. They tell me that there body has changed since having kids. To all of these things I say, "You're right and that's absolutely why you HAVE to do this session."
We, as women, need to figure out why we feel these negative ways about our bodies. Why we've excepted what society has told us our entire lives. We need to break the chains that cause us to feel weighted by the world around us. It's up to us to create a new beautiful. It's up to us to create new standards.
Women don't get to stop being moms when they go to work. Women don't get to just turn off their brains and forget about everything else going on around them. We are multitaskers. We are soldiers. We are worthy of being celebrated each and every day.
All of the women that have stood in front of my camera have incredible stories to tell. They are stories that I carry with me every day. They are full of hurt, resilience, pain, power, beauty, grace, and so much more. I am so fortunate to know them and to be an international boudoir photographer.
