I’m appalled that I’ve waited so long to share these images, but if you like theatrical outfits, the circus, and/or things that sparkle, I have something very special for you…
Say hello to Katrina (again): acrobat, snake charmer, lingerie creator, Aussie beauty, and an incredibly lovely person to work with. There’s nothing about this woman that I don’t like, and it’s a happy day when we get to shoot.
The learning curve certainly starts to level off after your first few years of photography. It’s at once a blessing and a curse. In a way, it’s encouraging that massive improvements are no longer an easy feat. It means you’ve mastered the basics, honed your style, developed your eye, etc. On the other hand, it’s frustrating doing shoot after shoot after shoot, knowing that none of them are going to elevate your portfolio to the next level. Make no mistake, I’m still learning from every single shoot, but improvements for me now are small, probably imperceptible to the average person. My big steps forward are happening on the running-a-business end of things rather than in pursuit of those elusive “next level” images.
That said, I feel like each time I’ve photographed Katrina I’ve created my best work yet. Maybe it’s because we’re on the same wavelength, or maybe it’s just that it’s practically impossible to take a bad photograph of her, but either way I’ll take it. The creative in me drinks deep working with her.
I’m so pleased to share this set of images with you. I hope you love them as much as we do. I owe a huge thank you to Gemma for her fantastic makeup artistry, and the rest of the girls that day for creating a fun, easygoing atmosphere and being so willing to lend a hand. It’s always a team effort, and I seem to get really lucky in that department lately.
I’d just add that if you’re here by chance and are offended by sequinned nipple tassels, I’d navigate away now;)
Katrina is going to take you to church. And when I say church, I mean a sexy, mysterious, back alley circus where the beautiful people play.
If you’re already hopelessly in love, you can purchase some of Katrina’s hand made pieces for yourself. She has an incredible collection of nipple tassels, bedazzled lingerie, and a few beautiful flowing skirts. To see it all, visit her Etsy shop or follow her on Instagram at @strippedbeautiful.
You cannot stop us. We’ll shoot whatever manner of lingerie ridiculousness we want. There are no rules here.
How do you know when there is too much gold? Trick question: there is never too much gold. Also, I’ll tell other photographers out there that you CAN put someone in front of a small softbox, shoot directly into an unbalanced modelling light, and still get great results. Shock-horror, I know. The photography community told us all we’d have to surrender our first born children if we did that, but it turns out it’s totally fine.
A simple set up – one light, one ladder, one wall, one model.
A second wardrobe look – this one is all pom poms and roses. If you’re feeling intimidated by Katrina’s muscles, you’re not alone. She’s in the midst of intense training and is incredibly fit, very bendy, and very strong right now. It’s totally fine if you do not look like this:)
After dark at the warehouse. I love how blue the night sky goes.
So! I’m back from NYC. It was a manic, exciting, fantastic four days.
It was surreal being back in America again, but I met so many wonderfully creative people this trip. There’s an energy in NYC that is like nothing else – it’s aggressive and defensive, but also exciting and welcoming in it’s own won’t-say-I-love-you-out-loud sort of way. You get the sense that everyone is an outsider, but that very fact is what makes people belong. That feeling, combined with the fact that basically everyone I met is trying to make something happen, build something, create something, or make an impact, is addictive.
I’m currently incommunicado while I get caught up on this mountain of culling, editing, and retouching work I’ve created for myself, but I wanted to share a few behind the scenes images with you this week. There were mostly shot with my iPhone so please don’t judge:)
I flew Kuwait Airways. That’s like a trip in and of itself. Everything was late, everyone got frisked, no one spoke English, and they play an Islamic prayer set to music and meditative images as the lights go off in preparation for takeoff. I’m sure this prayer is meant to be comforting, but as a non-Islamic white girl, I suddenly felt like…uh…do I NEED to by praying right now? Should I be worried this plane needs Divine Intervention to get off the ground?! This, as I notice half the plane is empty and the tray tables are falling apart. Eeesh. On the upside, we didn’t die, I had no one sitting next to me either flight, and the food and service was good.
They also give you printed menus. On the right, NYC greeted me with the most beautiful sunset at touchdown.
I managed to get to Brooklyn by myself, via the subway, with a huge suitcase. I’m not going to lie – NYC public transport is cheap, but it isn’t pretty. By the end of the journey, which featured an assortment of people who looked tired, angry, and/or were singing loudly to no one, I understood why people just take a cab everywhere. Anyway, I made it in the end, and was welcomed by this stunning view.
Our “home” for the trip. This space was a dream, full of eclectic details and gorgeous light.
As luck would have it, my homegirl Jada happened to be in the city at the same time. We got together for a shoot and a catch up, and it was so nice to see a friendly face and talk shop. Here’s Jada’s best Kim Kardashian impression.
One more cityscape.
A sneaky sneak of what Jada and I got up to on the roof;)
Introducing my UK dream team – Katherine on hair and Gemma on makeup. It was such a pleasure having these girls along. Here’s a few outtakes from our shoot with Lauren, who was an absolute bombshell.
Gemma was looking ever so chic…
….and Katherine wasn’t having it.
It was my pleasure to work with a gorgeous woman called Philomena too. A back of the camera preview of her on the left, and a random street shot on the right.
I have decided I would like to switch my gym membership so I can become a “Chinatown Dragon Fighter” club member.
Me, Michael (previous client & friend), and Christie (fellow photographer) in the Stanton Social for dinner. Obligatory selfies ensued, I don’t know why I’m making crazy eyes. Kate (fellow photographer) joined us later, but somehow managed to escape having it photographed.
Michael and I planned a day of sightseeing before I left. This photograph commemorates the time the cab driver dropped us off about a mile from where we asked him too. We had suitcases with us, it wasn’t fun.
I mean, when in Rome…you eat the pizza.
Lady Liberty:) I feel like a proper American now.
The boat tour is definitely the way to go if you want to see the sights in a relatively short amount of time. Michael and I were both fighting exhaustion by the final morning of the trip and we almost didn’t bother, but we were both really glad we did it in the end.
We even walked to Times Square (with bags). I think if you’ve ever been to Vegas, it’s a little underwhelming. I’d like to thank this random guy on the right for photobombing us though. Well played sir, well played.
And finally, me in a cab on the way to the airport, and then on the way home.
I just want to make sure I say a massive thank you to everyone I met in New York. Each one of you were dynamic and interesting and gracious, and it’s an absolute pleasure to be in the company of such good people. It was an honour to work with you and photograph you. I also owe a big thank you to my tireless team, who flew across the ocean and battled a strange city, exhaustion, and sickness to work their magic far from home.
That said, I have SO MANY IMAGES to show you from shoots I did while I was away. I’ve got Jada, a curvy blonde bombshell; Perci, a beautiful vegan brunette in a $1200 AP jacket; Lauren, a redhead covered in tattoos; and Philomena, the most beautifully dark skinned woman with a shaved head and dangerous curves. Plus, several amazing and unique clients who might just let us have a peek at their images too:)
Just you wait and see!
xx
Stormy
P.S. I’m going back. If you missed this trip but want in on the next one, drop me a line!
More media love for plus size / curvy Rebel & Romance bombshells today:)
Jolie, a German based website, contacted me a few weeks ago to ask if they could use a few images in a lingerie article they were working on. I of course said yes, and I’m pleased to see they’ve selected a few of Lorraine and Jada’s images to illustrate the feature.
I did attempt to use Google translate on the little text blurb beside each photograph, but what came out left something to be desired. It all seemed positive though, just a bit mangled – like the instructions that come with electronics assembled in China.
Screen shots below, or feel free to check out the original feature using these links:
Lorraine is wearing a great bra and brief set here, with matching lace panels. The panels act to distract the flow of your eye (similar to the colour blocking trend), so they can be very flattering on curvy bodies.
Look, I know it goes against everything you know about lingerie, but shapewear really can be sexy when it’s worn for a boudoir photo shoot. Jada is rocking a nude bodysuit here – it’s one of those sucky-in ones designed to hold everything in place. I asked her to bring it for her shoot, and I know that she thought I’d lost my mind, but I just kept saying, “Trust me, trust me!” And see? It looks really glam, but is also understated and shows off her body rather than what she’s wearing. Something like this is also a great option for women who would struggle to find a lacy, lingerie style bodysuit in an appropriate size, because these come in quite a lot of larger cup sizes.
Overall, two great wardrobe ideas, especially if you’ve got a curvy body type.
Check out these beautiful, curvy women going absolutely VIRAL on Buzzfeed!
Big ups to Buzzfeed staffer Peggy Wang, who obviously had the average woman in mind when she selected her favourite images for this article, “33 Impossibly Sexy Boudoir Photo Poses.” I’m always honoured to photograph regular, everyday women, and it’s great to see a more realistic body shape getting some much deserved media love.
1.7 million views and climbing says you’re into the media supporting plus size / curvy / fuller figured women too. Thank you for your continued support. I hope images like these inspire you to give your own boudoir photo shoot a try!
It’s been my pleasure to work with E a few times now. She has a sort of calmness about her that is hard to describe – maybe it’s that unflappable British perseverance, or maybe she’s just wise beyond her years. Either way, she’s a treat to photograph.
We wanted to do something a little different this time around. However, as sometimes happens, we got a bit more than we bargained for.
Our original location plan was all crushed red velvet, romantic bed curtains, and gilded details reminiscent of a Queen’s bedchamber. At the last minute, we were informed there was a problem with the space that meant we would either need to reschedule or make do with another area the venue had available.
Mmmmm. That’s like, my favourite thing to hear ten minutes before we’re meant to start. {sarcasm}
Whatever. E is a trooper, and we were all there and ready to go, so we just decided to channel Tim Gunn and make it work. The space we ended up with was really nice anyway, it just wasn’t what we were planning for.
A deep blue lingerie set, originally planned to coordinate with rich red velvet and jewel tones, served as our first wardrobe option. It wouldn’t have been mine or Eugenie’s first choice for this space, but the pop of colour against the neutral palette of the room turned out pretty cool anyway. Doesn’t Miss E look stunning rocking that pose on the right?
These stripy bed poles gave us an interesting posing accessory. For makeup, we opted for a stained lip and classic lined eyes. Just enough, but not too much.
This is my favourite image from the shoot:) E looks so editorial here, she could have come straight off a magazine spread.
We finished off this shoot with a classic, lacy, cream lingerie set from Agent Provocateur, who are still my favourite lingerie retailer to date. I’ve ordered pieces from other companies recently, but nothing quite lives up to AP’s quality and craftsmanship yet. Honestly, being a boudoir photographer is making me a little snobby about lingerie. The lighter colour palette definitely felt like a more natural fit for this space though.
Also, totally unrelated, something about Miss E’s gaze and hair in this frame on the right reminds me so much of Cher from Clueless. As if.
E, you were graceful and effortless as always. Thanks again for a beautiful shoot:)
My least favourite thing about living in London is light, or rather the lack of it. The sun never seems to shine on shoot days (or any other days for that matter), so when I get lucky and find a pocket of beautiful diffused sunlight, I feel like dancing. And shooting. I generally skip dancing and start shooting immediately because it never lasts long.
I knew ahead of time that I wanted to created a clean, simple set of images for each of the girls from this shoot day. I think portraiture like this is one of the best ways to show off natural beauty and personality. There’s no hiding behind lots of crazy wardrobe and makeup, and no complicated lighting setups or effects to distract from the subject. In some ways, I think this sort of photography can be the most intimidating, because if you screw it up there’s really nothing to hide behind. On the flip side, if you know what you’re doing and get it right, it’s perfection.
If you’re a soon to be bride, this sort of look is a gorgeous way to start off an album for your groom.
Each of these images was created in a beautiful little pocket of light in the corner of a very dirty warehouse. There’s a large grimy window to the left and white polyboard just to the right of the frame to angle light back onto Katrina’s face. The whole set was photographed in a really small space, maybe 4.5 feet wide at best, and the wall behind is just unfinished plaster. Simple, simple stuff. It’s really not about having loads of expensive kit, it’s just about knowing what to do with what you’ve got. I may have thrown a reflector in at some point too, can’t quite remember.
A simple black cotton lingerie set for this look. I think Katrina has a sort of “Sunday Morning” aura in these that is approachable but still just so impossibly beautiful. She’s classical music and a big mug of milky tea.
For the life of me, I’ll never understand why people don’t like redheads. I could photograph redheads every day for the rest of my life and not get tired of them.
Reason number 758 why you should let me photograph you; one day when you’re old and grey and feeling down about it, you can pull a portrait like this out and remember. Your memory might have gone by then too, so it really will be invaluable.
I feel like the black and white version of this photo on the left is somehow really different to the coloured version above. More artistic maybe? More evocative? At any rate, I’m loving these new grainy black and whites I’ve been experimenting with and I will probably stick with the technique for a while, so I hope you all like them too!
A very different set from the rest of Katrina’s boudoir shoot is coming up soon, and it’s not one to be missed. We’re bringing you sequins and dramatic lighting and the marching band turned very, very sexy. Follow me on instagram for sneak peeks: @stormy_rebelandromance
It’s going to be slick and shiny and much more in keeping with what Rebel & Romance Boudoir Photography is all about. Here’s a teensy sneak peek:
The thing is, it’s just one of those projects that never goes quite as expected or as quickly as one would hope. I’ve spent ages figuring out what look and feel I wanted since it’s part of a larger re-branding effort, and then even longer trying to find someone to hire to build it for me. It’s been a revolving set of problem doors – what platform is best? what about SEO? what about functionality? will I be able to make changes easily? I’m sorry, you want HOW MUCH and you still can’t give me what I want?
Long story short, I didn’t find anyone that filled me with confidence. So I’m just doing the damn thing myself. Le sigh.
The good new is I’m making real progress now, the bulk of the work is done and I think I’ll be in a position to launch fairly soon. I’m going to put this thing live before it’s ready, because that’s what all the entrepreneur people tell me to do. It’s a sort of “living document” anyway and bound to have lots of changes over then next year, so I guess there’s really no sense in waiting.
I will need a few beta testers. If you fancy having a first look and sharing your thoughts, or if you’ve worked with me in the past and are interested in being featured and sharing your experience, plllleeeasse give me a shout:)
London Boudoir Photography: Yvette in the warehouse in her smalls.
Bwah. Yvette makes me want to die my hair black and grow 80’s eyebrows. If only that would look half as good on me as it does on her. I’ve already had those eyebrows once, nobody needs to see that again.
I like Yvette. A lot. She’s got such a strong, beautiful face, and a gaze that seems to sink straight into your soul. A bit like Galadriel from Lord of the Rings. Oooh, was that too nerdy of a reference? I love this simple, soft look on her.
Anyway, I know you’ll all struggle to believe this, but Yvette was nervous for her boudoir photography session with me. Despite being a successful fashion model and and absolutely beautiful, she hasn’t done much lingerie work before. That, and she actually said to me, out loud, “I hate my body.” Now, that’s obviously silly of her because she looks incredible, and I’m sure Mrs. Y has plenty of days where she feels great. Still, I think it’s helpful to know that come shoot day she was battling the same self-doubt the rest of us do.
Yvette got into the groove quickly and was a dream to shoot, but I’ll use her as an excuse to mention something I’ve been wanting to say. Occasionally people make comments to me about “real women.” It’s often said in a way that demeans women who are slender, and that doesn’t help anyone feel better about anything. People seem to forget that models are even human sometimes. I work with models quite often so I have a different perspective – I meet them in person and see what they have to go through, we laugh and chat just like I do with any of my other clients. I do get it – it’s hard to feel like you can relate to models as a group, but they are women too. It if you’re feeling incredulous at the idea that a model might have a crisis of confidence, keep this in mind; their entire CAREER revolves around looking amazing. And they are just as “real” as anyone else is.
If your appearance is your job, you’re under constant pressure regarding how you look, especially when you consider that your career starts at 14 and ends at what, 30? When you take the time to think about it, it’s 100% understandable that even the most beautiful women could struggle under than kind of scrutiny. I do think that inside, we’re all basically the same. We have the same confidence issues, the same struggles. It doesn’t help any of us when we devalue a woman based on having a certain body type. We need to stick together girls. T-o-g-e-t-h-e-r. Anyway, I’ll step down off my soap box now!
Don’t you think Yvette has a very pretty profile? I told her than after taking this shot on the left, which she probably thought was a weird thing to say:)
For our next look, we went for a darker and more fashion-oriented feel. This makeup (courtesy of the ever talented Gemma) would be too strong for many, but it’s perfect on Yvette, who has the colouring and angular features to pull it off.
This is also a great example of an easy way to mix lingerie with everyday pieces to create an editorial feel. Katrina was our stylist for the day, and here she’s paired a custom, hand-detailed black bra with a black, patterned skirt. The skirt gives a little extra coverage, but it’s sheerness means it still reads as suggestive and sexy. Basically, the best of both worlds.
Yvette is all arms and legs and moody beauty here.
Okay….I know some of you hate snakes. But when you are lucky enough to have snakes on set, you USE THE SNAKES.
Yvette is in a green crushed velvet bodysuit, chunky black boots, and a furry black jacket. This is a great starting point for a boudoir photoshoot outfit that reads cool, urban, grungy, etc. It reminds me a bit of American Apparel, except more flattering (why do they make all the girls in their ads look so terrible?).
One snake, two snake:)
…and one last beautiful frame:) Mucho gracias to Katrina for excellent styling and snake charming.
To conclude the earlier thoughts I shared, I feel like I’m learning more about women and self confidence every day. The one idea I’m starting to come around to is that inhabiting your own skin comfortably is not about your shape, size, or age. It’s not about your weight or what other people say or don’t say about you. It’s just not. And that’s sort of sucky, because it’s so tempting and alluring to believe it could be that simple.
A diet is certainly an easier fix than the mental work required to change your opinion of yourself. So many of us live with this hope/illusion that if we could just lose ten pounds, if we could just get that boob job or get our wonky nose fixed or get rid of that birthmark that we would suddenly be so much happier. Maybe. Maybe not. Maybe the answer is more than skin deep.
I’m really interested in specific actions that lead to more self-confidence and less self-loathing in women. I don’t have the answers yet, but I know that a boudoir photo shoot certainly seems to help. I’m looking for ways I can amplify this effect for clients. If you have suggestions, personal experiences, or other avenues that have worked for you, I’d love to hear about them. Please share. We all need more:)
As promised, a few group shots are ready for this week. Handmade lingerie pieces, snake charming, and individual boudoir photo shoots with each of these ladies coming soon.
I love how clean and classic this image on the left turned out. The black and white feels a little more arty and gritty to me, but I really like both.
Turn around, bright eyes.
Attempting to stay fashion-face serious while touching bums? Yeah…not really possible. We had such a good laugh, and I thought these images of the girls cracking were too fun to be missed.
A little posing by a ladder we found…
…and one last shot for today in colour. Blue backlight – how very moody and mysterious of us:)
