Boudoir photography is something I think every woman (yes, even YOU) should add to her bucket list! Since it's such a big decision and something you might only do once in your entire lifetime, choosing the right photographer for you is a high priority. But how do you know what to look for in a boudoir photographer?
For the past few months, I've been on my own search for a boudoir photographer and I have compiled a list of things that I have learned to look for when talking with boudoir photographers. I've been scoping out boudoir photographers all up and down the East Coast trying to find the perfect one for me and I've learned soooooo much. Hope you find these helpful also!
- Look for women who are similar to your shape and size in the photographer's boudoir portfolio. This will show you the photographer's experience (or lack of experience) with shooting women like you.
- What is the photographer's privacy policy about showing your images and sharing information about you? I personally want someone who has the same strict privacy standards as I have. What do they do with the images once the session is over...where will your private images be a year from now, or 2 years from now when they buy a new computer & get rid of their existing computer with your images on it? I know one local newborn photographer who donated her old computer and then months later realized that she had given it away with pictures still on it. What a scary thought!
- If privacy is important to you, can your photographer ensure that they will not mention your name with their fellow photographers or friends if you don't want them to?
- How experienced and knowledgeable is the photographer? Does the photographer specialize in boudoir or is boudoir just lumped in with all the babies and family photography? Has the photographer actually had specialized boudoir training ? Technically there is no rule or law against offering boudoir photography without any actual boudoir training or knowledge. But trust me, quality boudoir photography is A LOT more extensive and requires more expertise and skill than regular family and baby photography. You'd think it would be the exact opposite but it's not. Your husband can take pictures with a good camera of you in your underwear and say he's a boudoir photographer!! (oh, that's a fun idea!!!!) But seriously, for a once in a lifetime experience, this is a time when boudoir knowledge, skills and experience are super important.
- You Get What You Pay For. I've seen over and over again in my search for a boudoir photographer that cheap photographers end up with cheap looking boudoir pictures. How cheap is the photographer? I do not want to look cheap in my boudoir pictures, so I will not go to a cheapo photographer to do mine.. I want to look like I just stepped out of the pages of a magazine, so I therefore want a photographer who can deliver that magazine quality image! I believe there is a photographer for everyone's price range. Unfortunately, the concept of "you get what you pay for" is especially true with boudoir. It's just a whole different ballgame than from regular photography. This is partly because of the training and expertise required to transform ordinary women into model material! Expertise in boudoir and specialized boudoir training isn't cheap, which means that quality boudoir images aren't cheap either. Trust me on this...I've been investing heavily in training to build my own expertise in boudoir so I can make Augusta a whole lot sexier! I'll go into more detail about all of my highly specialized and quality training in a future blog post!
