Wrapped in Nothing | Miss S Part II | Austin Boudoir Studio

I have really grown to be madly in love with tasteful nude imagery. There is nothing more raw, more natural, and...in my opinion...more rewarding for the client, than to have such timeless photos of yourself and nothing but yourself. 

Generally my clients come in, knowing that nude images are an option, and at the beginning of the session when we're reviewing her wardrobe, she gets shy and flushed and suggests maybe if she's comfortable towards the end she'd maybe sorta kinda like to possibly do some photos without any wardrobe.

It's always so amazing to watch the transformation between the shy girl thinking she could possibly do this with enough champagne, to the badass confident woman halfway through the shoot that says "You know what!? Screw this lingerie!"  Enter the classy nudes.

I know why clients are a little intimidated by the boudoir experience process. The women in my photos look SO confident, so sexy, like they really owned the shit out of their photo shoot. Practically pros, right!?

During your photo session, other than holding pretty uncomfortable poses for several minutes at a time, you'll be thinking "This can't possibly look sexy." and "Oh none of these are going to turn out.". It doesn't FEEL like a sexy experience while you're doing it. FUN...hell yes. But sexy?! Not really.  I'm not speaking in a seductive voice while using sexy verbiage in a dimly lit room with candle light and Marvin Gaye playing (although, I do believe "Let's Get it On" is on one of my playlists...we usually just laugh when it comes on.). 

NOT AT ALL.  The room is bright AF, generally some upbeat music playing, and it's pretty much an hour long chit chat with me about every day life with the occasional "Ok, now arch your back a tiny bit more and give me a good exhale out your mouth.....PERFECT!!! You're doing awesome!!!"

It's generally only 5 minutes into the shoot before women start to realize "hey, this is WAY easier than I thought it was going to be!"

So, trust me, the idea of taking off all of your everything in front of a stranger's camera IS scary to think about. But I assure you, it's business as usual for me and you can't scare me with "all this" (what women usually say while motioning to their bodies in reference to being nude), and, in fact, challenge accepted and you will LOVE your nude images, likely more than your clothed ones. I will pose you to perfection, I will use strategic lighting, I will coach you through every minute of it, and you will be SO GLAD YOU DID THIS!

Round of applause to this badass woman for taking it all off and being oh-so-proud to be documented wrapped in nothing. She actually didn't need any champagne and knew from the beginning she wanted to do nude artistry. And the final product reflected her confidence in that decision!

GET IT, GIRRRRRRLLLLL!!!!!

WHETHER YOU WANT TO TAKE IT ALL OFF OR KEEP IT ALL ON, IF YOU'RE READY TO FEEL AMAZING IN YOUR OWN SKIN, LET'S CHAT!

Birthmarks and Beauty | Austin Boudoir Studio

While so many women find themselves coming to me for a boudoir experience for the same reasons, each of them is so different. Different in personality, in stages of life, and in appearance. 

The female form is utterly fascinating to me. There are so many body types and shapes, so many different facial structures, so many complexions....it's incredible how so many individual features come together to create a completely unique woman. 

As a boudoir photographer, I'm asked often what my favorite feature is to photograph. While that's a question harder to answer than "What color would you wear if black were no longer an option?" (is really, really dark grey ok?), I would say that a strong contender would be birthmarks and freckles. I ADORE birthmarks and freckles. Put a birthmark or freckles on a tush or hip, and now I'm in boudoir photographer heaven. 

All this to lead into the fact that this blog feature contains a pretty amazing woman with a pretty amazing birthmark and other pretty amazing features that we pretty amazingly captured together!

"The experience was so much fun! I felt completely prepared between all of the communication and advice that was given from the time I booked the appointment and all the way through the reveal session."

"You are truly gifted at what you do and you made me feel so relaxed and excited at the same time." -Miss G

I adore the classic filmy feel of these images, which, based on her mood board, was what Miss G was feelin' for her images. Mission accomplished!

What's more, she ended up with 3 outstanding artistic nude fine art prints to hang over her bed, which, by my calculations, should be arriving on her doorstep any moment! Ohhh the excitement (I swear I get more excited about seeing my clients' wall art than they do!) It's SO fulfilling for me to see images that I've created together with the client end up as art pieces in their homes. And, trust me, photos look WAYYYY more awesome in professional art print than they do on a screen. 

Thank you, Miss G, for allowing me to be a part of your journey, for trusting me to create this experience for you, and allowing me to share some of your images and words!

READY TO DOCUMENT YOUR UNIQUENESS? HIT.ME.UP, DAHHLING!

Effortlessly Elegant | Miss F | Austin Boudoir Studio

How's everyone feeling after the long Thanksgiving holiday weekend? Refreshed and replenished or completely burned out? 

I took a few days off, and I have to admit....I AM SO READY TO BE BACK AT WORK!!! Especially knowing that THIS gem is today's blog feature!

Miss "F" was so effortlessly elegant. Her boudoir wardrobe knocked it out of the park. Her eyes were mesmerizing. And we had such a great time creating this amazing gift for her and her love!

Hair and Makeup by Kendall Koehler of Mayhem Beauty

Here's what Miss "F" had to say about her boudoir experience:

"Kara, you showed me in a way I rarely, or maybe never, see myself. When I came to my shoot, I was feeling really bedraggled, tired, and stressed about life. But this shoot made me feel so wonderfully good about myself!"

“I walked out with one heck of a sexy attitude and a ‘bring it on world— I can take whatever you throw at me and not just handle it, but have FUN with it’ mentality!”

— Miss F

"I feel more beautiful and vivacious than ever. And the pics are too die for!"

And I have to agree--the pics ARE to die for!

And then....AND THEN....we changed into this ridiculously amazing outfit. The magenta bra paired with this STUNNING ethically sourced rabbit fur coat and tousled hair. AHHHH! Love love love!

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Can I get a resounding "DAYYUUMMM", here!?  I love the confidence not only exuded in these images by this outstanding woman, but the confidence she herself says she acquired just by doing the shoot! It's no exaggeration when I preach that boudoir is a major confidence boost!

THANK YOU to Miss "F" for sharing her badass images with us, as well as her rave review! I've said it a million times and I'll say it again: I absolutely ADORE our Kara Marie Boudoir clients!

Winner Winner, (insert food of choice) dinner | Austin Boudoir studio

Following me on Instagram has it's perks, y'all!  A while back, I did a mega huge giveaway with a slew of prizes from local Austin businesses. That giveaway included a boudoir experience with me.....the WORKS, actually! Miss "M" here was given over $2,500 worth of goods and services and her shoot couldn't have gone more spectacular! 

She was a ball of positivity and enthusiasm and it was an absolute honor to get to photograph her!

“I had the most amazing experience with Kara...she made me feel so beautiful, so sexy, and so confident, things that I have struggled with. It was so much FUN!

I felt so honored to have gotten to experience this and see how special it is and think all woman should do it to celebrate their bodies.

Kara made the experience unforgettable, she was so accepting, non judgmental, open and encouraging. I couldn’t believe that she gifted this experience to me! And with that which just goes to show how genuine she is, she didn’t treat me any different than a paying client.

It is an experience I will never forget (and always remember with my sexy photos!) and hope to do soon and often!

THANK YOU KARA! Thank you for your generosity and thank you for making me feel so special and so confident in my own beautiful body! You have a true talent and gift and I am so happy you are using it to touch and impact people’s lives. ”

— Miss "M"

Isn't she just amazing? I'm so super in love with these photos and this lovely lady. 

Thank YOU, Miss "M"!

PSSSSSTTTT: And if you're not following me on Instagram, go do it now! You never know when there's going to be another giveaway....but more importantly, I'm way cooler on Instagram than I am on any other social media platform (and in real life). ;)

Hair and makeup by Kendall of Mayhem Beauty.

ARE YOU A WOMAN? IN AUSTIN? HAVE WE SHOT YET? WHY NOT? LET'S CHAT.

The Fiercest of Fierce | Austin Boudoir Studio

More often than not, I feel as though the women who walk through the doors of my studio are my client soulmates. They "get" the purpose of this boudoir shoot. They GET why I do this, and they want to be a part of it.  This woman fit that description. She wanted to feel empowered, she needed to add a kick-ass chapter to her life. She wanted to be fierce and amazing. 

As she sat in the makeup chair and requested super heavy rockstar eye makeup while I worked through her statement lingerie, I was LOVING that she had a strong vision of what she wanted to see herself as. It was obvious to me that she was envisioning wall art that would remind her of how amazing she was, envisioning a coffee table book to show off to everyone who set foot in her house, a set of images that would say "Hey everyone! Come and see how good I look!" *Anchorman Reference*

Mission freaking accomplished.

“Thank you Kara for such an amazing, empowering, kick ass experience! You did exactly what I was hoping for. Feeling empowered as a woman is sometimes difficult in this non-stop world. You helped bring back the strong, sexy, empowered woman that I had somehow, sort of, forgotten was there.

We all have a fire inside us. Sometimes life can suppress the flames and it seems like it has gone out. But NOOOO, as long as there is breath in us it is there. Sometimes the fire just needs a little stoking. So thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! You rock!”

— MISS B

*Commence slow clap*

I am so proud of Miss B for bringing her A game (and those AMAZING outfits! HELLLLOOOO!) and trusting me to create some badassness for her. I have no doubt she will look back on these images any time she needs her fire "rekindled" and for the rest of her life!