Yay for Giveaways and blowing yourself up! | Austin Boudoir Studio

I WANT YOU TO BLOW YOURSELF UP.

When clients are preparing for their boudoir experience with me, they shy away from the idea that they could possibly want a large photo of themselves anywhere on their walls. I speculate that is because they've never seen an image of themselves that makes them feel all sorts of warm and fuzzies, certainly not one that was a piece of art worthy of the wall. 

As they sit in their photo reveal and watch a slideshow containing image after image of stunning beauty....and then realize that woman in the photos is THEM...the idea of putting THAT image up on their wall becomes a right of passage.

There's always that ONE image that makes them feel all the (good) feelings-- beautiful, sexy, strong, powerful, independent, courageous, and BADASS. THAT is the one. That is the image that shouldn't be confined to just an album that you occasionally thumb through. THAT is the image that should be on prominent display in your home so you can see it every single day. 

I'm no stranger to the camera. Between my 5-year-long self-portrait project and my annual birthday boudoir shoot, I've got a sea of images of myself. But then there's that ONE. The one that made ME feel all those feelings.  So I blew it up. I invested in a gorgeous fine art acrylic for my bedroom wall. When I wake up and roll over every morning, there she is. It's me...but it's the best me. It's the me that I aspire to be every day. It's the me that's "in there somewhere" underneath the to-do lists, daily stresses, and tired mom. It's the me that I have to remind myself that I truly am. And I get to see her every day, as if she's giving me a high-five as I walk past her to head into the bathroom and put myself together for the day. 

Me holding "THAT" image of me. A self-portrait that I had blown up to a fine art acrylic piece. 

Me holding "THAT" image of me. A self-portrait that I had blown up to a fine art acrylic piece. 

I can't quite explain how powerful of a feeling that is. But it's a feeling that I want every woman who works with me to experience. Albums are amazing, they really are. It's important to have your boudoir photos in print form to have something to flip through forever. But THAT image. That ONE image, you'll know the one...that is the image that belongs somewhere you will see it ALWAYS. 

A snapshot of my morning view. *self high-five*

A snapshot of my morning view. *self high-five*

ALL of this is to say that I am having an acrylic art giveaway.

I want to gift this daily warm-and-fuzzy feeling to one of my clients. Oh, and it's a $2,000 value. So it's sort of a big deal. 

In my efforts to make boudoir more "mainstream" amongst women wanting to do this for THEMSELVES, it is important for us to share the message with others about how it makes us feel. There's no shame or harm in gifting boudoir images to your partner. But let's face it, your partner is going to be in love with the images because they are in love with the subject. The harder sell is creating images of a woman that SHE LOVES OF HERSELF. And THAT is what I make it my mission to do. 

HOW TO ENTER:

1. Post a photo of yourself holding your Kara Marie Boudoir album on social media. This can be as creative or straight-forward as you fancy. 

2. Tag @Karamarieboudoir (on Instagram)Kara Marie Boudoir on Facebook, and/or @KaraMarie_T on Twitter

3. Caption the photo with your feelings on what the photos inside your album represent to you. This can be a few words, a few sentences, or a few paragraphs.

IF YOU'RE NOT YET A KARA MARIE BOUDOIR CLIENT BUT YOU WANT TO BE....

Post a photo of yourself feeling beautiful and caption it with why you want/need a boudoir experience for yourself.

Please feel free to tag your friends who truly need this experience for themselves, but don't spam ;) 

Winner will be selected and announced on Wednesday, June 15th. 

Is it getting hot in here, or is it just me...? | Austin Boudoir Studio

I am certainly not known to be the smoothest talker. I'm much better at premeditating my dialogue or otherwise inserting my foot-in-mouth when put on the spot to come up with something to say. It's really quite unfortunate because generally I do have the very best of intentions....but sometimes the dumbest thing imaginable comes out of my mouth...

...like when I'm trying to maintain a professional but comfortable client/photographer relationship during a shoot, and I ask my client to get into a pose, and I immediately say "Is it getting HOT in here!? Or is it just me!?". And I swear.to.God.I.meant.the.temperature.  But, coming from a photographer who is photographing a woman scantily clad, you could see why that may seem a bit creepy. Ok...maybe more than a bit. 

Luckily, my clients are awesome. When I say something that stupid, I make fun of myself incessantly and hope for at least a genuine laughing shot. 

I think that happened at least twice during my shoot with this client. Her images make me happy. Check them out!

"This was one of the best experiences I've ever had! Kara was such an amazing, bubbly, and badass photographer! She made me feel so beautiful in my own skin. Also, her makeup and hair artist was INCREDIBLE!"
"I never felt an ounce of body shaming or negativity. I loved that she would just talk and we had causal convos the entire shoot! She made me laugh a bunch and the images she captured were AMAZING! I would recommend her to anyone that was looking at doing a boudoir shoot!"
I feel so strong, beautiful, and comfortable in my skin. It really brought my confidence up overall.

Thank you to Miss "M" for bringing her A++++ game to her boudoir session. And to my makeup artist, Kendall of Mayhem Beauty for doing yet another stand-up job. 

IF YOU'VE BEEN TOYING AROUND WITH THE IDEA OF HAVING A BOUDOIR EXPERIENCE, LET'S CHAT MORE! 

Lola Lola Lola | Austin Boudoir Studio

There are certain people in this world whose energy and enthusiasm precedes them into a room. They are glowing from the inside out. Being around them makes you happy. This is Miss Lola for me. I've shot her several times now, and she was even featured in my new boudoir promo video

We had a "play" shoot this month with no real planning or direction at first. We ended up going for a really natural, laid back but simply beautiful look. And I love these images. 

This image right here. I freaking love it!  Donuts have a special place in my gut...errr...heart and they are something I don't really get to indulge in all that often. This particular Monday morning I was really feeling the need for some freaking donuts....so in addition to my usual shoot spread of veggies and hummus, I incorporated some pastries. And Lola enjoyed them too. 

Thank you miss Lola, as always, for a fun and effortless shoot!