Artistic Nudes: The ultimate in badassery | Austin Boudoir Studio

There's this little genre of boudoir photography that I happen to adore...kind of a "sub-niche" if you will. It's not everyone's bag, and it doesn't need to be the entire duration of your photo shoot experience, but most women that I talk to are drawn to this type of imagery.

A R T I S T I C  N U D E S , y'all. artistic nudes. 

So many times my clients will have images like this saved on their required "homework" mood boards but then when I say out loud on the day of their session "Ok, so you want to do some artistic nudes, then?" they're eyes swell to a terrified state and they emphatically shake their head no. NUDE?!  

Yes. Nude. Those pictures that you saved that you said you loved? Those women are nude, silly. And to be honest, my style of artistic nudes are often more modest than the rest of my typical boudoir images. They cover just enough and reveal just enough to make the image ultra powerful.

There's tons of ways to shoot nude boudoir photos...so obviously you want to make sure that you and your photographer (hopefully that's ME since you're on this blog right now) are on the same page about what you want these images to look like. 

The  Kara Marie nude boudoir style is definitely on the artistic and classy side as you can see in these self portraits of yours truly. I play up highlights and shadows with the help of strategic lighting, REALLY strategic angles and posing, and with my secret weapon for incredible skin for these images. More simply put: We hide your naughty bits one way or another, even if they feel exposed during the session. 

Throughout the shoot we make sure that nothing is "hanging out" that you don't want to be hanging out. And we do NOT shoot nude crotch at our studio...no way, no how. So you can rest assured that your lady bits will stay covered and you will walk away from your photo reveal will some really incredible wall-worthy artistic nudes

This type of imagery is amazing for ANY woman of any shape or size. The light and shadows are incredibly flattering (believe me. This is the ONLY way I will EVER agree to be photographed completely nude. Everrrrr.), and the finished product is insanely striking.

So there, I did my duty as a boudoir photographer and showed you that shooting a few nudes at your boudoir shoot really doesn't have to be terrifying. At least not with me!!!! It's my job to make you comfortable. It's my job to make you forget your body insecurities. It's my job to make you look your ABSOLUTE BEST. And I'm ....like....REALLY good at my job. ;)

Don't be afraid to incorporate artistic nudes into your Kara Marie Boudoir experience! You'll be happy you did.  xoxo

A Photographic Love Story | Austin Maternity Boudoir

Hands down the best part of being a photographer is the relationships that I develop with my clients....and the one thing that I truly miss about shooting weddings is being a small part of a couple's journey over the years. Many times, I would photograph a couple's engagement photos, followed by their wedding photos, followed by their maternity photos, followed by their family photos. Sometimes in a completely different order too. The biggest compliment I can receive is being chosen again and again. 

Now, I know that I'm no longer shooting weddings, families, and children. But guess what I still shoot? Maternity beauty and boudoir. AND I WAS SOOOOOO OVER-THE-MOON GIDDY when Laura contacted me and asked me to shoot her maternity boudoir photos. 

 

 

THE PROPOSAL

Years ago, Jackie contacted me via e-mail and let me know she was coming into town from Houston with her girlfriend Laura, and wanted me to play paparazzi and capture her surprise proposa

I arrived to Castle Park and played tourist. At one point Laura pointed me out and I thought for sure I was busted, but later found out she was just telling Jackie how much she wanted a camera like mine. Phew! Needless to say, the proposal was outstanding, I had a BLAST photographing them, and it was truly special to be involved in this part of their relationship. 

This shoot was even featured on a popular inspiration blog for "Lesbians, Queers, and Everyone Else" called "On a Bicycle Built for Two.". Go check out the post HERE.

In 2013, I photographed Jackie's proposal to Laura at Castle Park.

THE WEDDING

Eventually I got the call about the wedding! Jackie and Laura wanted me to capture their Austin wedding at VUKA. It was seriously amazing. I loved it to bits. Umm...HELLO....they served HOMESLICE PIZZA at their reception. Seriously badass. They are a stunning couple with killer personalities, and the camera...well.....MY CAMERA (back off other camera people, they're MINE) loves them!

In 2014, I photographed Jackie + Laura's Wedding at VUKA

 

THE BABBBYYYYY

And then...AND THEN I got *THE* email. "HEY KARA! SO to add to our little love story that you've captured every step of...We're PREGNANT!!"

WEEEEEEEEE!!!

Pregnancy beauty + boudoir is seriously just so stunning.  I wish it's something I would have done when pregnant with my boys. It's so easy to feel "BLAH" when you're pregnant...but these beauty sessions really help you to remember the miraculous parts of it all. Our bodies are just incredible to be able to grow little humans.  Eventually I got the email that Jackie would be joining us for a few shots which was even better!  Check out a small handful of a really stunning collection of maternity boudoir:

SERIOUSLY. Can we just talk for a second about what a freaking GODDESS Laura is!?!?! She is as a woman, alone....but as a pregnant woman!? Holy fox!  She makes pregnancy look DAMN GOOD! 

During a maternity shoot, I'm always sure to photograph my client sans belly...just a gorgeous beauty portrait. Because they don't *ALWAYS* want to think of themselves pregnant. Women aren't JUST a vessel for a baby! So while I take care to photograph the MOM in them, I always am sure to take care of the WOMAN in them, too. Which is what this photo below is meant to portray. RRAWRRR!!

It's genuinely one of the biggest honors to be a part of people's story like this. I hope to someday shoot Jackie + Laura's mommy + me beauty session after they have their little girl!  They are such beautiful people, inside and out, and I'm blessed to have crossed paths with them a few years ago. 

Thank you Jackie, Laura, + Baby R for coming back to see me and my lens once again!! <3

That Self Esteem Boost though.... | Austin Boudoir Studio

We share an affinity for unique jewelry, big messy hair, and acrylic wall art. Miss "J" was something of a client soulmate and I am so delighted to have had the opportunity to meet her and work with her on embracing her femininity through a boudoir experience. 

"FUN! So empowering. It was so nice to feel beautiful and sexy and most importantly have fun. What a self esteem boost."

Hair and makeup by Kendall of Mayhem Beauty

"The timing of everything was some sort of divine plan! It couldn't have happened more perfectly to help empower me and remind me how much I value my health and beauty."

"I have no words to thank you for making me feel fierce and powerful and special. You are truly talented at what you do. All women deserve to feel the way I got to feel after seeing my pictures for the first time. Love you lady!"

Another prime example of a woman who jumped at the opportunity to do something for herself, to treat herself, and to remind herself of how badass she is. And she got a giant acrylic wall piece of that badass hair flip image to remind herself every single day she walks past it hanging on her wall. AMAZING. 

HEY YOU!  YOU'VE BEEN *THINKING* ABOUT THIS FOR FAR TOO LONG. TAKING THE FIRST STEP OF REACHING OUT IS THE HARDEST PART...I'LL HELP YOU THE REST OF THE WAY. LET'S CHAT ABOUT MAKING YOU FEEL AWESOME, SHALL WE? 

She had no idea how to be sexy.| Austin Boudoir Photographer

"I can't believe I'm actually going to do this."

"I don't even own any lingerie."

"I'm not sexy". 

These are the comments that flood my inbox on the regular from all different types of women of all different walks of life. 

Miss "N" told me that she had no idea how to be sexy.  But, by simply existing, she already was. And she didn't have to know *HOW* to give sexy looks or make her waist look as small as possible, or know what the most flattering light was. You see, that's my job. 

Simply show up. I'll even let you show up nervous as hell, if that's what's natural for you. Because it's also my job to make you feel comfortable. 

You can bring lingerie or nothing at all. 

You can have an idea in your mind of what you want to accomplish with this, or you can just leave all your trust and anxiety to me. 

It's natural to be nervous, I GET IT. But the point is....it's not your job to make yourself look the best you can look in your photos. It's mine. So you can just relax and follow the very detailed directions that I give you while we're shooting, and know that your images WILL be every bit as stunning as all of those you swoon over on my website. And we did just that for Miss "N". 

"This was my first boudoir shoot and, if I'm completely honest, the first time I wore real lingerie in all my 30 years. Needless to say I was nervous and had no idea what I was doing. I had no idea how to be sexy. "

Hair + makeup credit: Kendall of Mayhem Beauty

“But Kara made me feel comfortable and she made me feel beautiful! My experience was amazing from the minute I walked in to the very last interaction. Kara is incredibly talented. She knows exactly what to say, how to pose you and what lighting will bring out the goddess in you. I highly recommend Kara and her studio!”

— Miss N

“ Amazingly my boudoir experience changed the way I see my body. I feel more confident and I feel sexy! I’m ready to walk around in my lingerie if it weren’t for pesky indecent exposure charges, hahaha ;)”

— Miss N

Miss "N", thank you SO much for trusting me with your first (and hopefully not last!) boudoir experience. I'm seriously over-the-moon with our finished product and so excited that you can see what I saw forever and ever each time you look at your incredible boudoir album. You are STUNNINGGGGGGG and I adore you and your photos!!

THINK THAT YOU CAN'T LOOK AS SEXY AS THE WOMEN ON MY WEBSITE? THEY DIDN'T EITHER. LET'S CHAT, DAHHLING!

You don't *have* to take your clothes off | Austin Beauty Photographer

It's probably no secret that I'm a fan of nudity. I think every woman should be able to rip her clothes off, whip them around her head, and have her photos taken confidently. (Note: I have not yet achieved such confidence myself...but I'm one step closer with each personal boudoir shoot I do).

Boudoir is my baby. It's my niche, my specialty. It's what I do 92% of the time. Yes. I did the math.

The *OTHER* 8% of the time is spent doing BEAUTY portraiture. So. What's the difference? 

BOUDOIR PHOTOGRAPHY

While boudoir photography almost always involves a certain level of undress or nudity, it is also a little more raw, candid, unposed LOOKING (although we do pose you throughout the entire shoot!). Boudoir is meant to embrace a woman's sexuality, independence, femininity, and badassness. Because of the posing and the wardrobe, these images tend to be more intimate in nature. We do retouch all boudoir images for our clients with standard retouching techniques and the finished product is generally a variety of about 50-60 images with a natural retouch that include "detail" shots such as legs, tush, breasts, back, shoulders, collar bone, lips, as well as full bodyscapes and imagery that includes the face. 

Example of Kara Marie's BOUDOIR Photography. More intimate in nature, boudoir images embrace a woman's sexuality, femininity, and badassness in a certain level of undress. 

BEAUTY PHOTOGRAPHY

Now, BEAUTY portraiture is a bit more polished...with a finished "fine art" look and feel. Beauty portraiture is a great option for a woman who wants a smaller collection of absolutely breathtaking portraits of herself that are wall-worthy. Our beauty portraits always containing the full face and have more "statement" wardrobe which can mean a ball gown, little black dress, lace bodysuit, fabric draping or even nudity. There are also more special effects such as fine art tectures and extensive retouching done on these images.  The finished product is generally a smaller collection (roughly 15-20) fully enhanced, wall (or Facebook profile pic)-ready images. 

Example of Beauty Portraiture by Kara Marie Boudoir. Beauty photos always contain the client's face, can be taken fully clothed, + are finished with a full retouch and a fine-art edit making it classic wall art.

Beauty portraiture also tends to appeal more to the masses.....it may be a little less intimidating for a woman who is hesitant to bare it all for my camera (although I maintain that, regardless of your wardrobe or lack thereof, I *WILL* make you feel comfortable. Promise.)

These are images that you can gift to mom or grandma and they will gush over without instructing you to cover up your bits. 

They don't necessarily need to be taken in our studio, as you can see. These can be taken outdoors, in your own home, on the street, in a car....you get my drift. 

So, if you do happen to be holding out on a boudoir session because you're just a little too intimidated by the idea, try a beauty shoot first! Even if you've already done a boudoir shoot or seven, a beauty shoot offers a whole different element of elegance and femininity. 

Straight out of a magazine: Miss W | Austin Boudoir Studio

If you follow me on Instagram, you've seen little peeks of this blonde bombshell and her killer boudoir shoot. She showed up with her friend, a bottle of champagne, and a kick ass attitude, and left with a really incredible set of images just for her own damn self. 

Miss W Said:

"It feels damn good to do something for yourself! I turned 31 on Monday and thought 'Hey, you are't getting any younger!' Every day I thank my lucky starts for all the greatness I have in my life.  I loved how comfortable and beautiful everyone made me feel throughout the whole process!"

“ If you’re a girl out there contemplating a boudoir shoot....DOOOO IT!!! Kara is AMAZING!”

— Miss W

"I love not only feeling sexy and confident but also LOOKING fuckin sexy!"

When she first contacted me about a photo shoot, her email signature was followed by a quote. If you know me or follow me at all, you know that I'm a quote girl. SO...I knew we were a match made in boudoir photographer/client heaven before I even met her. It said:

“I get up every morning determined to both change the world and have one hell of a good time. Sometimes this makes planning my day difficult.”

— E.B. White

Hellllooooo, RED! Amiright!? Yasss. 

This set. This set with the classy red lingerie, chanel pearls, red bottoms, and fur coat just SCREAMED magazine ad to me! Miss W seriously rocked it! I'm thrilled with our finished product. 

Hell yes to rocking a boudoir shoot. Hell yes to doing so for YOU. Hell YESSSS to feeling even better about yourself after you're done. I love these kinds of stories. 

Thank you Miss W for your badassness ;)

Makeup credit: Kendall of Mayhem Beauty

WHEN IS THE LAST TIME YOU DID SOMETHING TO MAKE YOURSELF FEEL LIKE A GODDESS? LET'S CHAT, DAHHLING!

It's All Happening | NYC Boudoir Session

"ALMOST FAMOUS" is my favorite movie. It's a combination of my love of music, the obsession with the lives of rock stars (from a distance!), and my biggest girl crush ever on Kate Hudson. Often when I quote this movie, I'm the only one in the room who gets it. I'll get to the point soon enough.

Compared to other photography niches, boudoir (while ever-growing), is one of the smaller groups of camera slingers. What I love about that is the tight-knit community of boudoir photographers that I have been able to network with over the last several years. Because, believe it or not, not EVERYONE understands the mind of someone who shoots half naked people for a living.

Agnes Fohn of Yellow Brick Collective in NYC is a photographer whose style is so, so different than mine, and SO utterly incredible. Her images are dripping with artistry and her personality is downright awesome. That must be why we get along so famously (we're both equally modest too! hahahaha). And she loves "ALMOST FAMOUS" as much as I do. And comments things like "It's all happening" often. So basically we're soulmates. When we established that I was going to be in NYC on a day that she had availability, we knew that we needed to make a shoot happen. 

What you're about to see is the result of 2 boudoir photographers getting together very early one fahhh-reeeeeezing (to me) NYC morning for a little bit of scantily clad fun.

Do you see that smirk!?!?! GAH! Love love love!  She is just the stunningest. 

And... just a little peak into what this crazy talented lady shot of me:

Shot by Agnes Fohn of Yellow Brick Collective, NYC.

THANK YOU THANK YOU AGNES for your talent in front and behind the camera, thank you to Natalia Carrasco for totally perfecting Agnes' makeup for the shoot (and, apparently, doing a quick bang trim, too!). 

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! 

More than just pictures : It's the Sparkle | Austin Boudoir Studio

Before you even see a single photo, it's the EXPERIENCE that you need and deserve as a woman. We juggle. We are professional jugglers. Whether you are a stay-at-home-mom, a work-from home-mom, a work-out-of-the-home-mom, or just a working woman....I can guarantee that you are juggling tons of shit. 

It's also a safe bet that often times, of all the things you juggle, taking care to make sure that YOU are taken care of isn't one of those priorities. There just simply isn't that much time, I get it. 

As many articles as we read about making ourselves a priority so that the loved ones in our lives reap the benefits, it's downright HARD to find an hour a day to work out, it's hard to schedule a monthly girl's night with a bunch of busy women, it's hard to take 5 minutes out of your morning to meditate, it's hard to not feel guilty booking a 3 hour boudoir photo shoot experience when you know you've got others to take care of. 

But I can promise you, it's worth it. ALL OF THOSE THINGS: worth it.  Do I struggle with doing them, too? HELL.YES. But when I do, my family notices. *I* notice. I'm more productive. I'm happier. I've got a pep in my step. 
 

So did Miss "M" who is an insanely busy new mom who unexpectedly got the opportunity for a quick photo shoot one day last week. When she went to work in the morning, she had no idea that she would be grabbing her husband's hoodie out of the backseat of her car for a 20 minute dark and moody shoot with me. 

Like so many other women that come into my studio, she was tired. DAMN TIRED. She was doing SO much on a daily basis, it made even MY head spin. That made her words about her experience all-the-sweeter. 

“I can’t thank you enough for yesterday. It was just the pep I needed. Last night, while cooking dinner, my husband said I had a sparkle in my eye. I told him it was the wine...it’s still a secret!

I can’t wait to work with you again!”

— Miss M

SO....YOU.  Yes, YOUUUU there with the overflowing to-do list and the yoga pants that will not be seeing a yoga studio today because you're just too damn busy.....EMAIL ME at hello@karamarieboudoir.com . Let's chat. If you can give me at least 2 hours of your life, I promise that I can change the way you see yourself. 

Do it for 80-year-old-you | Austin Boudoir Studio

She wanted a set of pretty images to give to her husband-to-be on their wedding day in December. She ended up with the most stunning collection of the most stunning images to present to him...but more importantly...to look back on herself for the rest of time. 

I think *that* is one of the most overlooked outcomes of having a boudoir photo shoot done: The importance of having these KILLER images of YOU to look back on when you're 70, 80, 90 years old. To be able to look back and say "DAMN. THAT IS ME!". Even better, which is what I've been working on myself, is to have photos of yourself at different periods of time over the years.

You can watch yourself age, get wiser, get stronger, and get MORE confident through boudoir photos. 

Miss S brought poise, elegance, confidence, and beauty with her to her shoot last month. I have no doubt that her super gorgeous album is going to get a TON of view time for the rest of time. 

Miss "S" Said:

"First of all I can't thank you enough for this experience. You were amazing throughout the entire process, from emails to the actual shoot, plus your positivity is contagious! "

“As all the reviews say, you do make the entire experience so comfortable and easy, everything about the process exceeded my expectations by leaps and bounds.”

— Miss S

"You truly are an artist and you captured exactly what I had imagined in my wildest dreams. Thank you for being so amazing at what you do, I can't wait to do another shoot with you!"

So I urge you, YES. Do it for your spouse. YES. Do it for yourself. And HELLLLLL YESSSSS do it for 80-year-old you!  If you don't, you'll wish you had. If you do, you'll high five yourself while you're sitting on your porch swing crocheting a scarf, people-watching and flipping through your album (and probably snagging anyone who passes your house to come look at what a badass you are). How's THAT for a mental picture!? ;)

xo