Hello world!
Today I want to give a special shout-out to one of my pride and joys: boudour photography at The Boudoir Cafe.
A boudoir photoshoot can have some amazing effects on a woman. (See The Boudoir Cafe blog for more about this...) But what about a significant other she is sharing the photos with? What are their reactions, before, during, and after the process?
I spoke with the greatest hubby ever, Tim, to see what he has to say about boudoir photography, The Boudoir Cafe, and our wonderful team. Tim had a lot to say about how it felt to be there during the whole process, as well as some helpful advice to guys considering boudoir!
Q: How did you find boudoir? What did you think about it at first?
A: Honestly, I think that the first time I heard about boudoir photography was through a social media advertisement for a wedding photography business that offered this option for brides to consider for their husbands as a wedding gift. First and foremost, as a guy, I was intrigued from the beginning and saw this as a quite creative, sexy, and edgy gift idea. I immediately asked myself how I could get my wife to do the same for me. However, my wife and I had long since tied the knot, so a wedding gift was out for us. But that didn’t mean that an anniversary or birthday gift would one day be out of the question. And for that matter, we really did not even need a specific milestone day…just a fun and unique experience, something out of the ordinary, unique, and special…just for us. The sensual side of it and maybe a small part of the edginess of this type of art was something that was attractive to me from the start. And it did not take much research to sell me on the process, the experience, and the end results.
Q: Were you able to become comfortable with the idea of your wife behind the camera? What made you comfortable after specifically talking to The Boudoir Cafe?
A: At first thought, I could see where it may seem a little odd, but there was never any overwhelming feeling of being uncomfortable during this whole process, even in the beginning. Besides, she’ll take the shoot where she wants to take it and what she’s comfortable with. I’m fortunate in that my wife has no real reservations about her body and is completely confident and comfortable in her own skin, so overall, if anyone was going to be uncomfortable here, it was going to be me. And IF I was uncomfortable, she would have sensed it and that may have influenced her decision in a different manner. So, for me to feel at ease, I did what anyone in my position would do…I did my research and I asked questions for both of us, a lot of them. To her credit, Cherie was very supportive, encouraging, and always available. It became clear to me very early that Cherie was the absolute best in the business, the consummate professional. Her credentials and awards speak for themselves, but her candor and ability to communicate and relate to clients is phenomenal. I’m sure that it would have been easy for her to focus her attention on my strictly my wife’s questions as she was the one in front of the camera, but she stuck it out with me as well. We discussed the shoot so much via phone and email, that by the day of the shoot, I had no concerns whatsoever. My wife and I both knew that she was in good hands and in for quite an experience. Later, with the success of the first shoot in one of The Boudoir Cafe studios, we planned a second shoot at one of Cherie's different locations. The planning involved in both shoots and the complete cooperation and constant communication from Cherie had long erased any doubts that I ever had. And my wife had an absolute blast. You could see it was very empowering for her during the shoot and the end results were far beyond anything that we expected. Just an unbelievable experience for everyone involved. The level to which Cherie and Hedley will go ensure a fantastic time for her clients is remarkable.
Q: How did you and your wife discuss this awesome decision? What were her thoughts
A: Well, I was approaching a milestone birthday and I knew that she was considering a number of options to surprise me with. But I brought this up in conversation one time on a date night and she was open to the idea, but wanted more information about what I was thinking and then more info on The Boudoir Café. A couple of weeks later, we looked over the website and looked at some of the gallery pictures. I got the feeling that if she had any reservations at all, the quality of the work found on the website in addition to online reviews squashed those. It was like we were dealing with the Super Bowl of boudoir photographers. Best in the world. From that point, it was fairly straightforward and simple. She told me to set it up for a certain timeframe and see if it could fit into her schedule. One specific characteristic that stood out early on was that Cherie was not just a photographer. She’s an artist and knows that her work tells a story that she’s responsible for communicating and she takes that very seriously. Anyone can take a picture. Not everyone is an artist. And even fewer are capable of producing the moments that she can.
Q: How would you describe the outcome?
A: In two words…Absolutely Stunning! I look at the outcome in two ways…first, how did my wife feel during and after the shoot and then second, what did we get to remember the moments caught on camera. And to both of these, I simply say, absolutely stunning. We both felt like our expectations going in and far been exceeded. And Cherie has such a catalog of options for how to preserve those moments from photobooks to a variety of canvas prints, the list is just too long to print here. Just talk with her and look over what she offers. If you don’t see what you like, just tell her what you are envisioning and if it’s possible, she’ll make it happen. It may be that you don’t know what you are looking for…she can help you with that too. But again…the end products were more than just what I received later. Just knowing that my wife was having a blast…from the make-up and hair prior to the shoot, to picking out the lingerie, to working it in front of the camera…all of that is what makes the experience. Don’t get me wrong; I thoroughly enjoy the take-aways daily. But the entire package is the REAL deal and it’s exactly why I brought this up with my wife in the first place. In the end, it was more than just about what I wanted. I knew that there was going to be a great end result for her as well. And from her perspective, she’s absolutely thrilled with the experience and what we have preserved through keepsakes.
Q: What do you recommend to other men who are considering, or maybe have just found, boudoir?
A: I would honestly say that if their curiosity has piqued and they are considering it, then they should definitely follow up on it. If you are like me, you would not be able to erase it from your thoughts. Trust your intuition. My intuition said that my wife would not only gladly do this for me but that she’d be comfortable with it once all of her questions were answered. I was right. But I doubt that she would have done it without me bringing it up. I had to be the one to take the initiative for her to see how much I really wanted her to do it. But obviously, discuss it with her, do the research with her…don’t be shy. There will be a point in which she can take over the planning and keep you guessing or perhaps she’ll let you do all the planning yourself which is just as fun. That’s the way my wife preferred it, but wanted me to keep her in the loop. Take a look around…look at other photography studios that offer boudoir photos. Do the comparisons. But don’t underestimate the need for wives/girlfriends/significant others to feel at ease and in an environment that is supportive, encouraging, and high energy and that captures what they want to portray. You simply need to look no further than the great folks at The Boudoir Café.
Q: Anything else you can say about The Boudoir Cafe!!
A: You establish a real relationship with Cherie and Hedley. They are great people, very trustworthy and supportive, and truly want you to get the best out of the experience. For some folks, this may be a once in a lifetime type shoot, so why not go all out? For others, the first time alone may fuel the desire to do it again….and maybe again. There are a lot of boudoir studios out there, but I am convinced that there is only one Boudoir Café. Why settle for anything less than the best? We are so comfortable with the process and those involved that we will do it again, but we’ll only go with Cherie and Hedley. They are great visionaries and really are able to create exactly the look and experience that is desired. They’ve done it twice for us and we would not hesitate for a third shoot…we even have a few ideas in mind now.