Eeeeeekkkkk!! You just booked a boudoir session! (Yassssss Girl!!! Get it!!) If you’ve booked with me or another professional photographer, I can promise you, you won’t regret your decision to invest in this experience for yourself! It’s amazing and freeing and empowering all rolled into one. But I’m not going to lie though, finding the courage to pull the trigger and book a boudoir session can be overwhelming, scary, and nerve wracking. I know this because I experienced these emotions myself when I booked my own session last summer. I don’t want you to stress or feel overwhelmed, so I’ve come up with the ultimate Boudoir preparation guide to help ease you through this amazing experience!!

After Booking

Relax, get a cup of coffee (or glass of wine) and read this guide to help you feel more at ease about your session!

2 Months Before

OUTFITS:  Start thinking about what you want to wear. I always include a pre-session phone consultation with my session fee. During the consult we will talk about how we can customize your session, what look you want to achieve, your fears and concerns, what to wear and more. I’m happy to provide advice on where to shop for outfits and what to buy based on your body type!

THINK AHEAD: Schedule your hair and nail appointments. Hair 2 weeks before, nails 3 to 5 days before.

2 Weeks Before

HAIR:  If you’re like me and you regularly get your hair cut and colored, now would be the best time to have that done. This would not be the best time to try out a new color or style.. stick with what you know you love!

SKIN:  Start using a moisturizer with self-tanner. It’s currently the dead of winter and everyone is pale. Let’s face it, you look healthier with a tan, so if you aren’t opposed, use an all over body lotion with self-tanner in it. At the very least, moisturize your body every day to get rid of that dry flaky winter skin.

1 Week Before

NAILS:  One very important detail I always remind my clients of is their nails! If you don’t regularly get manicures and pedicures, I recommend you splurge and get one a few days prior. A lot of the posing I do will have your hands and feet showing, the last thing you’ll want to focus on when you get your beautiful images is broken or chipped nails.

OUTFITS: Try on your outfit choices one last time to make sure you’re happy. I have a selection of lingerie and heels that clients are welcome to wear, but its best to bring a few choices that you know you love and feel comfortable in!

The Day of

EAT:  It’s so important to eat a small, but filling meal the morning of your session. Something light that won’t make you feel bloated, but will satisfy your hunger. You’re going to burn a ton of calories posing during your session, you’ll need the energy! Also, stay hydrated!! Make sure you’re drinking plenty of water.

SKIN: Hopefully by now you’ve been moisturizing every day, but it’s especially important to moisturize the day of with a light lotion, nothing too greasy. Also, be sure to use clear deodorant.

FACE & HAIR: Come with a clean face, no makeup at all. It’s also important to come with clean, dry hair. The hair and makeup experts at KiSSandMaKeUp will help you bring out your inner goddess and make you feel amazing from the very start! Feel free to bring inspiration photos if you’d like. Hair & Makeup standardly takes about an hour and a half.  Your makeup will be a lot heavier in person than it will be in the photographs. Plus you’ll be wearing false lashes. You may be a little shocked when you look in the mirror (is that me?!!), but trust me, when you see your final images you’ll see the difference between the makeup in real life as opposed to what it actually looks like in an image. You can read more about KissandMaKeUp in my blog post KiSSandMaKeUp Boudoir Hair & Makeup!

CLOTHING: Make sure you wear loose, comfy clothing to your session to prevent bra & underwear lines on your skin.

OUTFITS: If you’ve had a hard time narrowing down your outfit choices, it’s ok. Bring in everything. We’ll lay it all out to view everything at once and work together to choose the best pieces for your session.

A Few Don’ts

DON’T spray tan or tan in a tanning bed or use any sort of tanning lotion less than a week before your session; you should come with your skin looking as natural as possible. Sometimes spray tans and tanning lotions don’t photograph well and can leave you looking really orange in camera. No one wants that!

DON’T worry about feeling nervous. Everyone feels nervous at least a little. Don’t let it hold you back from getting the most out of your session!

After Your Session

THE REVEAL: 2 to 4 weeks (within 30 days) after your session, you’ll come back to my studio for your viewing appointment. I’ll show you all of the amazingness we created during your session in a slideshow and we’ll also go through the images in a gallery. We’ll talk about your favorites, what you want to do with them, you’ll get to see all of the products I offer, and I’ll guide you through the entire ordering process. The viewing appointment will be the only time you’ll be able to place an order.

SHARE YOUR EXPERIENCE! Don’t be shy!! Share your experience will other ladies! The gals in my boudoir group would LOVE to know the ins & outs of a session and could always use some encouragement – Share it with them!

I hope you found my ultimate boudoir checklist helpful! Still have questions about a boudoir session? Contact me so I can ease all of your concerns!