Heya lovely peeps! So I am sure you have heard us ranting and raving in excitement over the James Bond inspired boudoir photo shoots we did during WPPI week in Las Vegas. If you didn’t, well then we ask you kindly to follow us on Instagram, cuz you missed seriously exciting moments in the world of Marissa Kimberlee!! (Instagram: boudoirdivasmarissa & kimberlee_boudoirdivas).
The idea behind these shoots is that we really wanted photographers to have a chance to be pampered and get in front of the lens. To be honest, I think we may have had even more fun than all of our clients did (if that’s possible!) – because it was three packed days filled with laughter, smiles, and a little controlled-creative-chaos all around.
We have quite a que of photos in the chamber ready to fire off on our bloggy blog here (forgive me for the bond-esq wording) but we are thinking we may space them out a bit to keep from completely blowing your mind with the beauty of these ladies. So we are going to kick it off with the Bond Bombshell Bonnie. Not everyone gave permission to share their images, and that’s TOTALLY fine, we get that. We just wanted to thank those of you who have given permission for us to share, as well as thank all of you ladies for allowing us to have the unforgettably fabulous time shooting you.
It wouldn’t be fair to show off these amazing photos and not give our sponsors a shout out. They equip us with so many wonderful things to make these shoots happen. See pic below, this is one of our fave new on location ASSETS, a Triton Flash. This thing is so portable and so powerful, especially since it’s battery powered, and we love the way it makes images looks so high quality and so fashion mag-ish. LOVE.
Thank you again, Bonnie, for being so fabulous in front of the lens. We had an incredible time with you, and we think you are GORGEOUS. (PS, that’s her husband in the background, standing in as Mr. Bond for a few shots!) Stay tuned and keep checking the blog as we will be posting more images from our other fabulous Vegas clients soon.
Hey photographer friends! If you’ve been to one of our workshops or heard us speak, you’ve probably already heard about how we like to give our clients fun little gifts and surprises as a way to thank them for booking a shoot with us. If our clients are trusting us enough to book a boudoir shoot with our studio, we want to be sure that we are taking care of them and that we tell them thank you! We are a huge proponent of handwritten thank you cards (we order our custom cards from Bay Photo). And then we also like to give another something small as a surprise – right now we’re giving away bonus wallet images. In the past, though, we have also given away fabulous custom lipglosses that we had made with our logo. This was a really fun concept, and it’s something we’ve been thinking about doing again.
So we wanted to throw out an informal poll to all of you out there….. we have an awesome company that we are thinking of ordering these lipglosses through, and we wanted to get some feedback from all of you photographers to see if this is something you would be interested in ordering. So leave a comment below and let us know your thoughts!
Please tell us:
1) How many lipglosses would you want to order for the year,
and
2) Any other comments about this idea!
Once we hear from you, we’ll let you know more info about the amazing makeup company that can get these lipglosses for you!
We have some great news for you. www.BoudoirInternational.com has completely exceeded our expectations “visits” wise! Wow. Since the 1st of this year we have had 9,824 people visit Bou Int. That means that so many people are seeing you! We are still plugging away at it, doing our best to get it ranked really well on Google, but truth is the majority of the hits come from our splash page – www.theboudoirdivas.com – which does rank really well on Google. We are thrilled to see this site do its thang!
If you would like to be listed on Boudoir International we invite you to first visit this page and it’s highly recommended you watch the vid to really understand what this about. Then submit your boudoir biz on the form here! (PS – to anyone who has submitted their business recently… we will be going through ALL submissions and sending out new invitations very soon! We’ve been overwhelmed – in a good way – with so many awesome photographers wanting to be listed on the site, so it’s taking a while to get through them all. But we will be in touch very soon!!!)
Thanks to all of the fabulous photographers who are listed on Boudoir International – we are so proud to have you on this site and can’t wait to continue to see it grow. xoxo, K&M
Are you starting your boudoir photography business? These are the basics, so if you already know all this, done a lot of it, then congrats! – you are no longer a boudoir beginner! 🙂 And that in itself is a big hurdle because as with anything worth doing, it can be a little daunting in the beginning. We created some steps for those of you beginner boudoir photographers, in hopes that you don’t feel too overwhelmed. I know when I can see my steps listed out in front of me clearly, it can be so much easier to press forward with a large task.
1> YOU MUST BELIEVE ALL WOMEN ARE BEAUTIFUL AND WANT TO SERVE HEARTS THROUGH THE PHOTOGRAPHY PROCESS
We know this is a little intense and perhaps a little “preachy” to put out there as numero uno. But the thing is, if you can’t say “absolutely yes!” to this first one, then there is no point in reading the rest. A boudoir photographer can’t be successful without the desire to serve women with this important belief. All of our clients have different stories, but what they all have in common is that having your boudoir photo taken is a vulnerable thing and it’s our job to make sure they feel 100% comfortable, and to go on that journey of elevating their confidence together.
2> You made it to number 2, ah that makes us so happy. Numero dos is PHOTOGRAPHY.
Boudoir Photography. I wish we could say it’s easy, but it’s not. Knowing how to make every woman look gorgeous, and well not just gorgeous, but the MOST gorgeous she thinks she has looked. Ever. You have to know your stuff, you need to study, practice, and then always have a game plan on shoot days. It’s taken us so many years not feel nervous before a boudoir shoot – we had to nail what looked best, and then create recipes. It took us a little bit of trial & error, and lots of practice with models and some willing friends before we felt 100% confident that we knew what posing and lighting is best to flatter a woman & make her look her very best in her boudoir photos. Let’s breakdown how we can tangibly help you.
>>>>RECIPES: We put all of what we’ve learned into products you can buy. I know that sounds like an infomercial, and it’s obvious we are being a little salesy, BUT the thing is we KNOW that these products work. We spent so much time creating them, are so very proud of them, and have seen so many other photographers rise to boudoir bad-ass-ness because they have implemented a lot of what we taught in them. The best way to learn is through our Boudoir Workshops and Retreats! And then we have other products too – visit our shop to see them all (of course I recommend the Essential Boudoir Started Kit).
”I just really wanted to send you a long overdue message of thanks. You guys really gave me so much. You gave me the confidence to be me. I have so much more to learn – but you really taught me not to be held back by what the photography society says is ‘correct’. It’s been almost a year and my business has grown in amazing ways. I’m just finishing my busiest season ever – and I’ve already booked a bunch of work for next year! Anyway – I just really wanted to say thanks.” xo, Jennifer Rozenbaum (Jenerations Boudoir, featured on CreativeLive recently.)
>>>>EQUIPMENT: We get so many emails asking us specifically what equipment we use, and it took us a really long time to figure out what we works for us. We compiled not only a list, but a complete, DETAILED boudoir shopping list on Amazon so you can easy purchase what you need. (Be sure to click through all of the tabs – we have camera equipment, lighting equipment, and more!)
>>>> PRACTICE. This is fun part! Once you have studied, & gotten some of the basic on the equipment list, now it’s time to enlist your gal pals and get some boudoir hours in! Don’t let yourself stress during this time – just give yourself some grace and know that you may not come out of the gates as an amazing boudoir champ with no mistakes and no fears (we sure didn’t!) But we clocked a TON of practice hours. The goal is to get comfortable working with women of all shapes and sizes, to figure our what works best for you, and to create a portfolio so you can show the world what you do, and then start booking clients!
3>MARKETING
We could go on and on forever regarding this one. We love branding and marketing for boudoir photography. We cover this topic quite a bit during our boudoir workshop… but for now, here are just a few top tips for all of you who are just getting started with boudoir:
1. Focus on your web presence. Your website is huge (we recommend Showit or BluDomain or even Squarespace, there are great options out there), then your Facebook page for your business, and perhaps a blog (or use your FB page like a blog). (PS – if you want a cool template for your Showit site, check out Promise Tangeman’s amazing Sitehouse designs like this one!)
2. Get some killer testimonials and put them everywhere. A video testimonial is best! When we started, we photographed our friends and then asked for their honest feedback. We used their responses as our first testimonials.
3. Build a brand. Choose UNIQUE fonts and a unique color palette, and then stick to it! Be recognizable and be consistent.
4. Be careful where you spend your advertising dollars. We tried to not put anything on credit when we were starting up, so choose wisely. We love bridal fairs because they are relatively affordable and then we get to chit chat with potential clients.
4>CREATING VALUE THROUGH CUSTOMER SERVICE AND CUTE TOUCHES
There are many ways to describe customer service, but one thing is for sure, a biz will tank without it. We aren’t perfect, but we do our best to be personal and create a fun experience that our clients will rave about because we have done small things to help them feel special. We are very friendly, very kind, and we truly CARE about each and every client that comes to our studio. And our clients know that we do! We try to go above and beyond for our clients. One example of that is in the boudoir photo shoot experience, we are their cheerleader, friend, and confidant. The shoot may have been the third one we did that week, maybe we are feeling under the weather, but even on our worst day our client will know that we had the time of our life shooting them.
We try to add value in every way possible. And “value” doesn’t mean it’s a big expense to us. For example, when our clients pick up their boudoir book, they receive a set of bonus wallets that we picked from their book images. It’s affordable and easy for us to order, and it’s a fun little surprise for them!
5>CONSISTENCY
Going back to our “boudoir recipes” for a second, another reason we love creating recipes is because we want to be consistent with every client. Another word for recipes could be ‘systems.’ And our systems make sure that one woman’s experience step-by-step will be the same as her friend’s experience who referred her (not exactly the same – of course if will be unique… but the high level of service will be consistent!!) From the booking procedure to the photo shoot to the viewing and product delivery… the goal of giving your clients stellar service and an amazing experience should be the same for every single person.
6> THE FINANCIALS
Either get a bookkeeper right away, or take a bookkeeping class immediately. When starting I read Quickbooks for Dummies, the whole thing, and it still wasn’t enough. Having a bookkeeper is a big expense every month, but I can tell you that a business can needs accurate financials to make decisions and find areas to improve upon. You need to know where your money is going. You especially need an accurate profit and loss report every month to make big financial decisions, set goals for your business, and see progress.
6>DETAILS
Cleanliness, friendliness, creativity, fashion-mindedness (made up word), keeping your word, exceeding client expectations, writing personal thank you cards, phone calls instead of emails, cute packaging, personalized touches, yummy candy, bonus little gift products.
Well alrighty photog friends, that is a very brief summary for now with some basic tips on how to get started in boudoir. Above all if you are passionate about this and work you booty off, we know that you will be successful! Boudoir photography is very rewarding, and it has been one of the biggest blessings in our life. We hope the same for you!
2017 Edit- We still think everything in the blog post is still completely relevant. Life and our business has gotten so busy, and we will be moving studio in MAY! We wanted to launch one final in studio boudoir workshop to celebrate all the good things that happened in that space for 10 years!! Life is busy so we haven’t been doing workshops for a bit now, but if you are interested in attending this on in May 2017, please email us at [email protected] so we can be sure to let you know about it!
And here is a little up to date video on all things The Boudoir Divas:
Ahhhhhh!!!! We are so excited to share this video with you. As you know, we just LOVE traveling, we love adventures, and we love capturing images of all the beauty that God has surrounded us with. Thank you to all of the people who were a part of our Caribbean Editorial Video… mainly: Our sponsors, Bay Photo, Photoflex, & Graphistudio. We love the music in this video, the first two songs are by Bellamaine (go buy their brand-spankin-new CD, “Anxious Mind”, on iTunes right now!) – and the last song is by Nicole Vaughn. Please go support these artists & buy their music! We also want to thank Esperanza Riding Company for the location and huge help with the horses! And, of course, our awesome team… Deena, Peggy, Weston, Kyle, Chris… and last but not least, our model Anna! Thank you everyone for helping make our Caribbean dream come true!
Ok, and now for the exciting announcement:
We are so thrilled to announce that we will be shooting some boudoir sessions in Paris, France this spring!
We would love to send you some more information if you’d like to book a shoot with us in Paris! Please email us: [email protected] if you’re interested, and we will get you all the juicy details.
Hey everyone! It seems like only yesterday we were traversing the streets of Paris, shooting and learning and meeting some wonderful photographers from around the world. In case you’d like to see our video recap from the 2012 Paris Boudoir workshop, here it is!!!
Stay tuned for an announcement about our plans for Paris in 2013………
Hello photographer friends! We just wanted to share some images of our newest art on our walls at the San Diego studio! We want our studio to have tons of high-impact images on the walls. So we are just super excited about these new ones. We just got these large prints from Bay Photo – and we LOVE the way they look! Aren’t they BEAUTIFUL?!! We ordered canvas prints – size 24×36, with the 3/4″ wrap. (Check out more info on the Fine Art Giclée Gallery Wraps here). Do you need to spruce up your studio a little bit? Do you have samples of large prints for your boudoir clients to view during their ordering session? NO? Then… what are you waiting for?! 🙂 Go place an order RIGHT NOW for some large prints for your studio. Annnndddd… if you order before the end of Feb, you’ll get 40% OFF!!!!
Hey everyone! Happy Wednesday!!! We just wanted to start by saying a huge thank you to everyone who joined us for the Graphistudio webinar yesterday. We LOVE educating and inspiring boudoir photographers, so thank you again, Graphistudio, for inviting us to be a part of such an amazing community. I did forget to mention something in the webinar yesterday, though… Graphistudio is currently offering an awesome discount on all of your sample books. (Click here for more info). If you haven’t yet decided on an album company to showcase your beautiful boudoir work, we highly recommend Graphistudio. Last year we had the opportunity to visit the Graphistudio headquarters in Italy. We were able to meet members of the team in Italy, walk through the showroom and factory areas, and we actually saw the Graphistudio team making their gorgeous books… watching a woman HAND-craft the cover of a beautiful leather book… it was just such a cool experience! If you aren’t currently working with Graphistudio, why not fill out the info form and get started with creating your own sample today!
We also want to encourage you to have updated sample books to show off to your clients & potential clients. If you don’t have a sample for your clients to hold in their hands, you aren’t going to sell. You need to have a tangible, physical book to hand over. We’re gearing up for bridal fair season with boudoir, too – we want our clients to have the BEST books out there, and so we are going to be promoting our Graphistudio books this year a lot more with our gorgeous boudoir gals. I (Kimberlee) am in the midst of designing a new studio sample that we’re going to order from Graphistudio, using this awesome discount. We’re going to use these images from our beautiful client, Miss Angelique…
We will be sure to post photos once we receive our sample album here at the studio. Can’t wait to show it off to YOU – and to our clients! xoxo, The Divas
And if you’re interested in finding out more about Graphistudio, check out this video:
Hey photographers – are you ready for Vday!?? Do you have your marketing plan in place? Do you know how to reach out to potential clients in the next few weeks?
If you’re not sure that you’re ready, then we would LOVE to have you join us tomorrow, January 15, at 12noon Pacific (2pm Central time), for a 1-hour webinar – brought to you by Graphistudio! We are thrilled to be joining Graphistudio again for another webinar, and we are excited to share some of our favorite tips on marketing for Valentine’s Day! If you’d like to join us, simply go register here – and we’ll see you tomorrow!
I’m guessing you may have heard us mention our term, “Believe in Beauty.” You have also probably seen many shoots we have done in celebration of this in-house philosophy that we have – with another one of those shoot videos to be debuted very soon! But we wanted to talk for a moment about what the term means to us.
We are so grateful that we get to have a career that allows for us to dream big, to play with concepts and execute them. But while we may be the artists/documenters of these projects and dreams, we are not the creators. We are simply given the amazing privilege to document the beauty all around us that the Lord blesses us all with. We believe he gives us all this beauty in our daily lives as a sweet gift to His children. So the line “Believe in Beauty” is more of a way of giving Him the glory.
In our journey we have been inspired time and time again. Films, photos, writings that make our hearts warm and fuzzy and point to the beauty that we get to be a part of because of God’s love. We believe that it all points, and alludes to, the beauty that is to come in heaven. Here is just one of those pieces that we are inspired by – by Louis Vitton. Click on the image to get warm and fuzzy inspiration nuggets in your belly….
An example of our believing in HIS beauty, is that we know that he made every woman uniquely beautiful. He created us all different, and we are so fortunate to be able to photograph everyday what we (biasly) think is one of his most gorgous and perfect creations: women.
We are so grateful to be able to document HIS beauty. It inspires us to want dream big. To create plans and art pieces that ignite our hearts and others’ hearts so much so that it’s clear that this wasn’t us, that the glory completely goes to God. This is an attitude and posture that we are doing our best to always hold on to throughout the day. I (Marissa) have discovered that the best way to do this is through a prayer I wrote and that I am working to memorize and pray each morning when I wake up and trod around fumbling for my slippers and coffee. We’d like to share it with you if that’s okay 😉
Dear God,
My Provider, My Creator, My King… today I am before you, thankful for my life. I thank you that I have another day to ask for your mercy that is new every morning. I ask for you to fill me with your love. And may I understand just how much you love us — “I have loved you with an everlasting love” (God’s words in Jer 31:3). Help me to understand my worth as a child of God. May I be a symbol of light and hope for you. Let me not grow weary of doing good. I pray that you would bless and protect those around me. May you be my Shield and my Sun (Psalm 84:11). Fill me with the fruit of your Spirit: love, patience, kindness, understanding, strength and wisdom. Place dreams in my heart that only You can fulfill, so that when they come to be… YOU will have all the glory. -Amen
