Boudoir FAQ

Investment & Timing

How much will it cost me?

You’ll spend whatever the experience and art is worth to you. Our options for a boudoir photoshoot experience including minimal prints or digital images start at $295. Professional hair and makeup is additional. See all of our collection options on our main site.

How much will it cost for professional hair & makeup?

The price varies depending on your portrait collection. Higher collections offer greater discounts on hair and makeup. In fact, it’s included in our top 2 collections! But even for our smallest collection, we cover a portion of the fee since we feel it’s important for you to feel as confident as possible for your photoshoot.

Do you offer payment plans?

Yes! You can divide your total photoshoot experience investment into up to 6 monthly automatic payments. There are no additional fees for payment plans. We do need 50% of the total before final prints & digital files are released. So some choose to pay half up front and put the remainder on a monthly payment plan.

If I want my images by a certain date, when do I need to schedule my shoot?

We typically can work you into our schedule with 1-2 weeks notice. Once we do your shoot, it’ll be about a week until your viewing & ordering session. Digital items you purchase will be available immediately upon payment. Prints take another 2 weeks or so. Albums, including design time, printing & shipping, can take 3-4 weeks. The sooner you book your session, the better!

I’d like to lose weight first.

Most people would like to lose a few (or a lot of) pounds before taking photos. But don’t wait! How long have you been planning to lose the weight? For many, this is an ongoing battle. Instead of waiting for a goal weight which could take months or years, show off who you are now. We’ll photograph you in the most flattering lighting and poses possible, which will present your curves in all the right ways. And when you finally get to your goal weight, we’ll photograph you again for the best before & afters!

What if I get my period?

It’s absolutely understandable that you want to look and feel your best for your boudoir photoshoot. For the most part, how you feel when you’re on your period is just that, a feeling. You won’t look noticeably different. However, we want you to feel as confident as possible and are more than happy to reschedule for you if you prefer.

Location

Where do boudoir photoshoots take place?

We can shoot in your home (or ours) or a friend’s home if there’s enough space for our lights. Otherwise, we have a few rental options, including gorgeous hardwood floored studios or beautiful hotel rooms. We cover the first $100 of location rentals. The remainder is up to you.

Some spots we’ve used in the past:

• Studio 52 North (Middletown, CT) Rate: $60/4 hours Mon-Fri
• The Gentle Bull – 3 studios (Hartford, CT) Rate: $95+/hour
• Arbor Light Studio (Hartford, CT) Rate: $175/2 hours
• Goodwin Hotel (Hartford, CT) Rate: $250+ room/suite rental
• Chetstone Manor (New Haven, CT) Rate: $200/2 hours Mon-Thur

Will you do a boudoir photoshoot outdoors?

Yes! Depending on how skimpy your clothing choices are, it’ll be important that it’s a secluded area, but we’re more than happy to shoot outdoors.

Attendees

Who else might be there?

If you’ve requested our hair & makeup artist to be present for touch-ups or a change of look mid-way, she will be there. For more involved shoots, we may require an assistant, in which case we will discuss this with you before your session. Otherwise, it will be just you and us, the photographers.

Do you both have to be there?

We often work as a husband and wife team. While Heidi directs and handles most of the technical details, Johnathon captures gorgeous and artistic candid moments throughout the shoot. His images are often client favorites, much to Heidi’s dismay. **insert crying meme here** You won’t regret the team approach, but if you’re more comfortable with one or the other of us, we’re happy to accommodate you.

Can I bring a friend for emotional support?

As long as your friend is 100% supportive of you and your goal, then absolutely! We want you to feel your best during your session. So no negative nancy’s or nitpicking friends. And one friend only please.

What to Bring

What should I bring to my shoot?

Bring 2-5 outfits, depending on the portrait collection you choose. Bottled water and supplies to retouch your hair and makeup if you wish.

Do you provide the wardrobe?

We don’t, since sharing intimate wear would be a health risk.  We’ve used a few websites for inexpensive lingerie that have worked out great. (Try shein.com, adoreme.com, and for higher end items thistleandspire.com)

What kind of lingerie is most flattering?

This varies for every body type. You probably know what you feel sexiest in. Wear that! If you need some help, we’re happy to consult with you for your particular body type. 

Retouching

How much retouching do you do?

For the most part, we do light skin smoothing. We’ll remove light acne and fresh cuts/scabs but we prefer to leave your natural permanent markings as they are, including scars and stretch marks. These define you and the life you’ve lived. However, if they bother you, we can discuss further retouching options.

• What we don’t do:
  Warp bodies. At least not digitally. Instead, we use everything we know about perspective, light & shadow to pose you in the most flattering way possible.
• Fix chipped nail polish. Make sure your polish is either pristine or removed.
• Fix tan lines. Tan lines can be sexy in certain areas of the body. But if you’re concerned about bad tan lines, it’s best to reschedule your appointment.
• Remove unwanted hair. However you choose to groom yourself, be sure to do so before your shoot. If you’d like to go all natural, great! But if you prefer smooth underarms or bikini line and forget to groom before you come, we won’t retouch it out later.

Prints & Digital Files

What options are there for printing the images from my shoot?

We offer standard archival prints as well as canvas wraps, custom designed albums, and image boxes.

Can I make my own prints?

Yes! We offer digital files which come with the rights to share the images online and make your own prints. Digital files are also a great way to archive and backup your images.

Image Use

Are you going to share my images on your website & social media?

Only if you’re proud of them and would like us to! We love to share as many as possible for the best variety in our portfolio. All of the images you see on our website were shared with the model’s permission. Some requested anonymous images only. We’re perfectly okay with that. And perfectly okay if you’re not comfortable sharing any of your images at all. No questions asked.