A: When I do a model call I always have a certain “theme” I am going for. Whether that be a “long hair model call”, a “women of color model call”, a “couples model call” etc. Basically, once I post a model call for that theme I always have the interested clients email me their photos with a little bit about them and WHY they want to participate in the model call. I usually go with the clients that I feel I can connect with the most and the ones that I can feel genuinely want the experience.

Q: What is your most successful marketing tip!?

A:  I think the most successful marketing tip I can give to other photographers is to be REAL, have a good relationship with your clients and produce a good service and product. I’ve done online advertising, magazines etc in the past and honestly, they’ve never gotten me a whole lot. Word of mouth is your best marketing tool. When your client has an amazing experience with you they are going to tell everyone woman they know about it. And honestly, I am always going to listen to what a good friend of mine says vs. what I see in a magazine.

Q: What is your top selling pose?

A:  Hmm, that’s a hard one. I don’t really have top selling pose as every clients body is different and every pose looks different on different people. I do have a lot of clients request the couch poses where they sit on the edge of the arm and lean against the wall though… and its one of my favs <3

Q: Why did you choose boudoir?

A:  Honestly, I don’t really feel like I “chose” boudoir. As cliche, as it sounds, it kind of chose me. I remember shooting my very first wedding back in 2010 and the bride asked for photos in her lingerie and I thought “Oh shit… idk what I am doing”. And to this day, those are my favorite images from the wedding. So, as I shot weddings for so many years I continued to do boudoir on the side but nothing major. Then in October of 2014 I photographed a boudoir session for my mom. She was so beautiful but never saw her true beauty or worth. She passed away the following March of 2015 and to this day those photos are the most treasured photos I have. So, I decided this was it for me. I soon quit photographing weddings and went exclusive with boudoir. Its been the best decision I’ve ever made.

Q: What is your best tip for getting them to connect with the camera?

A: Like I said earlier, every client is different. Some automatically connect and werkkkkkk it but others don’t and that’s okay… because that is what I am here for. I often tell my clients to breathe out of their mouths to create a more relaxed feel and to close their eyes and think about their partners or think about something sexy… Sounds so weird, right? But it works, a good deep breath and a few shots with their eyes shut will help them open up. Once they see an image on my camera they are like “oh damn, I’m HOT… okay, I can do this” which usually breaks the ice completely.

Q:   How do you deal with the competitive market in your area? Have you lost friends from being so competitive? Silly question but real life problems…

A:  Well, there aren’t many other boudoir photographers in my area that SPECIALIZE in boudoir other than one other person and she does a great job as well. Sure, there are others that shoot it on the side but I don’t really view them as competition. At the end of the day, boudoir is very touchy and most women are going to want someone who specializes in it. Just like you wouldn’t want to bring your newborn to my studio and have me photograph it because they would be terrible. Same goes with boudoir… I’ve spent countless days and hours learning how to perfect my craft, how to pose a women’s body to best flatter her and most of the time my clients see this and is the reason they book with me. Plus, there is plenty of business to go around.

Q: How do you work with someone who’s body just seems so stiff and they can’t bend so well?

Q: A brand new photographer looking to do boudoir… Suggestions or tips??

A:  SHOOT, SHOOT AND SHOOT SOME MORE… Literally, practice makes perfect. Shoot your friends, your family members, whoever you can. Having a professional hair and makeup artist for your business is always extremely important as MUAH and make or break your photos which is why I only work with one exclusive artist.

Q: How would you begin to raise your prices and switch to IPS?

A: Start slow. Rome wasn’t built in a day and neither was a successful business. Start to raise your prices slowly and begin adding all of your products you want to offer to your clients in your studio. Your clients will want to see the products before they will buy them. Start educating your clients on why in person reveals and tangible products are important. I never have clients that want a CD of images anymore because what are they going to do with it? Take it to CVS and get shitty prints and the 16 year old boy working behind the counter gets to see all of their half naked images? GIRL BYE. Education is key.

Q: Who would be your #1 person to shoot out of anyone?

A: Ohh, that’s a hard one. I would LOVEEE to shoot Miranda Lambert or Carrie Underwood.

A:  I use Mastin Labs presets on occasion when I edit and other times I just hand edit everything… I usually start with white balance, contrast, highlights and shadows then exposure. Once the images look perfect I smooth skin with Florabella Ultra Smooth Skin actions.

Q: My forever question: how do you get paying clients to give you model release to post their session to your blog and social media?

A:  Ya know? I don’t think there is a secret to this. I have some clients that don’t care and others who are more conservative and don’t want their images shared which is also totally fine. I think a lot of clients are nervous about what their images are going to look like so they don’t want their images shared but a lot of the times once they see them and how amazing they are they usually don’t mind the world seeing how beautiful they are.