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One Hot Mama… Sexy at Sixty-one!

In honor of Mother’s Day coming up on the 12th, I’m thrilled to be featuring… my mom!

My mom, Sandina, was my first symbol of femininity and sensuality. I remember, as a little girl, sitting on my parents’ bed in my soccer uniform, watching fascinated as my mom artfully put on make-up and got dressed up to go out for the evening. Curious why she chose one pair of stockings over another. Putting on heels, sexy slacks (it was the 70′s), a partly sheer top or revealing neckline… to me, it was all so risque´!

Well now many years later, she and I recently celebrated her 61st birthday with a photo shoot. And this time, I helped her choose which outfits, pampered her with a professional make-up and hair stylist, and captured her the way I see her… playful, elegant, hysterical, sassy… beautiful.

My mom also makes the perfect subject for the 2nd installation of our new blog series focusing on having a healthy relationship with your body, being comfortable in your own skin, and enjoying your body and life. So I took this opportunity to interview her to share her inspiration:

Christa: Describe your body in 5 words.
Sandina: Curvy, strong, comfortable, mature, balanced.

How do you feel about your body?
I look in the mirror and start to see the wear and aging starting to set in, and it is frightening! Most days, I feel good about my body, especially when I’m on track with exercising, and I’m wearing the perfect outfit. When I start to get down about my body, I do something to make me feel better about myself, such as go for a massage, facial, a spa day, and last but by no means the least, shop for that killer outfit.

What do you love about your body?
It’s unique, mine, and one of a kind. There really is not one specific part that I love and always want to show off. If I have to pick because you’re making me (Christa: Yes, I am), I would say my ass. It still has a pretty good shape. And my breasts – I know many women would kill for full breasts – I was lucky and was born with them.

How did you feel about being half-naked in front of the camera?
Well, at first I felt shy and stupid, trying to be model-like, but then I started to open up and get into the zone. Then it was fun and felt glamorous.

How did you feel after seeing the photos we created?
Pretty, sexy and wonderful. When I’m looking at them, I see the playful side of myself again. And I think: hey, I look pretty damn good, especially for my age.

What’s your go-to item to wear to feel smoking hot?
Silk.

What’s your best tip for feeling gorgeous?
Pamper yourself in every way. (Christa: Really? You do this?) Absolutely, even if it’s just a quick massage, pedicure, hair color change, or new haircut. It works for me.

How do you feel about your age?
Love it and not afraid to show it.

You used to never want people to know your age. Can I mention on the blog that you’re 61?
Honestly, I used to be that way when I was 50! But now, I have finally accepted my age. So you’re right – I’ve changed. And yes, I welcome you to show my age.

Do you feel like your age affects how sexy you truly are?
Not at all!

What gets better with age?
Confidence. Accepting who you are. I also think you begin to look at your body differently. I know when I was younger, before being married, I hated my body and tried so hard to be pretty and look good like everyone else. But now, I accept myself and am okay with the way I look. I have a certain body type that will never, never be skinny, and now with age, I get it!! I no longer worry about pleasing others or how I compare. I’m my own person, and I’m happy.

What’s the best compliment you ever received?
“You’re how old?!” Just kidding. Any compliment I get from my children is good. The compliment I hear the most is from my girl friends. They say I have nice skin. It’s so nice to hear that. I can be so critical of myself sometimes. So hearing these positive compliments keeps me thinking, “It’s not so bad that I’m getting older.”

And without further ado, here are a few pics from our photo shoot…
My mama loves her hats!

You gotta love her…

Thanks Mom! I feel very fortunate to have a fabulous role model for loving life, having a sense of humor about yourself, and enjoying what it is to be a woman.

Lots of love and inspiration to every woman, and Happy Mother’s Day to every mama out there in advance!

xoxo, Christa

May 4, 2013 | 45 Comments - Leave a comment!

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A Curvy Conversation

Welcome to a new blog series that focuses on having a healthy relationship with your body, being comfortable in your own skin, and enjoying your body and life.

Exactly the way they are.

I’d love for you to join me and begin to shift away from a place of criticism, doubt, and dislike to a place of positive focus, celebration and excitement.

I’m thrilled to kick off this body-and-life-lovin’ with Katherine Roll, a beautiful curvaceous woman and model that I photographed recently, who had never done a boudoir photography shoot before.

During our shoot, Katherine was so confident and comfortable with her body, that afterwards I interviewed her to share the inspiration!

CHRISTA: Describe your body in 5 words…
KATHERINE: Beautiful, classic, feminine, hourglass, voluptuous

How do you feel about your body?
My body and I have been through a lot together. I have been a size 10, a size 20, and every size in between. I feel that there are parts that I can work on in order to make it a healthier body, such as working out regularly, sticking to a healthy diet, and steering clear of bad habits. I feel that my body has boosted my career in ways that I never would have expected. Being a size 18 plus-size model, I have had obstacles along the way, but have grown to appreciate, maintain, and love my curves.

What do you love about your body?
I love being able to inspire women to be comfortable in their own skin, no matter what shape or size they may be. I believe that my curves are powerful and can change people’s perception of the plus-sized woman and standard plus-size model. I believe I carry my size-18 self well. I dress appropriately and because I believe in myself, I exude confidence in every direction.

How did you feel about being naked in front of the camera? (Those pics not shown here.)
As you know, I had never done an implied nude shoot before, and was surprisingly comfortable being nude in front of the camera. You and your team made me feel comfortable, beautiful and at ease, and you gave me great direction to get the perfect shots.

How did you feel after seeing the photos we created?
I feel that they are sexy, sensual, and beautiful, without being provocative, inappropriate or too revealing. I love the way you captured the light so perfectly. I had never had a boudoir shoot before, and loved seeing my body in a sexy flattering way.

What’s your go-to item to wear to feel smoking hot?
I personally love extremely high heels. High heels give the ultimate confidence boost. Once you find a great pair of high heels that are a perfect fit, you automatically stand up straighter, appear slimmer, and exude confidence.

What’s your best tip for feeling gorgeous?
Knowing what fits. Feeling confident is one thing – but looking the part is another. Too often I see plus-sized women wearing clothing that is not the correct size for them – whether it be too large or too small. Trying on multiple sizes in the same dress or pants can show you what is truly comfortable and what looks the best. A great fitting bra can also give you the support you need to feel 10x better than you did before!

How do you feel about the term “plus-sized”?
I am content with being called ‘plus-sized.’ I find that the ‘plus’ or ‘+’ means ‘in addition to’ and therefore, simply defines my size as additional sexiness added to the straight sized woman.

What’s the best compliment you ever received?
The best compliment I have ever received came from a young girl. She has been following my career since day one, and told me how she was inspired by me to love her curves, accept her body at the size it is, and even pursue modeling. She often messages me with new exciting things happening in her career, and I love knowing that my body and confidence helped get her there.

Thank you, Katherine, for the honesty and inspiration!

(Don’t you just love her point of view on “plus-sized” meaning “additional sexiness!” Now THAT is positive focus.)

Stay tuned for more of Katherine, different body types, lots of inspiration, resources and body-loving on the blog.

Here’s to lovin’ up your bod and life even more today :)

xoxo, Christa

ps. this series will be an ongoing open conversation. I’m really excited to hear your thoughts!
What is one thing you love about your body? Lets start there. Leave me a comment below.

April 16, 2013 | 25 Comments - Leave a comment!

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Working it! Creating Variety, No 2.

Boudoir photography is all about using what you’ve got and focusing on what’s awesome. Remember that post, Working It! Creating Variety, on how to create beauty and variety when you show up on a crappy shoot location? Well here’s another little tip in the same vein. So when you’re low on pretty backdrops and you’ve already shot every wall in the room plus the seamless background paper…

TRY THIS—> Watch this quick 1 minute+ video to see how we created the backdrop in the shot above.

CLICK PLAY

To watch the entire 45-minute behind-the-scenes video of this shoot,
join us for the next Online Boudoir Workshop, coming this fall!
Get on the list here—>

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And here are some more of my favorite pics from this boudoir photography session with Mrs. X, a thirty-three year old mom in Los Angeles (yes, I travel for shoots!). Her favorite body parts that she loves are her eyes, boobs and bum – so we went ahead and focused on that :)

Mrs. X confessed to being super nervous before our shoot, but as you can see, that didn’t stop us from capturing beautiful sensual pictures.

Pretty stunning for a mom who had never posed before and was “soooo nervous” right?

We had a blast on this shoot, and Mrs. X was super fun, open to all ideas, and the sweetest woman you’d ever want to meet. A big THANK YOU to Mrs. X! for being brave and vulnerable, and letting me share your pictures as well as the process in making them.

Hope you loved the tip I shared in the video! Leave a comment and let me know if it’s helpful and if you’d like to see more!

xoxo, Christa

PS. If you’d like to see the BTS vid of this entire shoot plus tons more, join us for the next Online Boudoir Workshop, coming this fall! Get on the list here—>

April 9, 2013 | 8 Comments - Leave a comment!

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Secret Photoshop Recipe: Rusty Cage!

Last week we talked about creating smoking hot gorgeous light with a two light setup, and this week I wanted to discuss how to create even more of a smoky dramatic look with one of my favorite action secret recipes, using TRA’s Rusty Cage!

This action, Rusty Cage, is the most dramatic difference you’ll see in my before and after’s – it is the only action I use that is not subtle. Of course it can be more subtle if you use less of it (ie. adjust the opacity layers to a lesser percentage). You’ll see that I even set some layers of the action at 0%. I use Rusty Cage when I want to create an even moodier, more dramatic, smokier feel, or a look that resembles a painting.

You can use it with natural light, strobes or any available light – as you see demonstrated here.

When shooting on a shoestring budget with a non-model and no assistants or supplemental lighting (ie. no strobes, or video light, or even a reflector), I am working to shoot fast (usually only 4 to 5 minutes for a quick little set) using just available light to flatter her as best I can. This shot is a perfect example: a dimly lit hotel lobby where we did ask permission to shoot, since it was packed during Fashion Week in NYC. I said we’d take one or two shots and be quick and be done.

Available Light, AFTER

(Pic above)

Available Light, BEFORE:

Settings: 24-70mm, 2.8, ISO 6400, 125 sec.

MY SECRET RECIPE

Rusty Cage, by Totally Rad Actions

Rusty Cage Light @ 41%
Warm Up @ 100%
Levels Tweak @ 0%
Desaturate @ 100%
Duplicate Desaturate layer @ 24%
Rusty Cage Dark @ 64%

Plus a dollop of EZ Burn, by Totally Rad Actions

EZ Burn @ 68% (and erased on hand and feet).
This is what darkens the appearance of the outer edge of the image.

IMPORTANT NOTE:
When you’re shooting, you strive to create a set-up that’s beautifully lit and flattering to your subject. Using actions in post does not mean that you are trying to correct anything you did “wrong” when you captured it. But you can choose to further your artistry and enhance the vision you had while shooting it.

Share your fav action in the comments – I’d love to hear it. Or tell me what you think of Rusty Cage.

I hope you get an opportunity to test drive my secret recipe and cook up some sexy!

xoxo Christa

ps. you can download Rusty Cage right here.
You’ll find it in the set of 48 actions called “TRA 1: The Original” – have fun!

March 3, 2013 | 5 Comments - Leave a comment!

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Creating Gorgeous Light: 2 Strobe Set-up

Man, I’ve been loving this lighting set-up lately! It’s gorgeous and super easy to do.

I wanted to create moody, flattering, dramatic backlighting that evoked a feeling of being on stage.

Here’s how to do it:

All images shot with Dove Grey 9 ft seamless backdrop, Elinchrome BX-Ri 500 set at the lowest power with a 53″ Octabank as the main light. The backlight is a Speedotron 805 lowered to about 75 watts with a #10 grid attached.

Here’s a diagram of the set-up:

You guys know I love versatility and variety, as well as a classic look, so of course we changed it up, turned off the backlight and shot these too:

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Fun, right?

Lighting doesn’t have to be intimidating or complicated to flatter :)

Next up on the blog: my secret recipes!! for luscious light in post…

Have a phenomenal day!

xoxo Christa

ps. If you missed out on the news last week, you can still read all about my business secret weapon and how it changed my life and rocket-launched my business!

February 26, 2013 | 41 Comments - Leave a comment!