Part 2 of Anna’s boudoir shoot shows a bit of her sweet and romantic side… versus the sexy vavavoom of Part 1. Anna mentioned she loves vintage lingerie, reading, and that Casa Del Mar has a soft spot in her heart… so of course we did her boudoir shoot there 🙂
So without further ado, here’s part two!
And that about wraps up my favorite boudoir shoot to date. Until the next one!
xoxo,
Christa
It’s absolute torture to not show you all of Genevive’s pics… her nude pics are sensual and full of energy, and are some of my favorites I’ve shot to date… if the above pic gives you any indication. But we must respect a girl’s right to privacy 🙂 So here is a little peek into our recent boudoir shoot and G-rated pictures…
One of my favorites… (you know me, I loooove action and emotion!)
and if you’re lucky enough to know Genevive personally, you know that picture on the left captures her silly exuberant personality perfectly… nice match with the fun-loving free woman on the right 🙂
Genevive was an attendee at one of my Workshops, and thought my boudoir demo looked like so much fun, that she had to check it out for herself 🙂 Now, that’s my kinda girl! In fact, shooting Genevive’s boudoir pics inspired me so much that a few nights later, I did my own boudoir shoot!… but we must respect a girl’s right to privacy, so you won’t be seeing those shots either! lol!!
Happy Monday 🙂
Christa
I’m thrilled to announce The Boudoir Workshop!… “A Sexy Affair” on April 3rd + 4th… The ultimate workshop for boudoir photographers and those that are just entering this booming market! Last weekend’s Workshop was a phenomenal success, and the attendee’s raved about the Boudoir section and demanded more!… so I am happy to oblige and will cover everything you need to know to run a successful Boudoir business… including topics from branding to sales and everything in between! The workshop will be held at my Studio + Gallery and is limited to a small group so you get plenty of one-on-one instruction and hands on learning. The best part is that you will be on your feet shooting alongside me during model sessions, will get personal coaching while you shoot, and will be granted use of the images for your blog and portfolio.
The Boudoir Workshop!
“A Sexy Affair”
with Christa Meola
Everything you need to succeed in the Boudoir business.
Create sensual photographs with impact.
Give every woman the gift of feeling gorgeous.
Saturday April 3rd 10:00 am – 7:00 pm
Sunday April 4th 10:00 am – 7:00 pm
Optional Welcome Reception
Friday April 2nd 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Held at…
Christa Meola Pictures Studio + Gallery
860 Via de la Paz, Pacific Palisades CA 90272
Topics include:
Inside the Boudoir Market…
Learn the in’s and out’s of the booming boudoir market and how to attract new and existing clients.
Creating a Boutique Brand that is In Demand…
Developing your unique style and standing out from the crowd. Selling emotion not images, selecting a smoking hot product line, getting booked solid, and communicating with clients.
Selling the Experience that Every Woman Wants…
The most fun is in the planning! Tips + Tricks during each stage of the process to give every girl the gift of an unforgettably amazing experience!…
Pricing…
Nailing your price list so you’re busy, happy and well-paid 🙂 Best business practices including, contracts, release forms, and other good habits.
Lighting, Equipment, Sets + Styling…
What’s necessary and what’s not. How to work with the challenge and beauty of natural light, a simple portable studio set-up, and working with hand-held video lights. How to style a set and a model to create hot magazine-style photos.
Live Boudoir Shoots + Side-by-Side Personal Coaching…
Live Boudoir shoots will be on location at a luxury hotel and in the studio. Christa will do demo’s for each, working with a half dozen models. You will each get plenty of time with the models and rights to your images. Christa will be by your side, available for personal coaching, while you shoot. Learn on your feet how to relax a nervous client, bring out the best in each girl, create sensual moments, push yourself creatively, and raise the bar for your photography.
Top 10 Money Boudoir Shots…
The all-time Bestsellers, and how to get them!
Sexy Post Production…
A Workflow that’s easy and effective to create smoking images! My Top Tips for Lightroom and Photoshop… How to take off 20 lbs in 20 seconds, essential retouching, working with actions, and more.
Plus!…
Lucrative Boudoir Parties, individual portfolio review, Q&A sessions, discounts from all of my sponsors, and a sweet gift bag of my favorite sexy things 🙂
Workshop Fee: $1,499
To register, call 310.383.6494 or email christa (at) christameola.com.
Space is limited, and I’ve already signed up some very excited photographers, so register soon, and I can’t wait to meet you!
xoxo,
Christa
I had a very secret rendezvous recently… Mrs. C and I planned this surprise shoot as a Christmas gift for her husband, and I just heard from her today letting me know that he was beyond thrilled! And even better, Mrs. C mentioned how good she felt during the shoot and how she loves the pictures and feels amazing! Now that is what’s deeply fulfilling to me… giving women the gift of feeling good about themselves.
It all started in The Biltmore Hotel lobby with la belle femme…
Did someone ring for Maid Service?
My #1 absolute favorite photo set-up: a hotel bed, white sheets, big window, and nothing but nakedness…
I love this shot… it reminds me of being a girl, being in love, and being in Paris. Mrs. C is wearing the La Perla lingerie that her husband gave her on their honeymoon about 8 years earlier, and I asked her to think back to the first time she had it on…
With Valentine’s Day just around the corner, I’ll be shooting lots and lots of beautiful women coming up…
But you don’t need a holiday to give your man or yourself the amazing gift of feeling good and feeling sexy 🙂 It just takes a simple decision to be that way.
Wishing you lots of moments overflowing with feeling good!
xoxo,
Christa
ps. You can see more of Mrs. C in the post “Private Dancer.”
Hello boys! If you didn’t get enough of Madison’s hotel boudoir shoot yesterday – here is a peek inside Room #703. Whew, M’s got one kickin’ silhoutte!
Can’t you just feel this?!
I don’t know why, but I love this one. Maybe it’s the look in her eye and the messy imperfect hair…
We just had to do this once we saw that sign in the room…
Well we were all wiped out after that shoot, had a drink at the hotel bar, grabbed dinner at Bottega Louie downtown (my new favorite place), and went to bed early! Coming up: Beach shoots, Boot Black No.2, albums, fine art, and more…
xoxo,
Christa
I love hotels. I love luxury. I love Room Service. Breakfast in bed. Big bathtubs. Bathrobes. City views. Late night snacks. At-your-service staff. Oh, I can go on and on!!… Here’s a recent boudoir shoot with Madison at the Biltmore in downtown LA. It’s her birthday today (Happy Birthday Madison!!), and I can’t think of a better way to celebrate then a boudoir session at a great hotel with your best gal pals 🙂 More to come tomorrow….
“Love in an elevator!… Livin it up when I’m going dowwwwwn!”…. -Aerosmith
I love this historic photo-mural on the wall at the Biltmore… when men were men 🙂
More pics of Madison tomorrow… when we get inside the hotel room!!
xoxo,
Christa
I love real women, and I enjoy helping them see how beautiful they are. I’ve been so fortunate to work with some incredible girls and every boudoir shoot I’ve done has been fun and memorable. However, there is something I need to address: I’ve received a ton of emails from girls all asking me the same question – here’s a recent example:
Hello Christa,
First let me say your work is amazing. It looks like you have had some gorgeous women to work with, so I’m sure that helps.
I wanted to know if you only work with professional models or are willing to shoot an average woman?? such as myself. I am looking for a wedding gift for my soon to be husband and this is something I’m sure he would like…
Thank you,
J.
So to answer all y’all’s question: Yes yes yes!!.. every single one of my boudoir shoots are regular girls, not professional models. With the single exception of Shelby, who’d like to model some day professionally, all of my shoots are with the girl next door. Regular girls. Like me. Like you.
There was Karen, a writer. Lisa, a marketing professional. Simone, a physical therapist. And lots of regular girls in the coming weeks…
And most of the girls call me with the same concern… “um, I’m kinda shy – this isn’t really like me to do this – I don’t love my butt – I don’t know how to pose – I’m really nervous.” So, I thought it would be fun to give you a peek behind-the-scenes of a boudoir shoot with me. So you can see just how silly and fun and REAL it is…
Here isJane, a schoolteacher, and me before her shoot. I thought it would be hysterical to bring a wig for one or two shots, and I’m sporting it here. My dorkiness is really shining through here in all it’s glory. lol! ps. to make it worse, my shirt is inside out. Jeesh – can’t take me anywhere.
Make-up for photo shoots is a bit different than everyday make-up, so I highly encourage a professional make-up artist, and Jeff is the best.
Nadine, a stay at home mom, getting extensions…
Here’s Simone and me… getting crazy with the Reddi Whip. This pic cracks me up for obvious reasons, but here’s a few that aren’t apparent: 1. It’s actually shaving cream we used, 2. Minutes earlier, I had fallen off a stool I was standing on, 3. that fall broke Simone’s toe (she’s fine now, thankfully), but we were having so much fun that she didn’t realize it until later that night. ps. again, what is up with my shirt?? this is why I say “no prints” on a photo shoot!
Even my mom, a human resources professional, did a boudoir shoot with me. For her birthday this year, we had a couple of her best girlfriends come after the shoot to celebrate (see pic at the beginning of this post). By the way, I love when girls bring their best friend to the shoot – they are so supportive and helpful, will hold the fan, tell you that you look great, even lotion up your legs, make you laugh and we’ll have even more fun. So please do bring your girlfriends, if you like!… This is my mom’s raunchy friend Kim.
Lastly, if you’ve looked at some of my boudoir shoots you’ll see the girls are all amazing and beautiful, and here’s a few reasons why:
We’re all just regular gals… real women. Having fun. Celebrating life. Being ourselves. Being sexy. Being silly. Wearing our shirt inside out.
See? – being in front of my camera isn’t intimidating right? :))
xoxo,
Christa
ps. for more tips on how to feel relaxed and sexy on a photo shoot,check out this post!
Prancing around naked in my studio is always a lot of fun. Most girls start out asking for a robe and within minutes they’re sporting nothing but a smile. Before Simone and I got crazy with the whipped cream shooting our take on Herb Alpert’s album cover (see yesterday’s post), we tried to capture the more serious moments in between the silly… so here’s the beautiful dramatic side of Simone…
Uh ohhhh, the silly popped out 🙂
“Whipped Cream and Other Delights” by Herb Alpert’s Tijuana Brass… seems this album cover really affected a lot of young lads during the mid-60’s. Including Simone’s husband Nick when he was a preteen. Nick recently confessed to Simone that he felt stirrings for the first time in his young life when he saw this image. So when it came time to decide on a gift for her soon-to-be husband, Simone decided to recreate this iconic image with my help.
Ps. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Simone resembles the woman on the cover exactly.
What really intrigued me about this shoot was the “Other Delights!!” – I wanted to really make sure that Nick was provided with some Other Delights and that title wasn’t just an empty promise, as before. Well, we wound up with so many juicy sexy hot bonus de-lightful images that I need to post this shoot in two parts. More to come tomorrow!…
Warning: my site honors the human form in all his and her glory aka: nudity!! Hide the children.
Jane is one helluva gal. I photographed her wedding three years ago, and now her whole extended family has become close friends of mine. She and I cooked up this surprise boudoir shoot while her husband John, a film producer, was away at the Cannes Film Festival… and boy will he be welcomed home!
The shoot was inspired by three main elements: 1) John’s love of black and white film posters from the French New Wave or La Nouvelle Vague, 2) Jane’s gorgeous skin, which made me think of Bouguereau paintings like “Evening Mood” which I once posed for! (a story for another time), and 3) her upcoming transition to being a nonsmoker.
So we wanted to celebrate all of these influences, and the results make me so happy.
I would love to share my favorite most beautiful pics from the shoot, but those entail a see-through scarf and nothing else but a smile!… Credit goes entirely to Jane, who never thought she could do “this type of thing” and wound up going all.the.way. I love it when people push outside their comfort zones. That kind of courage is really attractive.
Tomorrow, I’ll post pics from my wonderful boating outing this weekend!… and soon – the album design from this shoot, an engagement session, my favorite character, photo parties galore and plans for shooting in Italy!
xo,
Christa
Karen first contacted me with the idea of doing “sexy pictures” as a surprise wedding gift for her husband-to-be, all the while telling me it’s “so not” her and that her fiance would never expect this from her. Karen is a very talented writer with a wonderful sense of humor and a self-proclaimed shy plain Jane. I was fond of her immediately, and our scheming began!… We giggled like little girls and had secret phone calls about different types of high heels and thongs. We decided to incorporate her love of writing, her Chinese heritage, and her husband’s love of the Cubs all into the shoot. “Old Hollywood, Veronica Lake” was her inspiration.
Soon after, we hit the Biltmore Hotel in Downtown LA and let the sexy out! At first Karen was a bit nervous, but that quickly faded. A glass of wine later and after my silly antics, she was completely relaxed and we were having a blast!
My favorite part of the process is when a client sees her images for the first time, and Karen did not disappoint. She got real teary-eyed – the sign of a successful shoot in my book. Here’s part of an email Karen sent to me after she saw the pictures:
“…I cannot believe the confident, vibrant, beautiful, and dare I say, sexy, woman in the photographs is me. I honestly can’t remember a time when I felt so alive and exhilarated in my own skin. Thank you for these stunning photographs that I will treasure forever and for capturing a side of me I had no idea existed.
Oh, and my husband thanks you, too. A lot!”
I love that while in the process of creating something sexy and unexpected for her man, Karen gave herself the gift of a beautiful lasting record of who she is in this moment of time. And I want to thank them both for a memorable experience and for allowing the posting of a few of the more modest pics on my new blog.
Enjoy!
Karen’s shoot was so much fun – and she had the same “obstacles” as most women. So here you are, my little Valentine’s gift to the girls!
Ten Tips on How to Feel Relaxed & Sexy when being Photographed
1. Focus on Having Fun
Make your goal to have fun, not to get great shots – that’s my job 🙂 Everyone looks their best when they’re genuinely having a great time.
2. Visualize
I know this is very Tony Robbins of me, but he’s not the only one who recognizes the power of visualization. Make it a practice to see the experience of having a great time, feeling sexy, everything going smoothly, seeing the photos and loving them. Be specific and visualize from your point of view, as if you’re in it.
3. Get Inspired
Look at movies and art for inspiration, tear pages out of magazines and begin to recognize your style and sensibility… what is sexy to you? This will help you communicate with your photographer and help guide the shoot.
4. Show Up With All You’ve Got
When I say show up, I don’t mean to just show up. Bring it. And be open. Karen deserves all the credit for the success of her shoot, because she showed up, really stretched way outside her comfort zone and gave it all she had.
5. Be Sensual
Use your five senses during the shoot: play music, have a bite of chocolate, a sip of wine, put on a favorite scent, wear a kick-ass outfit you feel great in, and think of memories that make you blush, smile, and sweat… Do everything and (well, almost) anything that gets you hot.
6. Be Silly
Any shyness tends to go right out the window after the first few minutes or so of being silly. I am the biggest ham during a shoot, and I embarrass myself frequently (not always on purpose), but this serves me well as it usually puts everyone at ease. Just goof off and have fun! See how outrageous and silly you can be – it’s easier for the photographer to tone you down, rather than fire you up!
7. Create Movement
I often hear but I don’t know how to pose. Well that’s good, let’s not do that! Create a little action, however, so there’s energy in every shot. C’mon you all know how to flirt! If you’re on a shoot with me, I can show you some sexy moves (hey hey).
8. Remember the Context
The sheer fact that you’re in front of the camera being photographed is damn sexy… it’s powerful and vulnerable at the same time, which is an unbeatable combo – enjoy it!
9. Fake It
I’m not telling you to fake the real deal, but if you don’t feel 100% confident and sexy while on a photo shoot, FAKE it. Works every time.
10. Be Yourself
Honor who you are, in this moment. Don’t wait to lose a few pounds. (Besides, I’m a pro at retouching, and Photoshop is the best personal trainer in the world – more on that in another post!) But it’s important that you FEEL sexy, so if working out for a few weeks is going to do that, then great. But let’s not wait for all the planets to be aligned and your bangs to be the right length. The time is now. You are sexy and beautiful just as you are.
Bonus Tip: And of course, add alcohol 🙂