Changing the concept of boudoir photography
Boudoir photoshoot for women
#FeelYourselfProject is something that I started a few years ago, and it is very close to my heart. When I was starting my career as a photographer, I tried many different types of photography, and one of them was boudoir!
If you Google boudoir photography and click on the images, most of the what you see is women in lingerie looking seductive and posing provocatively. Most of those images are highly retouched.
It was clear for me that those images were meant to appeal to men, but I thought what if the purpose of those images were to make women feel more empowered and confident about themselves. I mean, if I were doing a boudoir photoshoot, would I feel amazing about myself if I was trying to do sexy poses?
I’ve photographed some women in lingerie in the past, while I was still in Brazil. I wanted to continue doing that here in Toronto, but I wanted to change people’s perception of what boudoir is.
Self love, beauty boudoir
I wanted to create something that focuses on my clients and how beautiful they are, not the male gaze. I didn’t want them to focus on posing seductively. In addition, I wanted to address the lack of self-confidence and low self-esteem some women can have and show them they are beautiful.
When I was a teenager, being as skinny like Gisele Bündchen or Victoria Beckham was considered the “beauty standard.” Living in the Kardashians era, being curvy with big lips is what is considered beautiful.
Beauty standards can change according to whoever has the most influence at the time, but you don’t have to compare yourself to these influencers.
Yes, they are pretty but so are you. It makes me sad to see women getting plastic surgery or going on crazy diets when it’s not necessary. I really do feel that most women are often focused on what’s wrong with their appearance when, in reality, there is nothing wrong with them.
#FeelYourselfProject for self-love in Toronto
So that’s why I created #FeelYourselfProject. It’s all about photographing boudoir but not how you usually see it. I want to photograph women and show them how beautiful they are without extensive editing.
My goal with #FeelYourselfProject is for women to look at the photos and say, “Wow, I really love the way I look” – wearing clothes, lingerie or even naked.
This project is dedicated to helping women have a positive outlook on their bodies. I understand, living in this digital age it’s hard not to compare yourselves others. We often forget that the images we see are often manipulated and instead look for more ways to look “perfect.”
We are always being convinced that we don’t look good enough and that we need to be fixed – that is not true.
How to get a perfect beach body
I once came across an article titled “How to get a perfect beach body.”
At first, I thought, here we go, another stupid article about how to treat your body the worst way possible. However, as I continued reading it said, “First, have a body, then go to the beach,” and I was: YAAAAS!
The media and news publications need to promote body positivity rather than constantly sharing diet tips to help achieve that “perfect body.”
Experience from my past clients
I photographed an amazing person that taught me a lesson in self-love. I sent her some images that I edited and lightly retouched it by removing some blemishes, nothing more.
When she saw the images, she asked me if I could just colour correct rather than edit her skin. I asked her why and she said that she couldn’t see herself in the retouched images. I was surprised, but I loved that she loved the way she looked. Read More.
Another client of mine was a bride, her bridesmaids gave her a boudoir
Take it easy and love yourself
As women, we need to practice more self-love and be easier on ourselves. We have one body, and we need to stop criticizing it and practice self-love instead Let’s learn how to love ourselves and be grateful for being healthy and being alive! I hope #FeelYourselfProject teaches women how to embrace themselves and realize how beautiful they are.
