You don't *have* to take your clothes off | Austin Beauty Photographer

It's probably no secret that I'm a fan of nudity. I think every woman should be able to rip her clothes off, whip them around her head, and have her photos taken confidently. (Note: I have not yet achieved such confidence myself...but I'm one step closer with each personal boudoir shoot I do).

Boudoir is my baby. It's my niche, my specialty. It's what I do 92% of the time. Yes. I did the math.

The *OTHER* 8% of the time is spent doing BEAUTY portraiture. So. What's the difference? 

 

BOUDOIR PHOTOGRAPHY

While boudoir photography almost always involves a certain level of undress or nudity, it is also a little more raw, candid, unposed LOOKING (although we do pose you throughout the entire shoot!). Boudoir is meant to embrace a woman's sexuality, independence, femininity, and badassness. Because of the posing and the wardrobe, these images tend to be more intimate in nature. We do retouch all boudoir images for our clients with standard retouching techniques and the finished product is generally a variety of about 50-60 images with a natural retouch that include "detail" shots such as legs, tush, breasts, back, shoulders, collar bone, lips, as well as full bodyscapes and imagery that includes the face. 

Example of Kara Marie's BOUDOIR Photography. More intimate in nature, boudoir images embrace a woman's sexuality, femininity, and badassness in a certain level of undress. 

Example of Kara Marie's BOUDOIR Photography. More intimate in nature, boudoir images embrace a woman's sexuality, femininity, and badassness in a certain level of undress. 

 

BEAUTY PHOTOGRAPHY

Now, BEAUTY portraiture is a bit more polished...with a finished "fine art" look and feel. Beauty portraiture is a great option for a woman who wants a smaller collection of absolutely breathtaking portraits of herself that are wall-worthy. Our beauty portraits always containing the full face and have more "statement" wardrobe which can mean a ball gown, little black dress, lace bodysuit, fabric draping or even nudity. There are also more special effects such as fine art tectures and extensive retouching done on these images.  The finished product is generally a smaller collection (roughly 15-20) fully enhanced, wall (or Facebook profile pic)-ready images. 

Example of Beauty Portraiture by Kara Marie Boudoir. Beauty photos always contain the client's face, can be taken fully clothed, + are finished with a full retouch and a fine-art edit making it classic wall art.

Example of Beauty Portraiture by Kara Marie Boudoir. Beauty photos always contain the client's face, can be taken fully clothed, + are finished with a full retouch and a fine-art edit making it classic wall art.

Beauty portraiture also tends to appeal more to the masses.....it may be a little less intimidating for a woman who is hesitant to bare it all for my camera (although I maintain that, regardless of your wardrobe or lack thereof, I *WILL* make you feel comfortable. Promise.)

These are images that you can gift to mom or grandma and they will gush over without instructing you to cover up your bits. 

They don't necessarily need to be taken in our studio, as you can see. These can be taken outdoors, in your own home, on the street, in a car....you get my drift. 

So, if you do happen to be holding out on a boudoir session because you're just a little too intimidated by the idea, try a beauty shoot first! Even if you've already done a boudoir shoot or seven, a beauty shoot offers a whole different element of elegance and femininity. 

Well-behaved women | Austin Boudoir Studio

 

"Well-behaved women seldom make history." -Laurel Thatcher Ulrich

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Stand up, speak out, fight for everything you believe is right. Make your stance known. Do not let any man OR woman tell you what you should or should not be doing. You do you. Make mistakes and learn from them. Don't let anyone make you feel bad about them. Be compassionate and love with all of your might.

I'm coming out swinging today.

Moody Muse | Austin Boudoir Photographer

This shoot holds a special place in my heart and I'm really excited to finally share it with you! 

Miss A, here is a photographer who lives across the country and she flew in to Austin for a little weekend away with her hubs, and to have her own boudoir experience with me!  She said she liked dark and moody, which was PERFECT because it just so happened to be a gloomy day in Austin (totally rare!).

We channelled that energy into our shoot and had a fabulous time. 

I know that when people come to a boudoir blog, their inclination is to scroll past all the text to get to the pictures. I'm a visual person, I get it.  BUT, each woman's story is SO important. The WHY is SO important. You need to know that these aren't just "I woke up like this" women who have nothing better to do than to look pretty and do photo shoots. These are women who bust their asses at life. They have their own insecurities just like you. They wear many hats and don't take enough time for themselves. 

So please take a moment to read Miss A's powerful words!!

"Buxom Shanghai.
That's my color.

I learned this incredibly helpful tidbit as I sat perched atop a barstool at Kara's photography studio in Austin, Texas just five minutes before baring it all for my very own boudoir photo shoot.

I needed Kara's eyes. I have incredibly jacked up self image and can be so very hard on myself. I don't practice what I preach to my own photography clients nearly enough. Don't be like me. It's silly.

Kara's make up artist, Kendall, had no hesitations while doing my make up and I had already vowed to trust her and Kara completely. So when she chose Buxom Shanghai for my lips... She knew what she was doing.

For Kara, she uses her passion for portraits, her strong intuition and completely on point male-like perspective to allow women to shine like the crazy diamonds they are."

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"It might seem like playing dress up. It might look completely vain.
But these women make space for change and growth and acceptance. And it's downright kickass.

People like us might seem out of touch. Like we don't have real jobs because what we do is so incredibly fun. But make no mistake- the purpose is important, the work can be tedious and the results are undeniable. Passionate people always find a way to inspire others. It's why we exist.

For me, doing a boudoir session is a simple visual reminder to put down the self-doubt and stop playing small. The world doesn't benefit from my petty insecurities.

So, for those dreaming of a boudoir photoshoot ... Put down the boxing gloves and quit beating yourself up about the 10 lbs or the stretch marks or the "but I'm not....." fill in the blanks.

Ask yourself this - what's the worst thing that can happen? And what is the best? If a boost of lasting confidence sounds good to you - then book it right now.

Do not get me wrong - my husband is head over heels for these images; he adores them and me and that's wonderful. But as my Kara's blog headline says - "It's not about seducing men - it's about embracing womanhood" and that, my sisters is something worth celebrating."

THANK YOU, Miss A for trusting me with your boudoir experience, for allowing me to share your photos, and more importantly, for allowing me to share your words. 

If you're ready to celebrate yourself, let's chat, darling! 

Sexy at any size | Austin Beauty Photographer

I initially "met" Mandy on Instagram. Her selfies actually blew me out of the water. Her features are absolutely incredible and I knew that I had to get my lens on her sooner rather than later. Her complexion is absolutely stunning, her eyes are mesmerizing, her EYEBROWS leave me oozing with jealousy (seriously--they're perfection!), her hair is always fun and funky, her style makes me want to be her friend, her tattoos are SO fun and colorful, and her curves are rockin'! Flash forward about 2 1/2 years.....through her Instagram feed, I found out that she was working very hard to lose 100 pounds and her efforts were proving to be really successful. Her drive, positivity, and results were such an inspiration to me. So I did something I NEVER do (like....never ever.): I told her WHEN she hit her goal to get in touch with me and I would treat her to a celebratory beauty shoot. She was SO excited about this, and I was even more so!  ALAS- we finally had out celebratory beauty shoot. And.DAMN. It was awesome!  SEEEE?: 

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Here is what this beauty had to say:

There is no wrong way to be a woman. Regardless of your size, you are allowed to feel sexy!
— Mandy

"These are words that after struggling with my appearance for years, have helped me accept my curves and more importantly, love them. To me, true beauty is confidence and we all should feel nothing less than that about ourselves. Body positivity is essential to me and I dream to be a role model for all woman. Love yourselves, ladies. You are all goddesses!"


"I want to thank the lovely Kara Trombetta for the opportunity to work with her. It was an amazing experience and I enjoyed every minute. I appreciate the comfort and confidence I was able to hold with her. Kara's direction was fantastic and she is an amazingly talented photographer!"

SO, yeah--she's pretty much awesome, eh??! Love her AND these photos we created together! It was a pleasure documenting such an important time for Mandy--in all her curvy sexy gorgeousness!

Are you ready to celebrate YOUR sexy!? Let's chat, dahhling!

Miss Monday on Monday | Austin Boudoir Studio

Just thought that Monday would be a fitting day to share a few images from Miss Monday's mini beauty shoot!  

If you are looking to get a beauty or boudoir shoot in before Christmas, NOW is the time! My schedule is rapidly filling up--don't miss your chance to feel as beautiful as you should!

Let's get you in front of my lens, shall we?

Big news! | Austin Boudoir Studio

3 months ago I created my 3 year vision board. It's something I do on the regular for my business to decide where I want to be, and make it happen. I knew that with the growth of business, and the increasing difficulty of separating my home and work life with my office being in the loft of my house, I needed to make some changes. On that board was finding the perfect commercial natural light studio and office space.

Today, I picked up the key to the NEW and first official studio space for Click Chick Boudoir! Eee!

 

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This space happens to be in one of the coolest buildings in Austin, Starlight Lofts on South 1st...78704 BABY!

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Recent clients have already had the pleasure of shooting in one of these units- as I was renting one hourly from another studio. And now I have one to call my very own! 

Stained concrete floors, so much natural light I have to wear my sunglasses inside, amazing location, and a super cool bunch of neighbors. 

 

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I'll be working very hard to get this baby ready for my August clients! To be completely honest, though...it needs nothing! I would be ecstatic to shoot in the completely bare studio! But, of course, I am going to deck it out in true Click Chick style! 

I am so excited for what this new adventure brings and so proud of my sexy little company for doing it's thang!  

YAY!!

Who wants to be one of the firsts to shoot in our new studio?!! Hit me up, dahhling! 

Xo

 

 

Dark Beauty | Austin TX Beauty Photographer

This weekend, another one of my beautiful "repeats"-- I love these people--, Harlee shot with me in the deep, dark, mysterious woods (just kidding, we were in a small patch of tangly trees next to a parking lot) for a dark beauty concept shoot this weekend.

I was super honored to be Harlee's very first professional photo shoot last year and it was awesome that I was able to work with her again.  Kendall of Mayhem Beauty gave Harlee exactly the vampy-looking makeup that I was going for here.  We started out around dusk shooting some dark beauty portraiture. And then it got all dark and stuff.... ;) 

She kind of looks like a glamorous super villian, right!? Pretty pretty pretty girl!

It was so fun trying something a little different from my usual bright and cheery imagery and going a little moodier. Harlee rocked the dark beauty role!!! Go girl!

MODEL: Harlee Rae

MAKEUP AND HAIR:  Kendall of Mayhem Beauty

PHOTOGRAPHER: Duh. 


For more information on Austin beauty and boudoir photography, visit the Click Chick Boudoir website. 

Want to book a beauty or boudoir shoot? Let's chat, dahhling!