Britt is an esteemed boudoir photographer hailing from the vibrant city of Minneapolis, MN. With an unwavering passion for photography that ignited during high school, Britt’s journey into the world of imagery has been nothing short of extraordinary.
Her destiny seemed preordained from her early roots as the president of her school’s photography club to earn the title of “Most likely to become a photographer,” courtesy of a persuasive friend.
Though peppered with twists, Britt’s path led her to establish her own photography business. Thirteen years ago, she embarked on a transformative project, capturing boudoir portraits for a family friend navigating the complexities of divorce.
Join us as we delve into Britt’s inspiring photographer boudoir narrative, where her lens serves as a conduit for empowerment and celebration of life’s goodness.
Q1. Can you tell us about your photography journey and how you started with boudoir photography?
Ans. I fell into professional photography while I was in college studying to become a high school English teacher – in my second year of school, I started working as a second photographer for a wedding company, a job a found through a friend.
They made me an associate photographer after one season and I was shooting 20-30 weddings a year with this company by the time I finished my degree.
A really competitive teaching market at the time led me to start working for myself, and that’s how Render Photography was born!
I did my first boudoir session the same year I started my company, 2009, it was a family friend who’d just been through a divorce and wanted to remind herself what a catch she was!
I wasn’t very familiar with boudoir but I took a stab at it and ever since I’ve really loved making images that are about shaping self-image and self-perception.
I’ve always done boudoir photography alongside family and weddings, then about 4 years ago decided to create a sister company, Render Boudoir, and really start taking in more education, trying more things, and specializing in boudoir imagery.
Q2. Boudoir photography involves capturing intimate and sensual moments. As a boudoir photographer, how do you create a comfortable and safe environment for your clients during these sessions?
Ans. Good question, gosh, I think creating an environment is the culmination of a thousand tiny things. Number one for me is clear communication and lots of it.
When I feel the most uneasy, it’s because I don’t know what I’m getting into, so I’ve packed my boudoir experience end to and with tons of guidance.
My website lays everything out – full investment menu, full walk-through of how the session process works, tons of sample images and sessions displayed with all kinds of shapes, sizes, colors, and ages of clients. Second for me is, as a photographer, just being genuine and kind.
I love being able to offer drinks and chat with my clients while they get their hair and makeup done, I set up the décor of the studio to their liking, I ask if there’s particular music they’d like to have on.
Then when it comes time to start the session, I am giving instructions every step of the way, I never expect my clients to have ideas or experience in modeling – I direct the poses and the movements, the facial expressions, all of that. And I’m patient, empathetic, and never fake with my clients.
I’m expecting them to share a part of themselves with me, so I am always sharing my true self with them.
Looking for boudoir photography outfit ideas? Check out this helpful blog post.
3. What inspired you to specialize in boudoir photography as opposed to other genres?
Ans. I still photograph weddings and families, I love the variety in photographing a lot of different things, but I find boudoir photography to be the most rewarding.
I get to work with a willing participant who can take directions well (something I can’t say for children most of the time!), and I get to work in a pretty calm, controlled environment (something I can’t say is true for weddings most of the time!).
Those things set me up to make my best work, I think – and then the payoff is just absolutely the best. When I get to see a woman LOVE photos of herself (I mean, how often do we get to experience that?!), it’s just the best.
I got the most wonderful and most articulate compliment from a client last year, she was tearing up and she said, “these photos make me understand why people like me – I can see my energy and my joyfulness and my soul, and it’s just completely changed how I see myself.”
That’s so so fulfilling. In a world where we constantly think we’re below expectations, I get to show someone that they are killing it.
Q4. Could you share some examples of the unique challenges you’ve faced while photographing boudoir sessions and how you overcame them?
I think the biggest challenge that arises is when my clients are tense and this is really common, I just expect it during the first portion of our time together!
Getting into lingerie and posing for a camera is a nerve-wracking business, so it’s no wonder there’s some tension to work through, I just expect that as a starting point.
Tension will show up in muscles of the face, in awkward hand placement, and in stiff body movements – and those things will very much affect a photograph.
But I’ve learned how to notice those things and just coach them away, let my clients know they’re doing great, and the tension fades throughout the session.
Q5. Your portfolio showcases a range of styles within boudoir photography. How do you tailor your approach to match each client’s personality and preferences?
Ans. For my 90 minute studio session, my clients get to design their bedroom, which really affects the character of the images.
They can choose a dark or very dark set that really deepens the shadows and creates a moodier atmosphere, or they can choose a bright, neutral set that bounces light into the shadows and gives more of a bright, warm, girl-next door sort of feel.
I also send out a questionnaire that asks clients to describe the vibe they’re hoping for in their images – their description together with what I get from their personality in real life help guide me toward poses, expressions, and lighting that I think fit their vision.
Also I offer limited edition themed sessions throughout the year which allows me to explore different styles as well.
I’ve done coffee and sweaters sessions where clients are encouraged to bring comfy sweaters and tall socks, pin up sessions where I’m bringing in Coca-cola, polka dots, bandanas, and flowers for hairstyles, gothic sessions with dark lighting, candles, and a fog machine, angel wings sessions where clients get to live out that iconic runway angel look.
I offer traveling sessions as well where I offer my classic session experience in a different setting. It’s always good to get out of your own comfort zone and the themed and travel sessions really help me do that!
Add better descriptions to your images with boudoir text overlays.
Q6. Lighting plays a crucial role in boudoir photography. Can you discuss your lighting techniques and how you adapt them to different scenarios and settings that can help more boudoir photographers?
Ans. With the exception of a few lamps and string lights that show up in the background of my work sometimes, I’m using 100% natural window light as my main light source, so I’m manipulating lighting primarily with my angle in relation to the window, my in-camera exposure, and my surrounding color palette to create different looks.
For example, the window behind me and the light falling directly on my subject will give a classic, bright look.
Then moving 100-180 degrees will put me on the dark side of the subject to bring out the shadows and make the highlights on the cheeks and body really pop.
Letting more or less light into my camera will affect the final outcome too. And finally, the tones that surround my subject make a huge difference in the overall feel of the images.
So if I want the light on my subject’s cheeks to really pop for example, I’ll need something dark behind them to really set off that highlight.
Sometimes that’s aligning their face in the window panes just right, sometimes that’s switching the bedding darker, or moving to the side of my studio with the black wall.
Or if I want a really bright, sun-drenched look, I’ll put the windows or the light-colored wall behind them, let more light in my camera, and let the light wrap all the way around.
Q7. Privacy and discretion are paramount in boudoir photography. How do you ensure your clients’ images remain confidential and secure?
Ans. I have a really extensive privacy and permission form that each client fills out – it gives four privacy options that they can choose for each image on an individual basis.
So they can say this one stays totally private, this one can go on the website, this one can go anywhere.
And there’s never any obligation to share anything, I think consent and privacy are so important and everyone has to watch out for what’s best for them.
Get templates to easily write contracts to protect your business, Modern Boudoir Contract Template
Q8. Boudoir photography often involves working closely with clients to capture their best angles and expressions. As a photographer in boudoir world, how do you guide and direct clients during a photoshoot to achieve the desired results?
I describe it in words, I demonstrate with my own body and my own face. And I’ll physically adjust them, with permission, if the first two aren’t doing the trick for me.
Curious about which camera to choose for your boudoir photography sessions? Check out this insightful post.
Q9. Your website mentions the importance of empowering clients through your photography. Could you elaborate on how you approach this aspect and its impact on your work as a boudoir photographer?
Ans. I think that just about every experience there is has the potential to be bad or good, empowering or discouraging.
So boudoir is not automatically empowering. If your photographer behaves dismissively towards you, doesn’t give you the tools and the human connection to feel confident, then your experience could do more harm than good.
And even if you yourself as a subject aren’t in a place where you’ll allow yourself to let go, enjoy yourself, or see your own beauty, boudoir isn’t going to cure you of that.
But we have been conditioned to believe that looking beautiful and sensual is connected to so many other things – success, happiness, worthiness, value. That seeing our own beauty and sensuality can really be an inroad to inviting feelings of power and worth and value toward ourselves in a whole new way.
So creating an empowering experience isn’t complicated for me. It’s just treating people the way they deserve to be treated, and doing my best to capture them in a way where they can see themselves with more kindness than they have before. That by itself is what’s powerful in my view.
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Q10. Editing is a significant part of the final boudoir images. How would you describe your editing style and the post-processing techniques you use to enhance the photos while maintaining a natural look?
Ans. My editing style is warm and my retouching hand is light. My goal is for my images to look just a little more sunny and magical than real life.
As far as retouching goes, my philosophy is to not add to the ridiculous expectations of what bodies are “supposed” to look like, but to remove what I notice in 2 dimensions that I didn’t notice in 3 dimensions.
So I might turn down the appearance of some shadows or bumps, remove things that are temporary on the body like bruises and scratches.
But I don’t want client images looking in-human in the end, so I’m careful to keep people looking like their true selves.
Q11. Every photographer in boudoir photography genre has a signature touch. What do you believe sets your boudoir photography style apart from others in the industry?
Ans. You know, this idea of needing to stand out and do things wildly differently from the next person is something that bothers me a little in the arts industry if I’m being honest.
I think that what sets each artist apart from the next isn’t something you can really articulate most of the time, and it shouldn’t have to be.
The way I arrange a composition and am able to make someone behave inside a frame might not appear that different from what the next person is doing.
But it is a culmination of a lifetime of practice and preference and soul – and it’s going to connect with different people for those tiny subtle differences.
It’s not that I have the fanciest equipment, the biggest studio or most impressive lingerie collection or whatever. It really is just that I’m bringing my own individual human perspective and experience into making something, and that makes it unlike anyone else’s.
Q12. Your website showcases a variety of indoor and outdoor boudoir shots. How do you choose the best locations for outdoor sessions and incorporate the environment into your compositions?
Ans. I don’t do boudoir outdoors often, actually, because I think it’s a challenge to find a location that offers enough privacy for clients to feel comfortable.
But when I do, I’m looking for a spot with great light, interesting textures to work with, and natural “furniture” – places to sit, lie down, lean so that we can get a lot of variety and tell a story.
Q13. Technology and trends in photography are constantly evolving. How do you stay up-to-date with the latest techniques, equipment, and styles to continue delivering exceptional services as a boudoir photographer?
Ans. Is “I don’t” a proper answer? Haha. I don’t enjoy adopting many trends or feeling like I have to keep up with the rat race of latest equipment or software or whatever AI nonsense has come out. I truly think it’s better for mental health to stay away from a lot of that.
It’s kind of a joke that I’m a bit of a dinosaur and don’t like to hop on bandwagons (it took six years for me to make an Instagram page), but I certainly do keep up in my own way.
I follow a lot of artists that I admire so that my eyes are taking in images better than my own.
And I do invest in education and take several courses each year to keep myself keen to new ideas and ways to challenge myself.
Britt’s steadfastness in her artistry stands out in a world of constant evolution. While trends may come and go, her focus remains on the essence of human connection and the power of capturing genuine moments.
As we delve into the intricacies of her boudoir photography narrative, we witness the harmonious blend of creativity, empowerment, and authenticity that defines her remarkable journey.
To learn more about her and her work, visit her website. Click here
