Vintage Snow Senior Session

You always get an idea in your head of how things are going to be when shooting and you write down your ideas and you have a perfect location and then well things don't go as intended.  I have wanted to do my idea of a snow shoot for over a year now and it just hadn't snowed enough in Kansas City and if it did snow it was way to cold for me to take my plan into action.  Well yesterday we were getting "SNOWMAGEDDON" (of which I am quite certain the people on the east coast were laughing at us)  and my wheels started turning BUT I had a lot of obstacles in my way.

1.  Snow started falling at 8 a.m.  When it came it was thunder snow and not really safe to travel in.
2.  It was quite darn cold out.
3.  My beautiful model (my daughter) looked outside and then looked at me like I had four heads when asking her to go ahead with my plan.

Luckily Kylie is one of those teenagers that kind of just go with the flow so it wasn't too hard to get her on board.  Obstacle 3 out of the way.

Now obstacle 2 was a little different.  I knew I wanted her in something really big of which I hadn't really made yet because in my head I had this Sue Bryce (if you don't know who she is, in short description: a beautiful and inspirational photography mentor of mine) big tulle dress in my head.  That wasn't going to happen because of obstacle 1 and because you can't go outside in barely nothing because of the windchill.  So, after playing beauty salon and getting her hair how I wanted it, I went to work on her dress.   In a split second everything changed because I went to my coat closet remembering that at the beginning of summer I was at an antique store and saw this vintage lace dress of which everybody with me thought I was crazy.  I thought it had so much potential so I bought it.  When I pulled it out and paired it with Kylie's blonde hair and most of all her bright blue eyes it was like church choir music played out loud!  We still had the problem of 20 mile an hour winds and blowing snow, but I knew if I didn't do it it might now happen.  You see in my head there is snowflakes falling and most importantly a gloomier look.  Well, Kylie, God bless her was just willing to go for it and go for it until she couldn't anymore.  Obstacle 2 ninja kicked in the face!

Obstacle 1.  I wasn't going anywhere so it was going to have to be in my yard.  You made due with what you got.  Obstacle 1 diverted but with a sad face.

IT WAS COLD.  IT WAS WINDY.  IT WAS ALL OF LESS THAN TEN MINUTES TOTAL SHOOTING TIME.  BUT!  I love them.  I love them.  I love them.  I know she is my daughter, but it turned out just perfect for me.

I am woman. Hear me roar.

Today, I feel the need to talk about a part of my photography that causes quite a stir.  This is also a part of my photography that I absolutely love.  With that being said, there are so many misconceptions about what exactly it is.  I have clients that are so so proud of their images and have actually cried when they saw their images.  Does this sound like something that is wrong or personal or sleezy?  People have a predetermined idea of what glamour or boudoir looks like and it just isn't the same these days.  It is a wonderful area of photography that doesn't deserve the stigma of what it has.

If you follow me on facebook or have looked at my website, I have a section called "be{YOU}tiful".

What is be{YOU}tiful?

be{YOU}tiful is............. what they see 

they are a busy mom.  they are kind, funny and they worry about their weight.

they used to feel pretty, they criticize their wrinkles, they are passionate, they are humble, 

loving and they are courageous.  they want to always
remember what deep down they see in themselves.

be{YOU}tiful is.............what I see

they are radiant.  they are charming.

they are breathtaking.  they are intoxicating.

they are passionate when they talk about their kids.  

they sparkle when they laugh.

I believe that we as women need to celebrate who we are.  It has been hard for me to get to this point in my life where I realize that it’s okay to just be me.  I truly feel that every woman big or small, in their 30s, 40s, 50s, 60s and on should know that they are be{YOU}tiful.  Every woman in their life deserves to feel special and deserves a portrait of themselves.

So next time you see a portrait of a be{YOU}tiful lady come across your feed on facebook, or on your instagram, twitter or on a photographer's website, tell them they are beautiful.   Don't be a bully and call them inappropriate names.   Those women weren't there to spread their legs and do a shoot to be in the next edition of Playboy.  They did it because they wanted to celebrate who they are.  They wanted to feel be{YOU}tiful for themselves as well as their husbands or finances or loved one.  They did it because they are proud of being a be{YOU}tiful woman.