Cherie Steinberg, owner of CherieFoto and The Boudoir Cafè, sits down with The Plunge to talk about boudoir photography — and why it’s definitely a good idea to encourage your lady to have a session before the big day.
What the hell is boudoir photography?
The French noun “boudoir” translates to “a woman’s sitting room.” At Boudoir Cafè (which is comprised of myself, my partner Hedley Jones, and a small but important team of talented photographers), the way we look at it is the moment a woman looks at herself and thinks she looks beautiful. It’s a very private moment; and we are capturing this moment in time. In our boudoir photographs, the woman can be as clothed or unclothed as she likes. We want to do whatever we can to help her feel sexy. And we want to capture this private moment where she does.
So why can’t she take some nice, normal, family-shareable wedding photos the way brides usually do? Why should she do this photoshoot?
It has become the ultimate gift for their man! Regular wedding shoots are well… just the bride in the dress. Isn’t it just that much better to see her without it on, to see what she might have underneath that dress?
10 years ago, it wasn’t a big deal to give a gift to a husband or a wife. That’s why wedding photo shoots were so boring. But nowadays a lot of people want to give a personalized gift before the wedding day. This gift is extremely personal. I’ve seen a lot of guys really love having these photos on their phone. They’re usually safe enough for work to be contact pictures. Also, they’re a great way for guys to show off to their friends! Nothing spells bragging rights like having a beautiful wife who is also caring and trusting enough to share herself with you in such a way.
Can you provide a little info about what my future wife would be doing at these sexy little photoshoots? …You know… for personal reasons…
We definitely make sure to interview the girl. We ask her: what do you want to do with this? What is your favorite part of you? What is your husband’s favorite part of you? Based on that, we suggest poses, postures. The girls bring their own lingerie, and we provide a hair and makeup session. Essentially, we want her to feel comfortable, pampered, happy, and sexy. This comes through in the photos at the end of the day. Don’t worry. No matter what she’s doing, she’s feeling good – and when you get the photos she gives you, you will too.
So like, what am I doing with these photos after? (Besides, ahem, personal reasons.) What would I be doing with these risqué pictures of my wife?
Wall art is something we see our customers go to a lot. We use Chinese lacquer for our wall art (usually a 40×60 canvas) and it’s beautiful. We see couples place these mostly in the bedroom and bathrooms – intimate places, but still openly viewable. We also see a lot of women give small books of the photographs to their husband; or boxes of the photographs. (Our books and boxes are handcrafted in Italy, different than most other photographers.) We also do holograms!
These photographs are something you can display and share. They resemble glamour shoots.
Stories to share?
Oh, yeah! I’ve had a woman come in who has never worn makeup before – and my goodness was her husband surprised with those photos! Oh, also. Had a woman come in a little while back who was over 60 – and her photos came out fantastic. It’s not only 20-somethings getting married anymore; and wanting to feel open and sexy is not just a millennial idea. Older women are embracing it too. And their husbands sure are thanking them.
Cherie Steinberg is the founder of CherieFoto and The Boudoir Cafè. She has received a Canadian Council for the Arts Award, and has been recognized and honored by many journals and companies, most recently Nikon.
Visit The Boudoir Cafè to find out more about her, her team, a video on why boudoir photography is a must-try experience… and just to generally see some more sultry images. We all know you’re imagining your girl when you look at them anyway, come on.
