How To Choose Your Yorkshire Boudoir Photographer
So, how do you choose your Yorkshire Boudoir Photographer?
How do you choose a car if you know nothing about cars? Well, you could read reviews of course. Visit the showroom and talk to the dealer. You could of course choose on price alone. One of the first cars i ever bought cost me £500. It was a fabulous looking Saab turbo convertible and it lasted precisely a week before it broke down and was too expensive to fix. One week. My super cheap deal ended up being one of my most expensive mistakes.
Choosing a Boudoir Photographer is a little like choosing a car. Like cars, Yorkshire Boudoir Photographers are very different, in terms of their cost and their quality. choose the wrong boudoir photographer can end up costing you hundreds of pounds for pictures that don’t last and that you don’t really love.
If you’ve never had a boudoir photoshoot before it’s really difficult to know how to choose a Yorkshire Boudoir Photographer.
Word of mouth recommendation is a great way. If friends you trust have had a photoshoot before then they’ll tell you what to expect. Most of our clients come through word of mouth referrals. Good photographers who want to build a strong business over many years know that client satisfaction is crucial and they’ll go the extra mile to look after you, before, during and after your shoot.
Failing anyone you know recommending someone, you could search for reviews online. Check their Facebook page and their website for client endorsements.
Lots of positive endorsements is always a good sign.
You’ll find facebook allows clients to review their experiences and these aren’t editable by the vendor so are a good source of reliable references. (Ours are here for example : https://www.facebook.com/pg/MadisonBou4boudoir/reviews/ )
Another thing you may be considering is whether the boudoir studio is an all female team and this may be important. Many studios actively promote the fact that they have an ‘all female’ team. However, if experience, ability and quality of the final image is more important to you, then perhaps the gender of the photographer is less important. I’m male and have been photographing women for more than 20 years. i used to be a radio presenter and find that the skills of communication i learned come in very useful when it comes to relating and relaxing my all female clients. However, regardless of whether you care about the photographer being male or female, do consider that there really should be a female assistant or stylist present at all times.
I would be wary of any boudoir studio that allows a solo male photographer to photograph you without anyone else present.
After all, it’s such an intimate photoshoot and just the thought of booking a session may fill you with anxiety.
What to look for when viewing a studio website
Many studios don’t specialise in ‘boudoir’ but have just a small section within their ‘family portrait’ websites for this style of shoot.
Keep in mind that these studios may not have much experience in creating a truly safe and empowering environment for such an intimate style of shoot. For the same reason you wouldn’t expect a GP to be as good with your root canal work as a dentist, A family portrait photographer may not be the best choice for your Boudoir Photoshoot.
Many family studios are quite impersonal spaces with plain white walls and big studio lights designed to accommodate kids and families and they may be set up for volume work, meaning that they may not be able to give you the time for you to become comfortable for your shoot.
You’ll get a pretty good idea what kind of studio it is by checking how much emphasis is placed on boudoir on their website.
A small section with very few images in the gallery generally means the studio has less experience than a boudoir specialist. (Like a general DIY handyman may be good at some wallpapering jobs but not so good as an electrician or plumber)
Look through the website galleries. Ask yourself if it looks like they have a lot of experience photographing many different women of all shapes and ages. Lots of variety implies lots of experience.
Are you drawn to the style of images you see. You may not know what you want until you see it. Every studio has a specific ‘style’ and you can only assume that the pictures you see will be the kind of pictures you’ll get from your shoot.
Are these what you want?
Some studios produce dark and moody pictures, others light and upbeat or softly feminine, edgy or sexy.
There are so many different styles it’s important to choose a studio that creates the kind of pictures you love.
Consider this … if you love Vivienne Westwood clothes you probably won’t want to shop at M&S. Likewise, don’t expect photographers that show largely dark and edgy pictures to become soft and romantic just for you.
So, you should expect to get pictures similar to those they show in their galleries but also remember photographers will only ever show their best work, so ask yourself, is their best work good enough for you?
Would you be happy with pictures of you looking like the ones on their website?
Another thing to consider is the investment – Set realistic expectations for how much you’ll pay.
Generally speaking, you get what you pay for. Twas ever thus.
Know that a specialist boudoir photographer, with years of experience and a large portfolio who promotes the value of professionally produced printed wall art and books will probably cost more than a general photographer who does a little boudoir and sells mainly digitals after the session.
Like many other services, you want to know you’re in good hands.
Like spray tans, hair cuts, and other skill based industries, it’s important to know you’re booking someone with plenty of experience.
In boudoir photography, just like in any trade, you really do generally get what you pay for.
How much are YOU worth?
Booking a boudoir photography session can be a life changing experience for so many women. Alternatively, it may just be a bit of fun as a bucket list tick off.
If you book a session and turn up with little expectation, one or two hastily put together outfits and expect just a couple of digital pictures as a memory of the experience then probably one of the ‘general’ photographers on a Groupon deal will be perfectly fine.
The fact that you’re even reading this article though will probably suggest you expect a little more.
Once you’ve created your shortlist, call the studio up and talk with them.
How personable are they?
Do they seem to care about you and your reason for booking the photoshoot?
How accommodating to your requests are they?
Like a first class hotel or fine dining restaurant, a boudoir photography photoshoot is really about servicing your unique, individual needs. Your hair, your make-up, your comfort levels. Be comfortable with your photographer and studio and you’ll have a great chance that the pictures will look fabulous.
