What is a Boudoir Photoshoot? A Beginner's Guide for 2025
- Emily Newton
- Feb 22, 2023
- 6 min read
Updated: Jan 31
Boudoir shoots have become increasingly more popular over the past decade and you may even be considering doing a boudoir shoot yourself. If that's the case, this article will be your beginner's guide–everything you need to know about doing a boudoir photoshoot.
Photo by: Emily Newton
Maybe you heard your friend mention they did a boudoir shoot or maybe you found a boudoir photographer on Instagram and now you're curious, what is a boudoir photoshoot? In this article, we're going to cover everything from what boudoir means to how to prepare for your upcoming shoot! By the end, I hope you feel incredibly confident about booking your next boudoir session.
To begin, let's get an idea of what this guide will entail and how it will be broken down.
Boudoir Photoshoot: Your Beginner's Guide for 2025
Many people are wondering, what is boudoir and should I consider doing a shoot like this? This beginner's guide will dive into what boudoir is, what to expect from a boudoir shoot, and how to prepare for one.
What Does Boudoir Mean?
Boudoir /ˈbo͞od, wär/
is a French word meaning a woman's bedroom or private room. Thus, a boudoir photoshoot is one that is usually taken in an intimate setting with a lingerie-inspired wardrobe. Boudoir shoots are popular for women to do previous to getting married so they can gift their soon-to-be husbands with an exciting "sneak peek" for what their future holds. More recently though, women are doing boudoir photoshoots for themselves to feel confident and empowered, without the expectation of gifting it to a significant other.
Who Are Boudoir Shoots For?
Boudoir photoshoots are for everyone. When thinking about photos with women in lingerie, we tend to think of supermodels walking the runway for Victoria's Secret. This is what sets boudoir apart from most "model" photoshoots. Boudoir is for anyone, model or not. Ninety-five percent of my clients have never done a photoshoot before.
What To Expect From a Boudoir Shoot
Boudoir photoshoots are meant to be intimate and take you out of your comfort zone (I mean, how many of us have actually modeled in lingerie before?). It's a big step! With that in mind, I want to make sure you feel as confident as possible going into your next boudoir shoot, knowing exactly what to expect from a professional boudoir photography session.
Everything is About and For You
After researching different boudoir photographers, you've finally found the one you trust with this incredibly courageous step you're taking. You reach out to them on their website asking for more information and expressing your interest in booking a shoot.
From this point on, everything will be about you. What you want to get out of this shoot, why you're interested in doing a boudoir shoot, how you want to look, what wardrobe you want to bring, etc. If this isn't the textbook definition of "treat yo'self", I don't know what is.
Pay a Booking Deposit
Once you've connected with your photographer and you've decided on a shoot date, your photographer will most likely ask for a non-refundable booking deposit to get you on their schedule. This deposit ranges per photographer, but my booking deposit is $200 and guarantees that our studio has been booked and you are officially on my calendar.
Receive a Prep Guide
Most boudoir photographers will provide you with an in depth-prep guide that explains how to choose your wardrobe, how to do hair and makeup (unless provided by the photography studio), what to bring and what not to bring. Just in case they didn't, check out my ultimate guide for prepping for your boudoir shoot here.
Get Hair and Makeup Done
On the scheduled day of your boudoir shoot, the first thing you'll do is get your hair and makeup done. Most boudoir photographers will have a team of hair and makeup artists that do everything for you at the studio. I allow my clients to either choose from one of my trusted hair and makeup artists or pick their own before coming to the studio.
A quick heads-up, when your hair and makeup are done, you will ALWAYS feel like it's too much. I've never had a client feel like they had too little makeup on. This is totally normal to feel and is on purpose! Even though it may make you feel uncomfortable at first, it will absolutely make your photos look gorgeous. Hair and makeup artists do this all the time and know exactly how much is enough for your photographs to look amazing.
Hang Up Your Wardrobe or Browse the Client Closet
Many boudoir studios provide what's called a "client closet" which includes lingerie pieces from XS to XXL. Some include this in the price of your session while others might charge a rental fee. Other photographers will have you bring your own wardrobe of things you've already had a chance to try on and love. Most boudoir photographers will allow between 2-5 outfit changes during your session. Your photographer will help you decide which outfit to start with and what posing will look best.
Begin Your Boudoir Photoshoot!
Boudoir photoshoots typically last between 60-120 minutes depending on the package you chose. The photographer will explain every pose to you and clearly communicate what they're doing the whole time. You should never feel uncomfortable at any point doing your shoot and if you do, always bring it up to your photographer immediately.
You'll shoot in each outfit for about 15-20 minutes or so before switching into a new one. The studio will have multiple different setups for you to pose with. Some photographers will show you the photos as you go along while others prefer to only show you the finished images at the end! Either way, know that your photographer does this all the time and knows exactly what angles will make you look incredible.
Have Your Photo Collection Reveal
There are many different ways boudoir photographers will conduct their final photo reveals. Some will have a same-day guarantee where you leave for a few hours and come back to the studio for an in-person experience. Others will take a few days or weeks to go through and edit your best images. They'll then send you a link with photos to choose from.
I prefer to take time to go through each of the images alone and choose the best ones. I then edit those images and send you a link with 40+ gorgeous images from your session. My session fee includes those images (you get to keep all of them!), while most other boudoir photographers will have you pay per photo and not let you keep the rest. It all comes down to the photographer's preference, but for me, I'd rather not dangle the carrot in front of you and then charge you an insane amount of money to buy them. I've already gone through the work to edit those images and I want you to know exactly how much you're going to pay for them before your collection even arrives.
Decide How You'll Present Your Images
If you're doing this session as a gift for someone else, you'll then need to decide how you're going to present them to your partner. Most boudoir photographers will have albums to choose from and will handle all of the printing and shipping themselves.
Some photographers actually require you to buy a printed album from them in order to even receive your images in the first place. This is not something I require my clients to do. You will always receive the digital images and choose exactly what you want to do with them. I do have album options available and am overjoyed when my clients choose to get their images printed, but I never force this.
Example Images From Boudoir Shoots
All images by Emily Newton.
Interested in Booking a Boudoir Shoot?
If any of the information above was helpful and you're now ready to book your next boudoir shoot, send me a message here and let's get started! I'm absolutely honored that you trust me with such a courageous step in your life and would be overjoyed to be your boudoir photographer. Let's make some magic.
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