Celebrating a milestone moment in Joy’s life with boudoir photography
Joy is an incredible human who is hoping to do an outdoor boudoir session with me for each of the four seasons. A few years ago, I photographed her for an early summer sunrise session on the North Shore of Lake Superior. Soon after, we began planning her winter boudoir session (almost a year and a half in advance!), and when the day of the photoshoot finally arrived, Joy’s anticipation and gratitude felt sky high.
Why Joy booked another outdoor boudoir session
If I had to summarize Joy’s winter outdoor boudoir session in a word, it would be celebration. Joy had recently made several monumental leaps in her life, including moving into a new home. Amidst this season of transition and growth, she felt at once a little vulnerable, incredibly strong, and deeply proud of herself for navigating so much newness.
While our culture tends to validate big life changes like a wedding or new baby as moments of celebration, we don’t have established traditions in place to mark other monumental moments like a significant move or job promotion. Joy didn’t want her season of growth to pass without recognition, so she decided to make her boudoir session a ritual of celebration for this exciting time in her life.
Planning a self-celebratory boudoir session in Minnesota
For Joy’s winter boudoir session, I booked an a-frame cabin on a private property in Minnesota with incredible pine trees and a little peninsula leading to a gorgeous frozen lake. The snow covered property had beautiful forested sections and spacious clearings that sparkled in the sunlight. It truly felt like a winter wonderland.
When Joy arrived, we started the session by looking over the outfits she brought. Then Joy requested a quiet, centering moment to pause and ground herself in her intentions for the day. She wrapped up in a blanket and stood on the cabin deck, holding a cup of warm tea in her hands. I took a short walk to give her a few minutes alone and then took some photos at a distance while walking back to meet her. She looked truly serene.
We then spent some time exploring the vast property, wandering and frolicking through the forest. Joy wore a sleek black slip from my studio layering wardrobe, paired with an incredible sheer robe with copper-colored sequins that felt full of personality.
Throughout the session, we took a few breaks to warm up inside the cabin. Joy has recently taken up tatting (knitting with lace). While sipping a warm cup of tea, she pulled out the fabrics she has been working on, and I took candid photos of her tatting inside, which was such a fun and unexpected storytelling moment to capture.
Joy also is an avid quilter, and she learned the art from her grandmother who has since passed away. Joy brought along a quilt her grandmother gave her which is one of her most prized possessions, and I photographed her in the loft of the cabin, relaxing with the colorful quilt. With bright sunlight streaming in the window, Joy had such a peaceful expression on her face.
Back outside, I pulled out several fabrics I had brought from my studio that I knew would pair well with Joy’s next outfit, and I draped the fabrics over some tree branches. I photographed Joy standing in front of, dancing with, and laying on the fabrics, looking full of confidence, playfulness, and self-love.
To wrap up the session, Joy pulled out a fancy bottle of champagne to mark this celebratory moment, and she popped the champagne while sitting on a sun-strewn log on the frozen lake. I photographed her cheering, sipping champagne, and basking in the sunlight, savoring all the affirming emotion of this day and season of life. It felt like a true honor to help Joy capture this self-loving, celebratory moment!
