Blog - The Boudoir Divas - San Diego Photography

Boudoir Set DESIGN? We’re lovin’ Drop It Modern’s new lineup! Oh…and The Boudoir Divas $25 off discount code for YOU!

By boudoirdivasadminBoudoir Gear & More, Boudoir Photo Shoots, Sales & ContestsNo Comments

We get asked all the time, “so how do you create your sets?”

Well that’s kinda of a complicated answer actually. You see our sets are put together by all kinds of different components. We really like our sets to be three dimensional, to have layers so you feel like you were in a very cool room, or in a mysterious location. Most of the pieces are from garage sales, antique stores, flea markets and thrift stores. Another key factor is my mom, as she loves to frequent all these places and find little gems for us, then she reports back to us, sometimes even re-upholstering items for us. But as we mentioned, we use many, many ingredients, and one of those common ingredients we seem to use A LOT is a drop it MODERN backdrop. Sometimes it’s used as the fancy looking wallpaper backdrop, sometimes it becomes the hip looking floor, or sometimes it just used as a nice little pop like this shot above. Over the years our obsession with drop it MODERN has led them to ask us to pass on some killer deals to you, as they see that question get asked over and over on our social sites, “where do you get your cool boudoir sets?” So they gave us this little goodie to give to all you boudoir photogs…….a $25 off discount code! YES PLEASE!

So maybe it’s time for a new boudoir backdrop … yes? ‘Cause it’s all about NEW at drop it MODERN! They have so many cool new options for us photographers…..

From fresh new prints to the new simple solids, there’s seriously a backdrop for every style and genre, especially boudoir photography. Be sure to check out ‘Gatsby’ in 8 different painted glitters. Yes GLITTER!

Also back in stock are the 2 best damn backdrops in the biz; ‘Spangled’ and ‘Mermaid’! The most amazing sequins lined drops in Gold and Silver. They’re a studio MUST! See for yourself in our shots below with the Spangled Gold Backdrop.

And since everyone loves a deal, drop it MODERN has an entire section dedicated to ‘DEALS’! Some backdrops are priced as low as $30, WOW. Obviously there are plenty of backdrop companies to chose from but no one offers the amazing quality, prices, and crazy fast delivery like drop it MODERN. Their backdrops are built to last through all of our in-studio or on-location destination boudoir photos shoots, and we put them through the ringer, haha.

Visit their site at www.dropitmodern.com and use this exclusive Boudoir Divas code: DIMLOVESDIVAS for $25 off.

You can get new product updates and follow their shenanigans on your social media of choice below!

https://www.facebook.com/dropitmodern
https://twitter.com/dropitmodern
Instagram: dropitmod
http://pinterest.com/dropitmodern

August 30, 2013

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Speaking at Fovitech Peru 2013

By boudoirdivasadminSpeaking Programs, WorkshopsOne Comment

I know we say this a lot, but it doesn’t change the truth: we are SO blessed to be given opportunities to travel around the world, and share about our passion for boudoir photography! Last week we were able to travel to Lima, Peru, for Fovitech 2013. We loved traveling to this country, and loved meeting some wonderful photographers! We were able to speak about “Secrets of Boudoir” at our platform program, and then a couple days later, we had 20 photographers join us for our full-day workshop! It was a really great experience, and we hope to go back again someday!

Of course no trip to another country would be complete without the fun van rides….

We got the royal treatment from the organizers of the convention – including a limo pick-up from the airport! So we wanted to give a huge shout-out to Aldo & his sweet wife Chevela, for being so kind to us through the whole week. We are thankful to have met you both – thanks for your hospitality!

We also love trying out new foods while we’re traveling. And while I (K) wasn’t able to taste this next dish (doc’s orders, no raw seafood for a few more months) 😉 – Marissa sure LOVED the Peruvian ceviche!

We also did a little cooking ourselves, in our awesome apartment (with a killer ocean view!)

As you know, we LOVE speaking and teaching about boudoir photography… and this workshop was definitely a memorable one. We really enjoyed meeting these fab photographers from Peru (and a few other countries as well).

Before we share more photos from the workshop, though – we have to tell this quick story about the photo below. We have traveled to 4 countries with these lights in the past, and have NEVER had an issue with them! Until last week, when Marissa plugged this bad boy into the socket, turned the light on, and BAM – that thing seriously exploded. Like, I mean, the light bulb shot out flames and then shattered glass flew across the room. And then people came running into our room to make sure that wasn’t a gun shot. Needless to say, it got our adrenaline pumping just a bit! 🙂 And thankfully, we were able to use other lights to demo with.

Rest In Peace, little light. Ok – now back to some more photos of the workshop. 🙂

We also have to say a big thank you to our FABULOUS translator, miss Julietta Swartzmann! Julietta is so wonderful; you may recognize her (from our boudoir workshop in Madrid), and we just love how easy it is to work with her! Thanks again Julietta – can’t wait for the next adventure. 🙂

During a portion of the workshop, we were able to work with two beautiful models to demonstrate some basic boudoir posing and lighting techniques. Here are just a couple of those shots…

Thank you so much to all of you who came to our full-day boudoir workshop, taking the time and investing the money to learn all about boudoir photography!

August 28, 2013

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2014 Boudoir Retreat in San Diego CA

By boudoirdivasadminWorkshopsNo Comments

Hey everyone! We were hoping to send an email out this morning with the info about our new 2014 Boudoir Retreats – but sadly, our domain is down right now because of issues with our server. 🙁 So…. just wanted to let you know that we are still planning on officially launching today, as soon as our site is back up! PS – we ‘pre-released’ the info yesterday to a select few people who wanted to hear more about them, and TWO SPOTS have already been taken for San Diego! That means only 10 left… these are gonna go quickly!!!

If you want to get the info, be sure to sign up for our newsletter below…

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July 31, 2013

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We’re havin a baby!

By boudoirdivasadminPersonal8 Comments

Ahhhhhh!!!! I’m so excited to officially announce to the internet world that Eric & I (K) are expecting a new little bundle of joy! There are days where it still doesn’t seem real, and maybe it just hasn’t sunk in yet. And then there are times where it is VERY real – like listening to this little soft heartbeat – and I realize, oh my goodness, there is a LIFE inside of me!
I have loved being a stepmom for the past year and a half… it’s been an incredible experience. And now – I just can’t wait to expand our family by adding a new little guy or gal into the mix (in late January 2014). My hubby is secretly hoping for a boy, and my sweet stepdaughter is (not-so-secretly) hoping for a little sister. 🙂 And I am fine with either! So far pregnancy has been a breeze – I guess I’m just one of the lucky ones who doesn’t have morning sickness or really any symptoms at all (I’m VERY thankful about that). Eric might disagree with my ‘no symptoms’ statement, however, as he’s been calling me p-brain (ok, ok, maybe I AM just a little more forgetful these days). In any case, so far so good – 3 months down, 6 to go!
And in case you wanted to know what my business partner thinks about all of this… she has been SO super supportive, and I can’t write this blog post without saying that I am just really thankful for her. The day I called her on the phone to tell her, I immediately started weeping, and she had to decipher what I was saying through sniffles and tears (ok, yes, maybe just ONE more prego symptom here). I was feeling a little excited/overwhelmed/freaked-out/overjoyed all at once, but Marissa was so sweet and so excited for us. And then the very next day, I had a package on my doorstep from her – with an encouraging note and the “What to Expect” book inside.
Thanks, Riss, for being such a great ‘auntie’ already! This little Diva or Divo is going to be spoiled with so much love! I know, I know, I’m gettin sappy – time to wrap it up.

I just wanted to end by saying thanks to all of you who have already given such huge support and love to me through my FB page &/or Instagram. It means so much to read your comments and feel all of your excitement as I begin this new journey!

And then a request for all of you moms out there who are also business owners/photographers…

a) how do ‘make it work’ with a newborn?
b) is my world going to be rocked?
and
c) any other advice or words of encouragement for me? Feel free to leave me a comment below!

July 29, 2013

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Fovitech Peru Boudoir Speakers

By boudoirdivasadminSpeaking Programs, WorkshopsNo Comments

We are always honored when we’re asked to speak to groups of photographers. And when we’re invited to TRAVEL to another country to speak, we just have to pinch ourselves! We’re pinching ourselves again right now as we gear up for speaking next month at Fovitech 2013 in Lima, Peru! Ahhhhhh!!! We cannot WAIT!

July 24, 2013

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First Paris video launched!

By boudoirdivasadminParis Boudoir Workshop3 Comments

Yay! Launching the first of about three Paris videos to come! Featuring footage from the beautiful Tenley AND the ever enchanting city of light, Paris! After many, many days of rain, the sun finally came out and we loved every second of it. Shooting in Paris is a dream we have always had, and we are so blessed to have been able to experience a day this exciting! This day will forever be in our hearts.

Photo/video/editing by us, The Boudoir Divas, Marissa Boucher & Kimberlee West. Hair and Make-up by Erin Ashley Greene. Song by Melissa Vaughan.

Here are a few of the still from the video…

If you watch it we would be thrilled if you left a comment on this post 😉 There are so many of you visiting the blog and we would really love to know who it is stopping by. In order to leave a comment you have to go to the ACTUAL post, so click on the header of the post and you will see where the comment options are.

We hope to do more photo shoots in Paris, France late spring 2014. Please email us to be on list to receive info as soon as we have exact dates, pricing, etc.

July 19, 2013

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Getting ready to launch one of many Paris vids….

By boudoirdivasadminInspiration, Paris Boudoir WorkshopNo Comments

Oh my goodness, oh my goodness, oh my goooooooddddnneeeessss! We are currently burning the candle at both ends working on so many new projects! Now that the studio revamp is officially done, we have focused our efforts on Boudoir International, our new studio website launch AND the Paris photo shoot and videos! Ah! While we are feverishly working away at this thing, we wanted to leave you with a a couple little teasers until the first of many Paris vids is launched….

SIDE NOTE: So not sure what this whole thing is about? You mean you aren’t totally well versed in the lives of The Boudoir Divas? Hee hee, just kidding, sometimes we wonder if the 300 people who visit our blog everyday are just our mom’s over and over. Every year we do our very best to find an excuse to go to Paris, France to work. Cuz let’s get real, if you love Paris as much as we do, AND you love your work as much as we do, well then it’s just a dream-like scenario isn’t it? We usually go to host a boudoir portrait workshop, but this year we went just to photograph our client and friends Tenley Molzahn from The Bachelor. She is an amazing model, and just all around the cat’s pajamas 😉

July 17, 2013

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You are beautiful…

By boudoirdivasadminBoudoir InternationalNo Comments

This is typically a blog geared toward boudoir photographers, but we wanted to be sure that if you happened to find yourself here and you are considering a photo shoot, that we let you know who we all are and what we believe….

What boudoir photographers all seem to have in common is the belief that every woman is uniquely beautiful and the desire to showcase each person’s uniqueness. It seems that most women tend to look more for perfection in themselves, rather than seeing what beauty others see in us. We think that a boudoir shoot is an amazing way to give yourself the opportunity to throw away the idea that perfection is necessary, and instead embrace all the positives. Strong healthy legs, smile lines from a life of laughter, strong shoulders from picking up kiddos, hips that definitely remind you you are all woman, and the list continues.

Let a boudoir shoot be the beginning of a journey to accepting and loving yourself as you are. Click here to start the search in your area.

July 15, 2013

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Our hopes for the Boudoir International Blog…

By boudoirdivasadminBoudoir InternationalNo Comments

You heard us say it before and we will excitedly say it again, “we want a boudoir photo shoot to be so popular that every woman in the world will know about this fabulous must-do experience!!!!” And so we have created a new feature for Boudoir International, a blog for potential boudoir clients, www.boudoirinternational.com/blog . Our dream for this blog is that potential clients that are just kinda being introduced to the idea of a photo shoot can come to the blog, get inspired and excited to book a shoot. Then they will of course mosey on over to the site and find a photographer in their area. Maybe YOU! Check this video that illustrates what we had in mind.

We are currently looking for boudoir photography submissions from our member to feature their images on our blog. Please learn more on our submissions page at http://www.boudoirinternational.com/boudoir-blog-submissions/

Bou Photogs Unite, let’s do this!!! – M&K

July 10, 2013

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Keep dreaming…

By boudoirdivasadminInspiration, PersonalNo Comments

Hey everyone! How are you all doing this week? We are writing this to you from our “2013 Boudoir Divas Summit” here in San Diego, California! Since I (Kimberlee) live in Washington state these days, most of our planning and scheming is done long-distance. The times when we are together in San Diego are usually packed full of to-dos, projects, workshops, photo shoots, and running around like crazy. So for this trip, we decided it was time for us to slow down the pace a little, with three full days set aside to do nothing more than plan and dream. We’ve had a great Summit so far – and have already decided that this is going to be something we’re going to do every year from now on.

To all of our photographer friends out there – as you know, it is SO necessary as business owners to set time aside yourselves. If you are feeling overwhelmed, with no direction and few dreams, we really want to encourage you guys to have your own Summit. Put it on the calendar, get babysitters for the kids, take a weekend and get away for a few days. Bring a journal and pens (and if you’re like us, you’ll also need big pieces of white paper and tons of fun colored markers like from when you were in elementary school). Take some time to reflect on how your business is doing, and where you’ve come from. And then start dreaming! Where do you want your biz to be in a year from now? Five years from now? Then create some attainable goals, with a timetable so that you will actually get them done. And once you’ve got your attainable goals listed, you also need a few CRAZY dreams. The ones that would maybe take a little extra fairy dust to make them come to fruition. Write those down too.

After just 2 days, we are already feeling ready to tackle our dreams and make shit happen. Want to join us? Boudoir Photographers, JUST KEEP DREAMING!!! xoxo, K&M

“I don’t want to sit around and wait for things to happen. I want to make them happen. I want to be in control of my own destiny.” – Drew Barrymore