As an Ottawa’s Premier Retro PinUp & Boudoir photography studio, I meet many different women from all ages and at different stages in their lives. Taking the leap to book a boudoir or pinup session can be deeply personal, often coming after years of thought and self-reflection. Meet Miss H! Her journey to the camera began when her husband suggested a session with me, not just to capture beautiful images but as a way for her to reconnect with her own self-confidence. After navigating through physical and emotional hurdles, and even the world shutting down, she finally embraced the moment to prioritize herself. In this blog, she shares her empowering Pinup photography Experience with Je m’adore fine art portraits — from feeling hesitant to feeling empowered, and the joy of stepping out of her everyday routine to see herself in a new light. Read on to hear her story in her own words and how a pinup session helped her rediscover her beauty and strength.
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Q: What’s going on in your life right now that motivated you to do a session?
Miss H: My husband contacted Suzanne back in 2019 and brought the topic to me as a special and unique way to treat myself. It was finally time to make the leap!
Q: Besides beautiful photographs, what else did you hope to get out of the experience?
Miss H: I wanted to regain and reinforce some self confidence!
Q: How long had you been considering doing a shoot before you booked yours? What was the final push? What did it feel like to finally book your session?
Miss H: My husband brought the idea to me in 2019 but I wanted to feel better physically/mentally before I did it, so I delayed booking, then the world shut down, then I didn’t have the mental space to think about it for awhile. In 2022 my husband brought it up again and I said I wanted to feel better mentally and physically so I’d book it later. Spring forward a year and I still hadn’t done it so I decided to book the session and then it would pressure me to go ahead and make the changes I wanted to make anyways, which it did!
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Q: Before your session, how would you describe your relationship with your body, your beauty and your sensuality?
Miss H: My body relationship has always been a fluctuating course. I’ve always been “big boned”, but maintained activity throughout high school, university and early adulthood. After having 3 kids and doing shiftwork, I haven’t put the time in to maintain a certain level of satisfaction and certainly my relationship with my body and sensuality ahs suffered.
Q: What were you worried about before your session? What helped to overcome that?
Miss H: I hate to say it, but it was how I would look physically in the photos. Leading up I made healthier choices and made exercise a habit to get to a place where I felt mentally and physically improved where I would be happy with the results.
Q: Tell me about your session day: How did you feel on your way over? What were your favorite parts? How did you feel on the way home?
Miss H: I was nervous but excited. My favourite part was bringing the ideas together with costumes and trying new poses, new creative ideas with Suzanne. I felt so good after the session, was happy with the variety of costumes/poses we took and felt amazing being all dolled up for a night out afterwards when we made a date night out of it.
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Q: How did doing a session affect how you feel about your body, your beauty and your sensuality?
Miss H: I work shiftwork and don’t use alot, if any makeup or spend the time to get done up regularly so it was nice to feel extra pampered and go out for a night afterwards. Having an Empowering Pinup Photography experience with Je m’adore fine art portraits certainly gave me a boost in my relationship with body and self image.
Q: What were you feeling when you saw your photos at the viewing?
Miss H: Nervous excitement, but happily surprised. They turned out great and very real – I didn’t look like a stranger.
Q: Why did you decide to hire me as your photographer?
Miss H: It was the experience and the amazing products Suzanne had to offer – my husband has some photography interest/background so searched, found her and liked her work.
Q: If your friend were considering doing a shoot, what would you say to encourage her?
Miss H: Do it! Suzanne was fantastic to work with and open to ideas and new costumes, so bring some ideas to the table such as a guitar, a cowboy hat, ski bunny outfit, fishing gear, sewing machine… whatever you envision, ask and it may come true!
As a final takeaway, this client’s story beautifully highlights how a pinup session can be a transformative self-care experience, building confidence and self-love in ways that last well beyond the shoot. This journey is just one example of the broader impact that intentional self-care can have on mental and emotional health. Ready for your Empowering Pinup Photography experience? Let’s talk!
For more information about practical self-care tips and learn more about the benefits: https://www.choosingtherapy.com/self-care/