Lessons
Day 1
1Introduction
07:36 2Let’s Get this Party Started Right!
20:35 3Redefining Boudoir: YOUR Brand & Style
29:59 4Working with Women
20:01 5Creating Relaxed Clients
17:49 6Posing and Anti-Posing
12:05 7Flattering All Body Types
21:13Providing an Amazing Experience
09:00 9Shoot: Simple Set, Natural Light
21:06 10Shoot: Students' Turn
10:09 11Shoot: Budget Hotel Room
20:43 12Sexy Styling
18:12 13Sets and Props
07:13 14Styling Q&A
19:09 15Shoot: Bedroom Set, Soccer Mom
30:52 16Shoot: Students' Turn
10:52 17Shoot: Bedroom Set, Model
18:26 18Shooting Q&A
06:52Day 2
19Reviewing Previous Images
05:11 20Shooting to Sell
16:21 21Lighting & Equipment
32:02 22Vintage Car Shoot
23:15 23Shoot: Grey Seamless with Samantha
14:11 24Shoot: Grey Seamless, Students' Turn
13:03 25Shoot 3: Grey Seamless with Sarah
21:20 26Shoot: Grey Seamless Student's Turn
08:27 27Prop Shoot
12:56 28Post-Production
21:32 29Lightroom
19:04 30Photoshop
24:16 31Shoot: Bar Set with Justine and Will
23:59 32Students' Turn (Carlos and Nicole)
07:35 33Shoot: Back to Christa
15:36 34Shoot: Students' Turn (Jen)
14:01 35AFTER DARK: Fine Art Nude
1:05:06Day 3
36After Dark Shoot Review
03:45 37Favorite Photoshop Actions
16:07 38Booking Your Ideal Client
36:11 39Boudoir Parties
06:46 40Shoot: Backstage with Margareta
28:50 41Marketing with Enthusiasm
31:25 42Price Lists (Q&A)
14:07 43Pricing Strategies
20:23 44Selling
14:17 45Website Critiques
16:08 46Shoot: Sister Kate
22:26 47Shoot: Chinese Fans with Katie
12:37 48Velvet Dress with Robin
16:51 49Shoot: Students' Turn (Jen)
21:59Lesson Info
Shooting Q&A
All right, jennifer kovacs is wondering what are some tips for when you might feel stuck in a certain poser situation and can't seem to think past it right move on you move and say okay, we're gonna try to angle tell the model to move to and you just both like start dancing again just I don't really if it's not working it's not working you just move on some photographers that I respect and actually love they will stay with something until it works and they'll even go back the next day and try and make it work um it's just not my personality to force something so and I like to keep myself spontaneous and creative and keep moving also challenges me I do boudoir pers I'm on a time clock I have to work fast sometimes and so I'm good in my habit of moving on sometimes I should maybe stay with it for just another couple frames but um I think it works better as a professional when you're trying to sell to get in the habit of moving on and I've had some people that take my online boudoir uh cl...
ass which is the six weeks class um some of them have really struggle with this and they'll spend in power shooting one thing it will have no variety so unlike set your iphone on a timer to go off every two minutes and you have to move on whether you nailed it or not you've got to move on every two minutes and that will break that habit that's a really good team yeah it's super fun to you got to do stuff like that to challenge yourself to make it interesting that's why you hire models or do a trade or have a neighbor or a friend because it's really fun to do stuff like that to shake it up for you and to help unstick yourself know what I mean? Yes, uh question is do you use? Do you have the models amuse things in their hands or do you prefer nothing actually in the hand perhaps um you know, sometimes I have a job for sure I love crops um I don't like toe always have it, but yeah, in fact, we should throw a crop in here. Oh, that's pretty e you say you haven't been checking in with myself as much as I normally dio because the whole tethered things thrown me up but, um that's kind of nice um I'm digging that ride share too with that green and the brick wall seen a cabaret situation happened before my eyes uh uh leg is wondering I'm going back to your light that you're using today is that just because you're in seattle and it's so great here we need extra light or is that something you regularly work with I've worked with this a lot before but normally it's like when it's getting late because in l a I never I always found like I had enough natural light and everything it's pretty big and open um so I had that luxury but we're in a winter in new york city has been like sure is dark s so I'm using it a lot now not just when it's getting dark out but just during the day when it's gray really helps and this is so nice because you can get just a little list fit you khun just dim it all the way down and sorry um this one oh, shoot I'm gonna have to double check but I like getting the one with barn doors the metal bar doors because then you could really spotlight it so if you want it to look like a spotlight or if you just wanna have like, a very high contrast um spotlight on the certain body part you can do that by using the barn doors question from moonlight dan how do you krista keep your energy level so high? Oh my god that's such a good question I'm just on the professional and I know that that's what I need that's what I need to dio how I do it is beyond me like literally the moment like the cameras turn off I'll be like sleep no seriously and take a nap um but you kind of have tio I feel like you know um honestly I wish all of you guys would raise your energy level up a little bit because that's what kind of needed I think that vitality and that energy on the shoot can you can feel through the lens and if we're all quiet and kind of slump e and I just can't work like that I think my image old images will be a little dead and stale so I like to keep my energy up how I do it I don't know we have a question yeah it's one by one light more than a strobe light uh they're two toasts are two totally different purposes so I don't like one more or less than the other this kinds in clutch when I need something super quick totally dimmable just a little bit and I need to move fast um the stroller I love and we're gonna work with tomorrow that's so much fun and it's a totally different look and it's gorgeous and I love it but yeah, they served two different purposes in my world I've tried using the strobe is phil or for something like this it's just it's too powerful and yeah, I don't love it so I only use it with a studio backdrop you have, for example, a perfect pose but the background or what you have behind the model it doesn't work right you take the shot or take the shot but then I'll move it and try and take it again we'll definitely take a shot takes a millisecond right um but yeah, that happens it's like wow that just really hit and if I you know I can do it in editing and that something was in the background like maybe someone walked by or whatever um there's an outlet right there lamp post or whatever then I can maybe retouch it um or if I have the luxury of time I can take a second remove it and then try and culture but like sometimes you just won't recreate the awesomeness that just was a moment ago so I'd rather kind of capture it uh glory um does have one more question about taking pictures above women in the bed okay do you actually stand on the bed with her todo air or do you use a stool ever ladder no I don't need a stool on the bed stand above her and this is again something I don't know as a man that you could get away with I get really close like this her say your head is right here I do this one often actually if I'm on the bed I'm standing above her and I want her just to kind of just relax and be all into herself and that's well, that's, another money shot, um, eleven life um, so that when I do a lot, but again, as a man, I don't know if you could do it. Maybe you can have her on the edge of the bed, and you are on a stool. When you're doing the same thing, I'm sure that will work. I kind of just for ease and quickness. Just jump on in there. It's so much more fun, teo like it on the bed, where you gonna shoot anymore? We're gonna, uh, no, we have about three minutes. I think we're gonna raffa.
Class Materials
bonus material with purchase
Ratings and Reviews
a Creativelive Student
This is meant to be a HELPFUL review for those that are wondering if they should purchase this workshop. About 75% of what I took away from this workshop was posing, composition for boudoir and the importance of eye lines and capturing movement. I had two boudoir sessions a week after this workshop and my images significantly improved. I was able to coach my clients through poses better, direct them on where to look for better eye lines, I was more aware of their posture and how to fix it, I think I sounded more professional and felt more confidant with getting awesome poses, stand out expressions and adding movement to my images. I put a fan on my client the way Christa does.. and she is right! The instant I put the fan on my client, her expression changed and you could tell she was really "feeling it". She told me she felt like a real supermodel right after I turned on the fan. If you are looking for inspiration on how to coach women and pose for boudoir then Christa is the girl for you. I think the most worthwhile thing I learned watching this is something that will help me in the years to come... with my brand, my website, my workflow and my business goals. I learned how to "keep it simple" which is Christa's tag line. For example Christa brings a roll of gray background paper and uses gaffer tape to hang it from the wall of the hotel (instead of bringing a 12ft background stand). I know this seems simple but this will change my life! I hate dragging equipment back and forth. There are some negative reviews on here about Christa's technical skills, but I think these people may have missed the whole point. If you provide an awesome product and an awesome experience for your client, they will buy it. And guess what.. your client will never know if you used your camera in auto or manual and they won't care if you used one light instead of two. As someone who has been in business for 3 years doing boudoir exclusively I learned a lot. I see a lot of value in learning from someone who doesn't spend a lot of money on fancy equipment, yet charges her clients over $3,000 for sessions. I'm a huge fan of her keep it simple philosophy and I'm glad Christa is willing to be honest about her workflow and how she best utilizes her time. Your not going to agree with or use everything Christa talks about, you take the parts that you like and are most helpful to you and work them into building a stronger business.
a Creativelive Student
AWESOME DEAL on Christa's course. I just sent an email to my husband to tell him thanks for "gifting" me this course. I told him just the ONE CLASS about pricing was worth the full $129 price of the course. And there are over 50 classes?! That is a crazy stupid good deal. You can learn something good from every class you take, every book you read, and just apply the stuff that works for you. There are a lot of people out there who seem to just enjoy giving crappy reviews, and to me it's almost like bullying. How someone could not find $129 worth of value in this course is beyond me. In my opinion this course is worth over a thousand bucks, because it can help you make SO much more money. I hate when I see people whining about things that are not 100 percent perfect, and they get annoyed if the person isn't catering to their exact needs. It's like the Yelper generation, with a disturbing sense of entitlement. I would love to see those people try teaching a class about boudoir and see if they could do any better. It also seems like, the more popular a person gets, the more other people feel the need to tear them down. I'm grateful that Christa even offered this course at ALL. Thanks Christa for all you do to help those of us who really need to know this stuff. You rock.
a Creativelive Student
I never thought I would shoot boudoir. I am a shy and private person. I started entertaining the idea when I first saw Christa's work and saw how beautiful and tasteful it can be. I love her lighting and all that she uses from historic painters and sculptors. I watched all three days live and learned a ton. I have a lot of lighting education, but it was nice to freshen up my skills. I loved the posing tips and the three typical situations she uses for one shoot. I loved learning about how she shoots in hotels and also using things like an outdoor situation. I have now shot my first boudoir session and it was a total hit. I am thrilled to show my client her images. This was fantastic! Thank you, Christa!
Student Work
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