Hi friends!
I want to continue along a train of thought I’ve had in some of my other recent posts revolving around the boudoir photography experience. We’ve navigated the importance of loving your body and tapping into your personal source of self-confidence, but today, I want to address why it makes so much of a difference to be in tune with your body.
Sometimes, these things can sound similar. However, I like to think of them more like links on a chain necklace ordered in a specific way to support a beautiful diamond pendant. Connecting with your body is what allows you to access your source of self-confidence, and that act of digging deeper is essential to developing love for your body as well.
But how do you do that?! Well, there are many different mind-body techniques practiced across the globe that help people just like you quiet the noise around them for long enough to hear what their inner voice has to say. Here are a few of my favorites that I find can make a world of difference in the boudoir studio.
Deep Belly Breathing
Women spend so much of their lives sucking in their stomachs to maintain a particular image — literally holding their breath! But it’s amazing what can happen when you let go of all that. Taking a full, deep breath and allowing your diaphragm to balloon out away from your body before returning to its resting position is one of the best ways to hit that internal reset button. You feel calmer, more centered, and more capable of noticing the nuances of how your body feels in that particular moment. With that information, you can then move in a way that gives your body what it actually needs — and that includes in front of the camera.
Yoga Stretches
I love that yoga has become such a widely accepted movement practice! More than exercise, yoga postures help you move your body in ways that ultimately prepare it for a period of both silence and stillness in which you gain access to your inner self. This movement (and the stillness that follows) is all about connecting with what your body wants and needs in that moment so you can provide just that. I find that using a few yoga stretches before stepping foot on a boudoir set can really help you tune into the space and how your body feels within it.
Mantra Repetition
I don’t know about you, but I feel like I have a mantra for so many aspects of my life! A simple phrase that you can repeat in your mind (or aloud!) to elicit a specific physical response is one of the most amazing examples of the mind-body connection, and I love using it in the boudoir studio. Find that particular phrase that brings you into your body so you can access what’s resting within it. It’s wild how much those nuances can guide you and create the most natural boudoir experience when you might otherwise feel exposed.
Do you have a favorite mind-body technique that helps you really tune into yourself? Share in the comments below!
Be Fierce, Friends.
With Grit & Grace,
Sarah Keenan, Photographer
Boudoir Studio Knoxville
Westland Farms Studio
