The number one, most important thing you can do is arrive at our exquisitely decorated studio in Seattle, it’s going to be AMAZING! That’s it. That’s all you need to do for your session. We’ve got the rest covered, it’s absolutely the truth.

But I hear you saying, “what else shoud I do?” Well here is a good place to start.

Start Reflecting

WHAT DO YOU WANT?
Wow… a loaded question, right? But a really important one. When it comes to the finished product from your session, ask yourself what exactly you want to see. When you look back at the images in 10, 20, or 30 years, what do you want to remember about yourself? What is the experience that you would like to have looking at the photos? How will the photos be represented — in a book, on the wall, etc.?

WHAT IS YOUR VISION?
Exactly what kind of images are you hoping for? Do you find yourself drawn to anonymous images that show off the body? Editorial style? Have absolutely no idea? Your first homework assignment is to create a “secret” Pinterest board for your photo session. Without thinking too much about it, I want you to PIN anything that speaks to you and your style. Try to turn off your fear and over-thinking at this point. Don’t say things like “OHH that’s so beautiful, but I would NEVER be able to pull that off!” or “I WISH could look like that!”. That’s not the point of this exercise. After pinning multiple images, I will very easily be able to see a representation of your style and the type of images you are drawn to. Do you like soft, bright, and airy? Do you like dark, moody, and provocative? Do you like shots that capture body lines and silhouettes? Do you like close-up teaser shots of body parts? Do you prefer more modest portraits? We’ll find out together! The purpose of this is NOT to find photos to replicate. It is inspiration. Knowing the kind of images you really like, it will be easier for me to deliver a set of photos that match YOUR VISION.

YOUR PERSONAL STYLE
After creating your Pinterest board, we should also be able to draw from it ideas for your hair and makeup and wardrobe styling as well. For makeup, do you want something more natural or something more dramatic? Or do you see yourself in the middle — glammed up but not over-the-top? Or maybe you see a more classic beauty look? For hair, do you want big volume, tousled/messy curls, an up-do, or maybe something more polished? For wardrobe, what types of lingerie do you like? Do you like solid, patterned, lacy or strappy? Do you like monochromatic, neutral, or vibrant colors? Or perhaps you like casual attire more than lingerie. Take a look at your Pinterest board and see what you find.

A NOTE OF REASSURANCE
You do not need to carry the burden of answering all of these questions all by yourself! I am here to help. Plenty of women walk into our studio and say, “I like everything, just make me look good!” And that’s our number one priority. No matter how much or how little direction you provide on exactly what you want — we will always always always make sure you look PERFECT.

06/30/21 UPDATE: Starting July 2021, we are able to welcome guests/friends back to the studio (yay!).

Using all of our brainpower and creativity, we have crafted a studio safety plan that includes all of the requirements/precautions to keep you safe but does not sacrifice any part of providing our full-service experience and delivering the beautiful finished work that we are known for.

This plan includes procedures that are legally required by Washington State for personal services and photography in Phase 2. We have also gone above and beyond to add even more safety precautions. In reality, the majority of the sanitation and cleaning procedures in this plan have always been done in our studio — so not much will change there!

As far as we know, these procedures are NOT temporary and will be in place for a long time. We will continue to look to the CDC and WHO to follow recommended best practices and update our procedures as required by Washington State.

Have a fever? Please reschedule

Our first safety requirement starts before you enter our studio doors. We ask that you notify us if have a fever, signs of a fever, a cough, or other covid-19 symptoms -OR- if you’ve had any known exposure to covid-19 and we will reschedule your session without penalty. We will also monitor ourselves for fever, symptoms, or exposure prior to your session and let you know as soon as possible if we need to postpone.

We are very low volume

At most, 15-30 people total enter our studio doors PER MONTH, and that includes the makeup artist, me (the photographer), and cleaning personnel. So rest assured that you are only occupying the same space as just a few people in any given week.

We will send you instructions on how to enter our studio before your session, which will involve texting us when you arrive so we can open the door for you.

No Guests Please

We normally welcome clients bringing a friend to the session — but Washington state is prohibiting visitors at this time and will only allow one client at a time.

Our studio is comprised of two separate locations, one right next to the other. Each location has its own bathroom, address and entrance door from the street. The largest of the two is the photo studio. It has two levels and is dedicated entirely to photography and it also includes the room for viewing the photos after the session. The smaller location is primarily for makeup/hair and wardrobe. We often do two sessions on the same day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, and if the first session runs long that client will still be in the photo studio location wrapping up choosing photos when the second client arrives and enters the makeup location. A single door connects the two locations and will stay closed and locked so two clients will never occupy the same location at the same time.

Masks and Protective Gear

There will be signage as you enter encouraging you to wear a face mask, as posting this is required by Washington State. But obviously you do not need to wear a mask during your photo shoot. However, we will ask you to wear a mask for most of hair and makeup (except during the application of makeup below the nose) and then also when we are viewing photos together after the photo shoot is over.

The makeup artist and I will wear a face mask throughout the entire time we are with you.

Clean, Sanitize, Wash, and Disinfect

We will clean and sanitize the studio before, after, and throughout each session. We will wipe down high-touch areas after each use. After each session, linens, towels, and clothing/shoes/accessories that are used will be laundered or cleaned or sanitized in our LG Styler Machine. Deep cleaning of the studio with a local cleaning company will be done routinely as well. We have air filters throughout the studio for ventilation.

The makeup artist and I will thoroughly wash our hands before and after as well as frequently during our time with you. We ask that you do the same. We have two bathrooms with ample hand soap and disposable towels.

Hand sanitizer stations are located in every room. Additionally, while supplies last, we have a complimentary bottle of hand sanitizer as a little gift for you as well!

All makeup brushes are cleaned & sanitized between each client. Brush handles will be sanitized with alcohol. Disposable wands for mascara are used. Any creams or liquid will be used from an artist’s pallet and not from the container. Hard powders (eyeshadows, etc) will get a dry wipe after each client. Lip & eye liners will be sharpened and sanitized between clients. Lashes are never reused – you can wear them home after your session. All product bottles/spray bottles get an alcohol wipe down between clients.

No celebratory hugs

Aside from when it is impossible to do so, the makeup artist and I will keep a 6+ ft distance from you at all times. We will also forgo hugs and handshakes.

During hair and makeup, a time when the artist must get closer than 6 ft, the makeup artist will wear a KN95 mask. Additionally, the makeup artist will provide you with a disposable cape to wear.

During the photo shoot, I sometimes make a hands-on adjustments to move hair or help you attach garter straps. I will do a lot less of that and do more talking you through it. And certainly, if you don’t want any adjustments at all, just say the word… Meaning, let me know “I’m following the no hands rule right now” and I will totally respect the distance between us.

Reminders will be in the studio

We will have reminders and a copy of the above plan posted in the studio.

Let us know if you have any questions! We are SO excited to open our studio doors again! Never in the past fifteen years of business have we been away from our work and our clients for such a long period of time. We just simply can’t wait to be back again!

There are several different directions we can go when using the bath tub in the studio. I’ve included all of your options below so you can start deciding which direction you want to go for your bath time photos!

Dry or Wet

Do you want to use the bath tub just as a setting but not actually fill it with water? Or do you want to fill it with water and get photos soaking in the tub? Obviously, you’ll get wet with the 2nd choice, so bring a towel and a plastic bag to put your wet items into afterwards.

Clothing or No Clothing

Do you want to wear clothing (such as a tank top, lace robe, nighty, or even a towel) in the tub or do you want to do the photos without clothing? If you want to wear clothing, keep the following in mind:

– Our delicate lace/lingerie items can not be used in the tub, so bring your own with you. Here are some popular items that be purchased on amazon: lace dress, lace robe, and lace teddy.

– None of our clothing can be used with flowers (flowers will often dye/stain the clothing and thus damage our items), so if you want to wear clothing and accessorize with flowers, bring your own with you.

Flowers

Do want to fill the bath with flowers or flower petals? Bring your preference of fresh flowers with you. Don’t bring fake or dry flowers (fake flowers sink and dry flowers turn brown and icky). If you like the look of the rose petals below, bring a couple dozen roses and we will break them right up into the tub – easy peasy!

Milk Bath

We have a bag of dry milk in the studio and we can mix it into the water. You can pair the milk bath with fresh flowers. Same as above, bring the fresh flowers you want to use with you.

Bubbles

Bring a bottle of bubble bath with you and we can get some suds. Our tub has low water pressure, so we can’t get mile high bubbles, but a little bit goes a long way to creating alluring images.

Faux Shower

Skip the tub for our shower set. It’s simply a plexi glas sheet we spray with water droplets. You can opt for a wet tshirt look or no clothing.

Below is a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the setup used to create the image above.