Very B Alluring - Boudoir Photography The Boudoir Café

CREATIVITYPhotos TheBoudoirCaféPROFILE“The lipstick and that necklace were dynamite,” Cherie Steinberg says, “but I thought the image needed onemore thing. I told her what I wanted to do and she trusted me. The mask is actually a piece of fabric that’s partof my bag of goodies, and this is one of my all-time favorite pictures.”VeryAlluringCHERIEFOTO’S SUCCESSFUL BOUDOIR PHOTOGRAPHYBUSINESSPROMOTES SENSUALITY AND SELF-IMAGE BY BARRY TANENBAUM84 MARCH 2015BOUDOIR IS ONE of thefastest growing segments ofthe photography industry,but it’s not exactly a newthing for some pros. “We had been doingboudoir photography for a long timebefore that term became popular andthe photography became a big thing,”Cherie Steinberg says. “We” is Steinbergand Hedley Jones, her husband andpartner in CherieFoto and The BoudoirCafé. Their main business “a long timebefore” was weddings, and many of their

On location at the client’s apartment, the photographers found not much to work with. “But there was theocean, and the cat,” Jones says. Team CherieFoto has lately been doing a lot of “unidentified subject” photos.“The client can order a print, a large one, and put it up in her house, and no one knows for sure it’s her,”Steinberg says. “This type of art image has become really important for us. We sell more prints and biggerblowups.”looked at each other and went, ‘Really?’”Along with the look and the questioncame thought that it might be a goodidea for them to promote their boudoirphotography more than their weddings.If you find yourself at the crest of awave, ride it.THE SHOWboudoir shoots featured engagementphotographs or were sessions withbrides whose weddings they’dphotographed.“We’d do a nice shoot, and I’d putit up on the blog and talk about it,”Steinberg says. They never thoughtthere was anything special aboutwhat they were doing until one day,on a whim, they Googled themselves.“We saw that we were the number oneboudoir photographers in Los Angeles,”Steinberg says. “We had no idea. WeHow CherieFoto got to the top of thewave has to do with their signatureimages. By turns moody, sensual,suggestive, edgy, mysterious, and sly,the photographs are always flattering,always immediately recognizable.But maybe even more responsiblefor their popularity is the team itself.Says Steinberg, “We have the kind ofdynamic that makes many people we’rephotographing say, ‘You guys shouldhave a reality show.’”The show has developed overtime, growing naturally from theirpersonalities. Theirs is a rapid-fireexchange of suggestions, ideas,references, one-liners, and tales bothtall and true. They often talk over eachother and often finish not only eachother’s sentences but paragraphs as well.“The people we’re photographinglike watching us,” Steinberg says. “We’rethe entertainment.” Jones says, “Butit’s not just entertaining, it’s relaxing.Our subjects get caught up in the flow,and if they started out nervous or selfconscious, they forget about that. Nowwe’re the subjects, and they’re at ease.”In fact, the show seems to spur mostof their recommendations. “Read ourYelp reviews,” Steinberg says. “We’regetting bookings on those reviews,”Jones adds. “People who read them comein with a good idea of what we’re like andhow they’ll be treated.”In boudoir photography, there’s nounderestimating the importance oftrust, and if recommendations begin theprocess of building a client’s confidence,a pre-shoot interview cements it. Selfconscious people, conservative people,shy people—Team CherieFoto workswith them all, and the photographersfind that their personalities, and theappeal of the show, trumps hesitancyevery time.The fact that there’s two of themhelps. “Hedley sets out all the camerasand lenses on a tray,” Steinberg says,“and we’re always going back and forth,changing lenses, cameras, getting a prop,moving a light, arranging a pose. Hedleywill be talking to the girl while I’mchanging lenses, or he’s moving a lightand I’m talking.” Rapport is maintained,the banter continues, the show goes on.UNDENIABLE PROOFUltimately what Team CherieFotois delivering is a result greater thanphotographs or a memorable day. Thephotographers realized early on thatwhat they were really providing to aclient was a heightened self-image.Simply put, they were making theirsubjects feel good about themselves.They emphasize the subject’s strongpoints, and they are skilled at using lightand shadow, posing, and composition toSHUTTERBUG 85

CREATIVITYPROFILE86 MARCH 2015The photographers know that not all of their subjects can bring off upside-down shots, but they love to takethem when they work. This one was made in their studio using only window light.

“We were setting up, telling her about the pose and how to get it, and we just experimented with taking a shot before the front light was turned on,” Jones says. “Now it’sa technique we can use regularly.”deal with problem areas. As Steinberghas suggested, their session is an hourslong fantasy of allure and mystery thatends with photographic proof that itactually happened.Their clients almost always providethe clothing; everything else, includinghair and makeup, is the photographers’domain. Steinberg and Jones suggestthe direction of the shoot, pick propsand backgrounds, choose the lightingmethods and effects. They are ableto respond to their clients’ wishestechnically and creatively, and there’salways lots of room for improvisation.“I have a little bag of goodies,”Steinberg says, “and when the clientsget dressed and have their look together,I might think of a necklace that I havethat would be so cool for the shot, so I goand get it, and I say, ‘Do you like it?’ andshe goes, ‘I love it!’ and puts it on. Thenit might be, ‘Oh, I have these gloves thatwould be amazing on you!’ I just build itup like that, adding things that are mystyle and sensibility. Often we introducethings the clients have never seen andmost likely would never think of, butthat’s why people are coming to us, for“We always shoot the client’s shoes while she’s in makeup,” Jones says, “but there’s usually only one or twopairs. One girl came in with so many, we had to shoot them all at once.”our artistic expression, and that kind ofattention.”If it seems that Team CherieFoto ismaking a lot of it up as they go along,very often that’s pretty much how it is.They have their standard procedures,setups, and prop ideas, but those are justthe beginning. They build images as theygo, as ideas come to them or are offeredby the client. “The session is an organicthing,” Steinberg says. “It develops aswe see what works and what fits with asubject, and what we and the subject canmake work.”And if you think that sometimesthere’s a bit of “How far can the threeof us push this to make really coolimages?” involved, then you’re startingto get into the spirit of a CherieFotoboudoir shoot.SHUTTERBUG 87

CREATIVITYPROFILE“We have a lot of fun things in our studio,” Steinberg says, “and when you’re in a creative mood you start to notice, or look for, all the things you can be creative with.”Jones adds, “The whole world is really a prop, isn’t it?”THE CLIENT BASE“Here’s something new that’s happeningfor us,” Steinberg says. “Men arebeginning to book sessions for theirwives.”“A man came in,” Jones explains.“He’d completely checked us out, and hesaid he wanted to give his wife a specialpresent. He said, ‘She has everythingand can have anything she wants, but Ireally want to give her this, some sexypictures. Can you guys do it?’”There was a pre-shoot meetingbetween the photographers and thecouple. “We had a good chat,” Jones says,“everybody was comfortable, and shewas ready when she came in, and a weekafter the shoot we all went out to dinnertogether.”“So now we’re marketing to men,”Steinberg says. “This guy changed ourminds about who we’re marketing to.What do you give the woman who haseverything? You give her a boudoir shootwith Cherie and Hedley.”88 MARCH 2015“The client brought us to Vegas, to the Bellagio, and we had a great day and a great shoot,” Steinberg says of thesession that produced this natural light, one reflector image. “I guess you can say we do destination boudoir.”Of course, not every clientoffers them the same well, let’s sayopportunities. “For someone whodoesn’t set off sparks, we’ll always comeup with something,” Jones says. “Themore difficult ones are the ones thatwe strive the hardest for. Maybe she’sself-conscious, maybe she’s not as thinas she’d like to be. It doesn’t matter—I’mgoing to make her look great, and I

CREATIVITYPROFILETeam CherieFoto shot this in their studio using a number of lights and techniques, including bouncing light intoa mirror and directing it back onto the subject. Even though their lighting schemes are often complicated, ittakes the duo only five minutes to set them up in the studio or on location. “We’ve spent a lot of time devisingdifferent looks to our lighting,” Jones says.“Cherie’s fantasy is to always have shadows in the picture,” Jones says. “We create gobos and shoot throughthem, or sometimes we’ll use our hands in front of the lights to create shadow shapes. It’s a way to add dramaand mystery.”reassure her that she’s going to havegreat photographs. I start by taking hermind off the worry. If she’ll trust us, andfollow our lead, she’s going to get a greatresult.”While building the business is alwayson their minds, Team CherieFoto is alsosincere and serious about doing a greatjob for their clients and having fun as90 MARCH 2015they go about it. They need to be satisfiedwith their effort. Their self-image is tiedto the self-image of their subject.They are, after all, the number oneboudoir photographers in L.A. nThe boudoir and wedding photography ofCherie Steinberg and Hedley Jones, andtheir blogs, can be found at CherieFoto“Our client wanted what she called ‘a boudoir fashionlook,’ so we called in a stylist who also does makeup,”Steinberg says. “He brought outfits and jewelry andput it all together for us.”(www.cheriefoto.com) and The BoudoirCafé (theboudoircafe.com). TheireBook, The Art of a Wedding: How toGet Award-Winning Photos at EveryWedding, is available online at Amazonand other sources.

boudoir photographers in L.A. n The boudoir and wedding photography of Cherie Steinberg and Hedley Jones, and their blogs, can be found at CherieFoto (www.cheriefoto.com) and The Boudoir Café (theboudoircafe.com). Their eBook, The Art of a Wedding: How to Get Award-Winning Photos at Every