Boudoir, Redefined
This is a long post about what I am ditching the term “Vancouver Boudoir” and instead going with intimate portraits,
so grab yourself a warm cuppa something and enjoy the read.
Here’s the thing about language and being stuck in a genre: words carry weight. They come with baggage, expectations,
a whole aesthetic attached. And somewhere along the way, the word “boudoir” picked up a very specific suitcase,
one packed with red satin sheets, feather boas, and poses that make you feel like you’re auditioning for a perfume ad from 2003.
Look, no shade to anyone who loves that vibe. If that’s your thing, rock it. But it’s not what I do, and since I started offering intimate portraits it was never really my vision.
So let’s talk about what I do create, and why I’ve stopped using the word “boudoir” to describe it.
But let’s start with what I mean by “intimate.” For me, intimate isn’t about what you’re wearing (or not wearing). It’s about the setting, the energy,
the intention. Intimate means creating a space that’s entirely about you—quiet, personal, reflective. It’s the kind of environment where you can
actually be present in your body instead of performing for the camera. That’s what makes a portrait intimate, not the amount of skin showing.
What You Can Expect
In this post, I’m breaking down my approach to boudoir photoshoots or as I prefer to call them intimate portraiture, the minimalist, contemporary, artful way I work with clients who want something different. We’ll talk about timeless style over trends, unique self-expression, seeing yourself as art, and why breaking the rules is kind of the whole point.
Let’s start with what I mean by “intimate.” For me, intimate isn’t about what you’re wearing (or not wearing). It’s about the setting, the emotion, the energy, the intention. Intimate means creating a space that’s entirely about you, personal and reflective. It’s about being presence over perfection, connection over performing for the camera. That’s what makes a portrait intimate in my mind, and it really has nothing to do with how much skin showing, or if any is showing at all.
Many of the intimate portraits I have taken are fully clothed, and some are fully nude, and what ties them together is that these portraits aim to tell a story, one that’s deeply personal to the person being photographed, and that’s exactly how it should be.
tL;DR
Traditional boudoir photography often leans into a specific aesthetic that can feel dated or overly stylized, complete with makeup teams, elaborate styling, and heavy retouching. My approach to intimate portraits strips that away, literally and figuratively. Think a modern minimalist aesthetic, timeless, deeply personal images full of emotion that celebrate you as art, exactly as you are.
Intimate portraits are not about performing sexy, they are about allowing yourself to be seen, and that can be you in jeans and your fav t-shirt or you nude. The clothing doesn’t matter, what matters here is you! No team of stylists required. No transformation necessary.
This is for anyone in looking for a fresh and inclusive approach to boudoir photography that’s more contemporary gallery vibes than cliche, and is more about self-discovery than performance.
What Makes Intimate Portraits Different
So what do I do instead?
I create artistic and emotive intimate portraits. And yeah, sometimes people are wearing lingerie. Sometimes they’re topless, or fully nude. Sometimes they’re in vintage jeans and nothing else. The clothing (or lack thereof) isn’t the point.
The point is you! Your energy, the way you move, the emotions you choose to show, your specific way of existing in the world in your beautiful body as it is. Here’s how my approach differs:
Minimalism Over More
Where traditional boudoir photography might pile on the props, the elaborate sets and require glamour makeup, I strip it all away. Clean backgrounds. Simple compositions. Intentional negative space. Black and white elegance.
Your body becomes sculpture. Your movement becomes emotion. Your whole self, seen as art.
Timeless Over Trendy
I’m not trying to recreate this year’s Instagram aesthetic. The images I create could have been made yesterday or twenty years from now. There’s no heavy-handed editing (and trust me you don’t need it!), no trending filters. Just you, captured honestly, in a way that will still feel relevant in thirty years from now.
Expression Over Expectation
This is maybe the biggest one. I’m not here to make you perform “sexy” or “sultry” or whatever other word gets thrown around in boudoir photography. I want to see how you move. How you hold yourself when you feel comfortable.
Here you get to define what confidence looks like. Maybe that’s bold and fierce. Maybe it’s quiet and contemplative.
Maybe it’s playful. Maybe it’s raw and vulnerable.
All of it, and I truly mean all of you, is worth documenting.
She was able to help me see my body in
whole in new ways, and also see parts of me
that I have always been self conscious of,
in the most beautiful new ways.
I am whole and I am ART!
Tara Hill
You Are Art
I need you to sit with this for a second because I am sure it might feel weird to think about: your body is art.
Not in some abstract, motivational-poster way. I mean it literally. The lines of your shoulders, the way light falls across your collarbone, the negative space between your arm and your torso—these are compositional elements. You are a living sculpture.
And here’s the radical part: you don’t need to change anything about yourself for that to be true.
Wrinkles and rolls? That’s art.
Stretch marks? Art.
Scars? Art.
The body you have right now, without alteration or apology, that’s the art I want to capture and that’s what I feel you deserve to have.
This is where the contemporary approach matters. I’m not trying to hide or minimize or “fix” anything about you. I’m looking at you the way a sculptor looks at marble, seeing what’s already there, finding the composition, the light, the moment that reveals something true.
When people book intimate portrait sessions with me, they’re not coming to be transformed into someone else. They’re coming to see themselves through an artist’s eye. They want to really see themselves, maybe for the first time.
Breaking Rules, Because Whose Rules Were They Anyway?
Here’s something I believe deeply: conformity is boring.
Not just in photography, but in life. The idea that there’s one “right” way to do intimate portraits, one body type, one gender that deserves to be seen in a sensual way, one aesthetic, one definition of beautiful, is, honestly, bullshit. And I’m not interested in perpetuating it.
So yeah, I break the rules. Constantly.
I work with bodies of all sizes, all genders, all levels of comfort with nudity or vulnerability. I let people wear what makes them feel like themselves, even if it’s not “boudoir-appropriate” because here we are throwing out cliche expectations and leaning into authenticity.
Because the real question isn’t “does this fit the rules of boudoir photography?” The question is: does this image reflect something true about this person?
As your photographer (or more accurately, your intimate portrait photographer), my job isn’t to make you fit a mold. It’s to throw out the mold entirely and create something that’s uniquely, undeniably you in the most artistic way.
Michele was incredible to work with. She made me feel so comfortable and executed on my vision perfectly. I am so happy to have the most beautiful photos I will treasure forever.
ALEXA Monahan
Let’s quickly chat about INCLUSIVITY
Let me be crystal clear: everyone deserves to see themselves as art. And on top of that everyone deserves to be in a brave space that allows them the opportunity to feel comfortable, as a neurodivergent artist I know all to well how many people say they are inclusive but… they are not.
Not just people who fit a certain size range. Not just people who feel naturally “photogenic.” Not just people who already feel confident in their bodies. Everyone.
Inclusive boudoir photography means creating a space where all bodies are celebrated, not just tolerated. It means understanding that plus size boudoir clients need the same artistic, sophisticated approach as anyone else. It means photographing people of all genders, all ages, all backgrounds, all comfort levels.
It also means being really intentional about the environment I create. The music we play. The way I direct (or don’t direct). The language I use. The examples I show. All of it matters in making people feel like they belong in front of my camera.
Here’s the truth and should come as no surprise: traditional boudoir photography spaces haven’t always been welcoming to everyone. And that’s not okay. They have often been about creating for the male gaze and we know what that means. If you’re looking for a photographer who actually means it when they say “all bodies,” you need more than just words on a website. You need someone who’s built their entire approach around that belief.
The Experience: Refined Artistry Meets Hanging Out with a Friend
Want to know what an intimate portrait session with me actually looks like?
It’s an intersection of sophisticated photographic artistry and the ease of just hanging out with a friend.
I’m thoughtfully directing you, yes, but it doesn’t feel clinical or overly produced. It feels more like we’re collaborating on something together.
There’s no performance anxiety. You’re not expected to show up knowing how to pose. You don’t need to arrive with professional hair and makeup (unless you want to, it’s your call). You just need to show up as yourself.
The vibe is relaxed. Think cool confidence, not choreographed perfection. We put on music you actually like. We talk. We laugh. I might ask you questions about your life, your work, what you’ve been excited about lately, and what your favourite food is!
This is a bespoke experience, meaning it’s entirely tailored to you. Your body. Your comfort level. Your reasons for being here. Maybe you’re celebrating a milestone. Maybe you’re documenting this specific chapter of your life. Maybe you’re on a journey of self-discovery. Whatever brought you here, that becomes the foundation of how we work together.
You Don’t Need a Team of Stylists to Be Art
Please hear me say this: you don’t need professional hair and makeup for intimate portraits.
I know that’s not what you’ve been told. Traditional boudoir photography often comes as a package deal: photographer, hair stylist, makeup artist, maybe even a wardrobe consultant. And I used to offer this too, but not anymore because it didn’t feel right. If having some pampering before your photoshoot makes you feel amazing, absolutely we can arrange for my stylist to be here. But it’s not a requirement. It’s not even necessary.
Here’s what I’ve learned after years of photographing bodies: you are already a masterpiece.
Not “you will be a masterpiece after two hours in the makeup chair.”
Not “you could be a masterpiece if we just fix a few things first.” You. Right now. As you are. That’s the art.
My camera is a conduit for self-discovery, not a tool for transformation. And there’s a huge difference between those two approaches. One says “let me make you into something beautiful.” The other says “let me show you the beauty that’s already there.”
Most of my clients come to their photoshoot exactly as they are. Maybe they did their own makeup that morning. Maybe they didn’t. Maybe they styled their hair, maybe they threw it in a bun. The point isn’t to create some polished, artificial version of yourself. The point is to document you, your energy, this specific moment in your life.
This doesn’t require a makeover, a team of stylists, excessive retouching, or even wardrobe at all. Each person I photograph is complete exactly as they show up. What it does require? Being willing to be seen. Being present in your body. Trusting the process. That’s the vulnerable part, not whether your eyeliner is perfect.
The Bottom Line
People commission me as their artist to create something special for them, something that celebrates them. Some are celebrating a milestone, a birthday, a divorce, a major life transition. Some are on a journey of self-discovery, trying to learn something new about themselves. Some are building confidence or healing their relationship with their body. Some just want to document this specific chapter of their life before it changes.
But the prevailing theme? They’re doing this for themselves. Because they’re ready to be witnessed in this way.
If you’re in Vancouver looking for boudoir photography but you’re tired of seeing the same aesthetic everywhere, the same poses, the same retouching, the same narrow definition of who gets to be photographed this way, I hear you and I am here to truly see you.
And I’ve built my entire approach around being the alternative to that.
I create intimate portraits that are minimalist, timeless, and deeply personal. I break the rules because the rules weren’t serving most people anyway. And I’ve stopped calling it boudoir because what I do goes beyond those constraints.
If you are looking for: timeless style over trends, unique self-expression instead of cookie-cutter poses, and a relaxed, low-pressure experience where you don’t have to perform, then I am the photographer to bring your vision to life.
To summarize what I am all about, my mission is to create portraits that are not just seen but felt. Portraits that are all about artistry over conformity. If this is your jam too then I can’t wait to welcome you into my cozy studio, where together we will make the most epic art that centres you!
seeing yourself and your body as art
intimate portraits
Thanks for Reading!
Hi I’m Michele Mateus, an award winning Vancouver Portrait Photographer specialized in raw portraits with an artistic and editorial edge.
I am the owner and Creative Director of Mateus Studios, a full service portrait and web design studio in Metro Vancouver serving Vancouver, Fraser Valley, Langley, Abbotsford, Squamish, Burnaby, Surrey, North Vancouver, West Vancouver, New Westminster and the Great Vancouver area.
Book a chat with to learn more about working with me!
