What is Empowerment Photography?!? Vancouver Boudoir Done Differently

You’ve likely arrived to my website with ‘boudoir photography’ or intimate portraits in mind. Yes? Excellent! We do that! What you might not realize is that I also refer to my style of photography as Empowerment Photography. You haven’t heard of this before? NO problem!! I’m here to give you an explanation so let’s get into it.

Empowerment Photography is…

So many things! But mostly, an opportunity for you to feel your best and have that fire within you reignited, so that when you walk away from my studio, you’ll feel more confident and alive than you have in ages! Sounds amazing right?! And all of this because of a self-love and possibly self healing photoshoot experience in my studio where we co-create beautiful and timeless images of you, for you. We want to capture and celebrate the essence of YOU. Nobody else. You.

Essentially I’m going to help lift you up and empower you to empower yourself, with the use of my camera and you as my muse. Not only will the experience itself raise your divine feminine power, but you’ll have incredible legacy images that you can look at every day either on your walls, in a gorgeous Italian leather bound album or however you so desire.

One of the things that makes me the most happy in the world is when I see a woman take up more space and that is why I am here, to help you feel seen and worthy of taking up all the space you want, as you and I both know there is only one you, so why hide under all the limitations that so many of us place on ourselves. You are beautiful and worthy today, in the body you have now, and I know I can reflect that back at you.

black and white empowerment photography image of a woman sitting on the floor in lingerie

What is it NOT?

This experience is not cookie cutter. It’s not a Sears Portrait Studio shoot. ie. we don’t pose you in the top 10 studio poses where your images look like every other client’s. We are not here to fit you into a mold of what beautiful SHOULD look like. We are here to guide you to connecting deeper with yourself and your body. As a result, an Empowerment Photography Experience with Mateus Studios is fully customizable to you!

How is it Customized?

You are not the same person as your co-worker, your bestie or your neighbour, so you shouldn’t have the same photo shoot experience (or similar looking photos) as any of them! We pride ourselves on getting to know you before your shoot so that when you set foot in front of my camera we’re both on the same page.

We pre-determine what style you’d like to see yourself in. How you’d like to be photographed, right down to what music you want to vibe too in studio. Knowing all of this up front, helps us to create a safe space just for you to freely explore yourself, feel vulnerable in the moment and exceed your expectations both with the experience and your photos.

How is Empowerment Photography different at Mateus Studios?

Traditionally and broadly speaking, women have been drawn to Boudoir Photography as a way of seeing themselves in their best light, so to speak. They get super glammed up with professional hair & makeup, buy some sexy new lingerie and come for a day of pampering and feeling like a sexy queen!

Sounds fantastic, right?! We at Mateus Studios can absolutely do that for you. But, we aim to offer much, much more. We absolutely include Hair & Makeup as we want you to look and feel your best BUT we also want you to look like YOU! When you come for an Empowerment Photoshoot that we will see you for you, that we will not prescribe certain things you should wear, how to do your nails or have your hair done. Now you may be thinking: I just want you to tell me what to do! I pinky swear promise that my team will be there to help all along the way! We will give you tips and guidance so you can look but more importantly FEEL amazing! The photos will be the icing on the cake!

Wardrobe Consultation

We give you the option to wear whatever you feel fantastic in, be it lingerie or your fav jeans and a tee, a gorgeous gown, a tailored suit, or even nothing at all. Not everyone likes or feels comfortable in lingerie and this is all about you feeling amazing in your body.

We will discuss all of these options during your Wardrobe & Styling Consultation that we like to do a few weeks prior to your shoot date so you have plenty of time to get your wardrobe organized and selected. You can also peruse our Client Closet to see if anything there suits your fancy too.

Intimate Portraiture is Empowerment Photography

We refer to our photography style more often as Intimate Portraits as that can certainly include traditional boudoir photos, but it can also be Beauty or Editorial or even Fine Art Nudes. We love Classic Black & White images but also give you the option of colour images if that’s your preference. Whatever lights a fire in you and celebrates every aspect of you is what we want for you.

A Comment on Photoshop

As we want your photos to truly capture the essence of you, we do not go overboard when it comes to editing images. We can absolutely help reduce some dark circles if you didn’t get a great night’s sleep, or erase a piece of rogue hair, but, as we believe that you are INCREDIBLE JUST AS YOU ARE, we’re not going to change how you look. That’s absolutely not what an Empowerment Session is about. We want to show you that you truly are a vision to behold and help you feel fabulous in your body so that you will feel empowered to boldly embrace yourself as such.

Who is Empowerment Photography for?

At Mateus Studios we believe ALL BODIES ARE BEAUTIFUL! We like to say that you don’t need a reason for an Empowerment Photoshoot, you just need a purpose. We have witnessed so many powerful transformations of women from all walks of life. The best part about choosing something like this for yourself is YOU get to be part of the process, and you get to say how you want to be seen. This is what empowering others is all about, it is about you being in the driver seat, with me as your guide and your artist bringing your vision to life.

No Excuses

As we believe that all women are beautiful and all bodies are beautiful, there are no excuses to not do an Empowerment Intimate Portrait Experience. You deserve to be seen just as you are, so no, you don’t need to lose 10 pounds first, you’re perfect as you are, right now. Besides, it’s patriarchal and societal beauty standards that make you feel that way, and who are they to judge you and your body?! You don’t need to grow out your hair or wait for whatever reason.

We invite you to join us for an Empowerment Photography Intimate Portrait Experience that is all about YOU. Perfectly imperfect you, as we all know there ain’t no thing as perfection. We will love on you and welcome you just as you are.

Click here to book your Mateus Studios Intimate Portrait Discovery Call today!

an intimate portrait featuring empowerment photography of a woman with dark hair and she's wearing a white tank


Photos shared with permission.

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Magic Together!

I Look Forward To Having
You In My Vancouver Boudoir
And Portrait Studio!

Michele Mateus is an award winning Vancouver Boudoir and Women’s Portrait Photographer. Serving Coquitlam, Vancouver, Fraser Valley, Langley, Abbotsford, Squamish, Burnaby, Surrey, North Vancouver, West Vancouver, New Westminster and the Great Vancouver area.

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