Over 40s Boudoir Photo Sessions — Suzy Collins Photography

Celebrating beauty through boudoir photography

If you’ve been around here for any length of time, you know I am passionate about boudoir photography & celebrating the unique beauty of all women. Over the past few years, I’ve met women with unique and incredible stories through boudoir photography. And y’all, no woman's story or body is the same and that is a wonderful thing. Today, I’m so excited to share a little bit about a recent session & my hope is that it will empower you to celebrate your uniquely beautiful body.

Age is just a number

It doesn’t matter what season of life you’re in. Whether you are newly engaged, single, divorced, or have been married for 40 years - who you are today (right now, in this moment today- not 5 years ago) and the experiences you’ve lived through are rich and important. Boudoir sessions are a way to really connect with the present. It’s a way to celebrate and honor the “now” instead of dwelling on how our bodies used to look years ago, or waiting for a future version of ourselves.

Your body is good

As a woman, I am very familiar with the ways we focus our flaws and pick apart our own bodies. The endless list of what we wish was smaller, bigger, smoother, or just all together different. What if we had the mindset of thanking our bodies… for being the safe and strong container that holds our heart, mind & soul together. For the ability to hold our babies, feel an embrace, take a deep breath, laugh, soak in the sunshine, smell flowers, hear the birds - and all the other zillions of wonderful things our bodies do for us all day, every day. Maybe your body has or is currently fighting cancer, carried babies, lost babies, experienced trauma, gone through surgeries, etc. The fact that you are still here & able to show up in your body - is a gift. Let’s remember that and preach it to ourselves, louder than the negative thoughts we often have on repeat.

Experience the freedom

I get it- boudoir sessions aren’t all that normal or common for most of us. But in each session, I watch women of all sizes, shapes, and colors slowly step into a freedom and safe space where they begin to celebrate themselves. It never fails. Yes, we are still human and insecure, but as I photograph women and capture their beauty & what makes them feel sexy - I watch the fears, insecurities, and shame fade to the background. I am truly honored every. single. time. my boudoir clients trust me to get into the sacred space with them and call out the beauty I see so clearly. I get to remind women of the magic they carry, the sensuality they hide, the things about their body they forget to celebrate, and so much more.

See yourself in a new light

The kind words and expressions of gratitude I receive from boudoir clients after I send them their private gallery, are the most humbling gift. We just don’t often feel delighted in ourselves most days when we look in the mirror, but my greatest hope is that when my boudoir clients peruse their gallery they see themselves with new eyes and notice things they had forgotten or never knew they loved about themselves. I hope engaged women find a new confidence in their skin that excites them for the intimacy ahead of them. I hope women who have been through sickness, treatment, or surgeries can thank their bodies for the amazing strength and resilience they’ve shown. I hope women who think they are “too old”, see the deep beauty of their bodies in this season. I hope women who have struggled to love themselves and are recovering from unhealthy thought patterns or eating disorders, can see the freedom and wholeness they carry.

Never forget

I hope that the photos I take, will serve as a reminder for the women I photograph. When they start to criticize and beat themselves up, that they might open their gallery and remember what is uniquely beautiful and sexy about themselves. Let’s put a stake in the ground together, and agree that even if there are ways we want to improve our bodies by getting stronger or healthier - we will honor & cherish her for the ways she has carried us in the past & will continue to do so in the future.