Blog | Amber Tyler Boudoir

December 14, 2015 by ambertyler Leave a Comment

Boudoir Confessions | Spokane Boudoir Photographer

Let’s be real here… The most common reasons I hear from a potential client about why they aren’t booking a boudoir shoot right now come down to these two categories:

It’s not a priority right now, or more commonly known as “I can’t afford this right now”. This reason is completely understandable. You have to prioritize where your money is spent! And when you want it bad enough, you find a way! Other than offering payment plans, this reason isn’t something I can personally help you with.

The second category is fear, or more commonly known as “I still need to lose weight”, or “I don’t want to be judged”, or the worst- “I’m afraid that all of the horrible things I think about myself will be true”. I know that we tend to be constantly looking around us at examples of what we “should” look like, and most of the time we fall short of that. This makes us believe there must be something wrong with us and that we are flawed. This way of thinking is so far from truth though. The feedback that I get the most from my clients is that they walked in a little scared, unsure if they will like what they see afterwards, and leave knowing the truth about themselves. That the nasty things they say about themselves aren’t true.

We make a point to not transform you into something you could never achieve on the daily. It’s important to me that what we do in the studio is to enhance the beauty that is already there. I wouldn’t be doing a very good job if your photos end up not looking like you. The change that happens in the studio is completely within. So if fear is your reason, I say bring it! It’s ok to be scared. Just know that you will leave the studio with less fear and more confidence. This will be a start to finding the intimate, daring, and beautiful woman that you are.

November 30, 2015 by ambertyler Leave a Comment

Miss M | Hello Beautiful | Spokane Boudoir Photographer

Michelle was one of the first women to apply for my model call this past Spring. She has been one of my most devoted fans on social media, and after reading her story I knew that she needed to do this shoot. In her entry email she talked about something that sadly a lot of women face: struggling with self esteem and having it directly effect the feeling of self worth. Not loving yourself.

I know at one point or another, we as women have all felt this way. Even the most confident at times feel unsure of themselves or feel uncomfortable in their own skin. It happens! It’s how we deal with it that has the potential to change our lives though. It is so easy to go the negative route and believe the lies you tell yourself. I mean I know for me one negative thought soon turns into a hundred more negative thoughts because in the moment it just makes sense! Surely because I can’t lose this weight I must be ugly and doomed to this body forever, right? I have stretch marks therefore I must cover them up and never wear lingerie again because they make me look ugly, right? If I were to actually say these things out loud to someone else they would say “no it’s not like that at all, you’re crazy!”. But that’s the reality of how our minds work. We go extreme. We go all out when it comes to how we view ourselves.

Let’s flip the situation a little and instead of saying these things to yourself, you say them to another woman. Not just any other woman, your friend, sister, or mother. Someone you really care about. Would you ever say those things to someone you love? If you said yes, then you might have more to worry about than just outward appearance girl! But I’m sure the majority of you would say no. Stop saying these things to yourself! Self love stops when you decide to no longer talk about yourself so badly.

Here is what Michelle had to say about her boudoir experience!

“Amber is not only a PHENOMENAL photographer, but she has an intensely radiant personality. I was so nervous, so hesitant to do the shoot that I was pretty much guaranteeing myself that I would not like any of the images. Even with an alarmingly negative mindset, the experience was just amazing.

Terri, her makeup artist, is so much fun and SO relaxing. Between these two stunning ladies, I felt rather plain from the get go……but by the end? I felt just as beautiful as they both are! Their playful manner made me relax so quickly and it soon felt like we were three old friends. I cannot stress how soothing they both were.

I was scared about my own doubt about my body. I watched both ladies carefully for signs of veiled judgement…and saw none. They saw me for who I am, not what my body looks like. Which, by the way, the pictures turned out AMAZING! Instead of walking away with NO pictures I liked, I loved each and every one of them. With the very first sneak peek that Amber shared with me, my whole view of myself changed. This experience changed my life, no joke. It made me see myself as the woman my husband sees. It, to this day – months later – makes me still feel attractive, confident, beautiful and wholly special.

I will most DEFINITELY be using Amber in the future. She is just marvelous.”

October 7, 2015 by ambertyler Leave a Comment

Miss S | Spokane Boudoir Model Call

Back in April I held a model call for women of all shapes and sizes to apply to do a shoot to help spread the word about my business and to give women a reason to do something just for them, without cost being a factor. I wanted women to step out of their comfort zones in an effort to be daring. I know how scary it is to first put yourself out there with your story of why you need a boudoir shoot, and then to step in front of my camera. The emails came flooding in and I was so humbled and floored by the response. Each story touched my heart in different ways and it was hard to narrow down the models.

One entry caught my attention right away. She titled her email to me as “bring back the wife in me”. I know we have all experienced at some point or another in our lives, a time where we feel we are so far off track from who we used to be, or who we want to be. Things in our lives become routine instead of being something that set our souls on fire. It is so easy in a marriage to get to this place. Where you feel like something or some part of you is missing because life becomes routine. I know I’ve been there, and it is even worse when you don’t feel or think very highly of yourself.

Mothers and wives- you are tired. You are giving your all to your family all the time. It becomes so much easier to just stay in sweat pants all day or not put on make up because you simply don’t have the time or the energy. There is nothing wrong with that, heck I do it all the time! But you must not give up parts of you that make you feel alive and present as YOU. Take the time no matter what to do something for you every day. I know I have written a post about this before, but it is so important! I tend to refer back to the analogy of if you were on a plane and the plane were to experience difficulties leading to the need of oxygen masks, you are instructed to put your mask on first. If you don’t take care of you, you can’t take care of others.

Here is what Miss S had to say about her boudoir experience!:

“What an amazing and empowering experience. As the mother of two small kids, it’s very easy to lose myself in them and to not prioritize my role as a wife and to enjoy being ME! I feel like Amber and Terri played such a role in reminding me that I am beautiful and gave me such a gift to share with my husband. Not just the photos, but a more confident me. Thanks for the pampering and encouragement!”

May 1, 2015 by ambertyler Leave a Comment

Hello May | Hello Beautiful | Spokane Boudoir Photographer

Well Hello Beautiful!

Its the start of a new month and I am beyond excited for everything I have planned already for May. Last month I put out a model call asking for women of all shapes and sizes to apply and tell me WHY you want to do a boudoir shoot. I was floored by the response. I had over 50 women apply. There were so many that were so honest and open with why they needed this, it was very empowering and humbling at the same time. Some of the stories about what these women have been through brought me to tears, and knowing they trust me and know I can some how play a part in providing something they are lacking, even just for a day, meant the world to me. While I wish I could have accepted you all, I had to narrow it down. It wasn’t easy at all because every woman that applied was so beautiful and had such an awesome story to tell. I hope to have the chance to work with every one of you at some point!

I purposely chose to schedule most of them in the month of May. May is a very special month to me. Of course we have the obvious Mother’s Day coming up, but May is also the month that my Mother’s birthday falls in. I will let you in as to why that is significant and how it correlates to this model call.

My mother has lived a life battling insecurities, depression, being overweight, anxiety, and health issues. She was also adopted, so her birthday is more a time of sorrow and questioning the unknown than it is of a celebration and joy to her. Which also makes Mother’s Day really hard for her as well. Our family would try really hard to make her happy and keep her spirits up, but the depression and anxiety caused by her situation wasn’t just something you could turn off. I know we bring her joy though. It’s one of those things sometimes you just have to believe is there even when you can’t see it.

So what does this have to do with my business? Everything. I became very passionate about trying to show others their beauty at a very young age because I had to do it for my mother all the time. I still do it for her and she still doesn’t believe me, but I am determined and won’t give up. All of the women I chose said they needed this. They said they are lacking confidence or that they just wanted to see themselves different for a day. They are moms that have given their all and have close to nothing left to give themselves. They want to ignite something within. There are some that have also overcome obstacles and want to celebrate it. These are the women that the world needs to see and celebrate. They are women that in their minds, feel so small, but to their loved ones they are everything.

I am doing this in honor or my mother, and every other mother out there that has felt this way. Ladies, I am so excited to have fun, conquer some fears, and show everyone how beautiful and powerful you are!

April 6, 2015 by ambertyler Leave a Comment

Monday Morning Inspiration {makeup and self love}

Today I feel like super woman. I made the decision last night that no matter what I was going to get up and put some effort into my appearance BEFORE I took my boys to school. This sounds so silly and easy, but I know there’s gotta be at least one stay at home mom out there that feels my struggle. Usually my mornings are so hectic that I am the last thing I even think to work on until after they have been dropped off and I have time to breathe.

So I made sure to prepare the house for the morning. There are times when I wake up I have to get right to the dishes or something so I can make breakfast and so on.. I didn’t want to have to do that because I knew it would consume all my time. So I stayed up until 11:30 pm to make sure I could get all of that done after the kids went to bed, and still fit in a shower. Now cleaning is not my strong suit.. I always tell my husband he would make a much better house wife because he is so organized and can clean so fast.. For me, I run around like a chicken with it’s head cut off trying to clean.

Gotta do the dishes; oh there is laundry to be folded; wait did I just hear the foo fighters are playing at the gorge on September 12th?! I better look up tickets.

And that my friends is actually what happened one day. I looked up the tickets and then realized I should be cleaning, and never bought the tickets. UGH. So you see how I really have to make a point and plan or else I get nothing done. I am completely different when it comes to my work. When I work, I’m working and I have a list of tasks and can get it done. Its all the house work that throws me off…

I got up, got my kids bathed and dressed, fed them, styled my hair and put on my makeup. I even put on some red lip stick. Random for a Monday morning, but I believe if you want to wear red lip stick the time of day shouldn’t determine that! We even left the house on time. I felt great. I stopped by Dutch Bros to get some coffee, I even had a card for a free one which is even better. And yes I am obsessed with coffee. The young man there took my order and then asked me if I was a student so he could give me the student discount. I laughed a little and said “Oh no, I’m not a student.. but thank you for saying that!”. He laughed and continue to ask about my day. As a wife and mother of 3 that usually rolls into the coffee stand tired, with bags under her eyes, hair up in a messy bun (not even a cute messy bun) and wearing yoga pants, this was a pleasant encounter.

What stood out about this to me was that when I do what is necessary to make sure I have time for ME, I not only feel better, but I know I look better. But its not from the makeup, its from something within me. Something that exudes confidence rather than tiredness. Something that says I do care about myself and I haven’t lost that. Now don’t get me wrong, there is nothing bad about yoga pants and a messy bun… but I feel sometimes we fall into whats comfortable and forget that there is more. I would much rather wear yoga pants than jeans any day, but I know that life shouldn’t always be about being comfortable.

I remember when I was younger watching my mother put on her makeup and how it would transform her. She used to not go anywhere without it. The transformation to me had nothing to do with how she looked because I thought she was beautiful no matter what. The transformation was in how much more confidence she had and how she was up for anything. I watched as she put makeup on less and less, and noticed that she also did less and less in her life. She became depressed for various reasons and putting on makeup became something that was mentally and physically too much work. It became something she did only if there was a special event. It became something she did for other people, rather than for herself. At this point putting on makeup didn’t really make her more confident or feel better about herself, it was something she felt made herself more presentable to others. It provided no confidence. This is a place I don’t want to see myself or others fall into. A place where self improvement becomes for others, rather than ourselves. That feeling that you get when putting on makeup or any other form of self improvement, should be a feeling of self love rather than trying to please others. When pleasing others with our appearance becomes our purpose, we will never feel fulfilled because there is no pleasing everyone.

So ladies, especially the stay at home moms, I challenge you. Make more time for yourself in the mornings. Start your day with a big dose of self love. Don’t like to wear makeup? That’s ok! There are many other ways that you can give yourself attention. There’s yoga, sit down with a cup of tea and read, take a hot bath, do anything that you feel enhances you as a person. Our self love shouldn’t be dependent on the sole purpose of pleasing others.

Of course this post needed some photos so I took some ridiculous cell phone selfies! LOL! Happy Monday everyone!

March 9, 2015 by ambertyler Leave a Comment

Love yourself, shamelessly!

I recently introduced Shania Twain music to my almost 5 year old daughter (I know, what took me so long right?!) and I couldn’t help but think of my own youth as we listened. When I was younger, I spent my days with my walk man listening to music every chance I could. Shania Twain and Paula Abdul were my favorites. I listened to Shania’s “Come on Over” album so many times, I can still sing every song on there. The song that stands out to me the most though is of course, “Man! I feel like a woman”. For reasons other than the obvious, it’s a great song.

During the summer before 6th grade my best friend and I had decided we wanted to enter our church’s talent show. So I choreographed a dance to “I feel like a woman”, and it was awesome. We tried our best to have matching outfits and we did pretty good with what resources we had. We both came from poor families, it was basically if we didn’t already have it in our closets then we were out of luck. We came up with ball caps, jean shorts, sleeveless shirts, and a couple of jean button up shirts to wear over the sleeveless shirts. Now this was 1998 so of course we tied the jean shirts at the bottom because that was in style then (apparently that has made a comeback in case you didn’t know).

While other kids were performing skits, attempting to do magic, and singing the cliche songs that always turned up at these type of events (boring) we were bringing this iconic anthem and were prepared to show them all how its done. The song starts and we strut our stuff. I had cleverly arranged for us to take off our ball caps and whip our hair out at the exact time Shania sang “we’re gonna let our hair hang down”, and at some point we took off those tacky jean shirts and threw them to the side to show our strong femininity.

Okay, okay.. so while all of that did happen, it really had nothing to do with empowering women or showing our strong femininity.. we were like 11 years old. And no we didn’t win the talent show. Apparently they found it a little inappropriate but whatever. What stands out to me the most about this event in my life is I was able to get on a stage, in all the tackiness of jean shorts and shirts, and give it my all as if I didn’t care for anyone else’s approval. Because I really didn’t. I thought my routine was awesome. I was so proud of it! At what point in our lives do we lose this? At what point do we feel it’s not okay to accept our tackiness and go full throttle with it?

I know for me, like many girls, it started in middle school. When all of a sudden the approval of people that seemed to be “above” me became more important than what had previously been deemed as acceptable or “cool”. I can easily say that if it had been a year or two later I wouldn’t have ever gone on stage and done that. My love for dance and music hadn’t changed, but my confidence had. Not only at this age do we look towards others to learn what is acceptable, but we also somehow are brainwashed into shaming ourselves whether we really believe there is something wrong with us or not. We stay completely content with ourselves until we are made to believe otherwise. And all of a sudden if you don’t see anything wrong in yourself, that is shamed too!

I always think of the following scene from Mean Girls when I think about this vicious cycle…

It’s a behavior that’s taught to us.

How do we break this cycle? Now I understand there will be times when we lack confidence or are just in crummy moods. It happens. But what needs to stop is the idea that we can’t love ourselves shamelessly at any stage of our lives. We shouldn’t rely on the acceptance from others to love ourselves now and we shouldn’t be ashamed to love ourselves no matter where we are at in life. I have found that a little bit of self love has gotten me a heck of a lot further than any self hate ever will.

This is why I do what I do. I want to show women that it is okay to shamelessly accept themselves and love themselves right now. Love yourself no matter what size. Want to lose weight? Start loving yourself exactly the way you are and watch yourself achieve your goals much faster! In an unhealthy relationship? Start loving yourself more and see your priorities fall into place. Don’t be ashamed to get on that stage in all your awesomeness and show the world who you are and that you are not ashamed of you!

Not gonna lie, my daughter and I totally blasted “I feel like a Woman” and shamelessly danced and jumped on my bed and it was the best I’ve felt all week.

March 5, 2015 by ambertyler Leave a Comment

Fan Appreciation Sale! | Spokane and Coeur d’Alene Boudoir photographer

A while back I promised that if we could reach 600 fans I would launch a huge sale! Yesterday we hit that milestone so as promised, here are the details for the sale!

Here are the details for the sale:

50% off of your booking fee, plus I will give you a $100 credit to use towards the purchase of your products and images! This is a $287 savings for you! Get a friend to book with you and I will double the credit I give you to use towards products, so you AND your friend will both get $200 to use towards products and images, making your savings $387 each!

This is huge! It will be limited to the first 5 people that book so get on it! I am so excited to be able to do this for my fans and have the opportunity to work with as many of you as possible! I believe every woman should do a boudoir shoot at least once in her life! It is such an amazing experience that is fun and empowering.

All shoots include a pre consultation to discuss clothing and how to prepare for your shoot, as well as a hair and makeup stylist so all you have to do is show up be ready for the fun to begin! Once your images are prepared, we will set up a viewing session so that you can see your images and select the way you would like them displayed. We offer Albums, Folio boxes, loose prints, as well as digital files and more. For more information please make sure to contact us using the contact form below!

Like I said, this deal is only limited to the first 5 people that book! You don’t want to miss out on this.

Spokane and Coeur d’Alene’s best boudoir photographer | Photographer for the intimate, daring, and beautiful woman

January 31, 2015 by ambertyler Leave a Comment

Quit saying bad things about yourself… Right now!

So the other night my 6 year old son comes up to me while I am making dinner to ask me a question. He says “mom, am I a regular kid? I try so hard to do nice things for the other kids at school all the time and all they do is ignore me. Am I weird or something?” My heart immediately sunk. It really hurts to see your child with these feelings of being different or maybe not measuring up to someone else’s expectations. Of course the response was “of course you are a regular kid, wait, no I take that back you are more than just a regular kid! You are an amazing boy and you need to just keep being you and keep doing your thing, no matter what!”. I may have also added in that some kids don’t recognize kindness because they have no manners.. but I’m sure that bit of information could have been left out.

This conversation got me thinking. As a mother, it hurts to see any of my children hurting. Whether it is emotionally, physically, mentally, hurting.. it is all the same. I never want my children to look at themselves and think of themselves as anything less than amazing, because that is the way I see and know they are. I instantly reassure them and make things better by telling them the real truth. Because at age 6 I still have the ability to make everything better with just my words and my love. At what point in our lives do we stop believing what those that truly love us and care about us say is true about ourselves? It’s like we grow up and all of a sudden they lose credibility because they are just our parents. Or because they love us so they are required to see the best in us. What if its all just some big game our mind is playing on us? That is exactly what it is.

I know many of you have seen all of the videos on the internet about how our own perceived view of ourselves is usually very skewed and far from reality. For example, the Dove commercials where an artist sketched first how we see ourselves and then next how a stranger sees us. I mean if a complete stranger is seeing you better than you see yourself, what does that say for those that truly love us? Listen to what they have to say to you, about you. Don’t take these kind words of affirmation lightly, because these words are the real deal. I already know whats to come as my children get older and enter the real word full of judgement and insecurities around every corner, and the best I can do to help prepare them for that is to show them that I believe first what they say about me is true (the good things of course, not the “mom is mean because she wouldn’t let me play xbox” hehe). I know from plenty of experience that confidence is such an easier part of your character to build when those around you are practicing what they preach. In other words, how can I build my children’s confidence when mine is lacking?

This is something that is definitely easier said than done at times. We all have times when confidence slips and that’s why we have our loved ones to remind us who we truly are.

April 23, 2014 by ambertyler Leave a Comment

Missoula MT Boudoir Marathon | Amber Tyler Boudoir

The marathon in Missoula was so much fun! Every woman came in feeling nervous, but left with great confidence after having such an amazing time. We joked and laughed all day, I even might have tripped and fallen a few times over all of my miscellaneous props everywhere (note to self: arrange all my junk better for next time). But it was so much fun! Thank you so much ladies! I can’t wait to plan the next marathon.

For those that missed this time around, I do book full sessions all year round. I will also be planning another marathon for a later date. Check out some of the amazing photos we were able to get! More to come soon!

xoxo,

Amber Tyler

April 15, 2014 by ambertyler Leave a Comment

No hair, don’t care!

This past Saturday, April 12th 2014, I made my way over to Baker City, Oregon where I met and did a boudoir shoot for Megan C. Megan had contacted me and booked one of my boudoir spots well in advance and had been anxious for the 12th to come around. She had told me that she has always wanted to do a boudoir shoot, so when she saw my ad she knew it was time.

Throughout our conversation over email, Megan had informed me that she was going through chemotherapy. I wasn’t sure what to expect. I wasn’t sure if she had lost her hair or not.. I wasn’t sure if there were some poses that would be uncomfortable for her or if she would have enough strength. I honestly hadn’t worked with or been around too many people that have been battling cancer. I felt a little ignorant. But I knew that no matter what I would capture beautiful images, no matter the circumstance.

I scheduled Megan with a stylist for hair and make up. She then informed me that she has no hair so a hair stylist wouldn’t be needed.

As silly as this sounds, this came as a challenge to me. I use hair so much in the poses I have women do, and now I had the opportunity to see what I could do without it.

When I first met Megan, I was taken by surprise. We seem to think of an illness such as cancer as weakening, debilitating. However Megan was the opposite of that. Her presence was full of joy and strength. She was happy and you could see it. Her mother came with her to help her with her wardrobe. They were both so much fun to work with. Her mother had expressed how hard it was when Megan started chemotherapy, but yet they both seemed so peaceful, as if the illness didn’t exist.

Megan was so kind as to let me ask her some questions about her journey so that I could share it with you all!

Me: How long ago were you diagnosed with cancer?

Megan: I was diagnosed January 28th with diffused large b-cell lymphoma.

Me: How have the physical changes effected you and how have you overcome them?

Megan: I have noticed weight fluctuation that is caused by the steroid that is part of my chemo treatment and I just have to keep remembering it’s just temporary I’ll lose it when my body is healthy enough to work out. I just have to keep telling myself this is only a short time out of my whole life I have to do this. My body obviously needs a little extra food to fight this so i would rather that happen then my body not be able to fight it.

Me: What advice would you want to give to women that are going through similar situations?

Megan: Love it and embrace it. It’s not going away and you just have to try to make the best of everything. It can be hard, I have had hard days that’s for sure, but dwelling on it isn’t going to make it go away. Also a fish once said ” just keep swimming” that has kinda been a line that friends have used a lot through this.

Me: What is the biggest inspiration you have in life to keep you strong?

Megan: Knowing that I have my son to fight for is a huge inspiration. Cancer isn’t something I have had to watch a close family member go through or anything so I had so much unknown and that was hard for me but my son needs me and I couldn’t do this fight without the support of my boyfriend he is a lot of my strength.

This is the best example I can think of, of loving yourself in the now. I love Megan’s outlook on this. How this is only temporary. She came in with such confidence. Confidence that I feel all women need and should have. She is truly intimate, daring, and beautiful.

-Amber Tyler