coeur d'alene idaho | Amber Tyler Boudoir

Honestly, there is no better feeling than when a client comes back to me and tells me how doing a shoot with me was life changing. I know what you’re thinking, “life changing” is a little dramatic. How could doing a photo shoot in your underwear change your life? Well, technically, I don’t do anything to change their lives. I help aid in the act of changing their perception of themselves- and then THAT changes everything. It’s amazing what we are capable of when we have a little self confidence, or when someone else believes in us so much that not believing in ourselves becomes impossible.

A couple months ago I had the opportunity to photograph another photographer. She booked in on a whim. Not completely sure of herself, but sure of the fact that she wanted this experience and to give her husband an incredible gift. I totally had no clue that she was as nervous as you will soon read about. After her shoot was done and she received her images and gorgeous album, she came and left this post in my group- which left me in happy tears. This is why I do what I do. This is what I consider life changing.

“I’ve hated my body for so so long. When I lived in Hawaii my friend did a boudoir session with a photographer there but all of the photos he shared were photos of beautiful women who looked like they were paid models. I felt like I definitely didn’t fit that role anymore. I was a size 2 until about 2016, and I gained close to 70 lbs thanks to having some medical issues go undiagnosed for so long. I hated my body so much. Every day I would sit there in the mirror for 20 minutes and pick out things I hated about myself. My stomach wasn’t flat anymore, my thighs chaffed and rubbed together so much, my hips got so wide after my pregnancy my boobs were too big, etc. I was so embarrassed about my body I started resorting to really dangerous methods to try and lose weight.

I was added into this amazing group a while ago by my friend and I felt the same way here. Seeing all of you gorgeous women thinking about how beautiful you all looked in your photos and wishing I could do it too. Then I realized that there was a difference between that guy photographer in Hawaii and Amber. – He only showcased model types and Amber showcased the beauty of EVERY type of woman. I kept telling myself “If i lose x amount I’ll book a session” , “If I can get in better shape I’ll do a session”, “If I can (insert some other bogus reason here) I’ll do a session”. The only thing that got me was a lot more self loathing as the months passed by and nothing about me changed.

I finally had enough as my anniversary was coming up and I wanted to do something special for my hubby. I had no clue what to do for a present and I was on Facebook thinking about what to get him and one of Amber’s posts popped up on my timeline and I said to myself “man I wish I could do that” and I realized finally “Why the hell cant I?!” So I messaged Amber and booked that day.

The day of my session I finally got to meet the queen herself as well as the amazing Terri and I was honestly so nervous. I was nervous I’d look like a dang fool and look so stupid in front of them. I honestly contemplated cancelling an hour before. But as soon as I got there I was welcomed with a hug from Amber and I was introduced to Terri and I felt like I was home. They were so easy to talk to, they asked me what I wanted and didn’t just tell me how it was going to be. Terri worked her magic on me and honestly the entire time we were getting ready I felt like a freaking movie star or something getting pampered and having “people”.

Once it was time to actually get in front of the camera Amber didn’t give me any time to clam up. She immediately took charge and coached me into how to pose, what to do with my body and face and at first I felt a little awkward because I felt like I looked stupid. She then showed me a picture off the back of her camera and I was FLOORED at how easy it was for her to capture me in something so beautiful. After that I was just on cloud 9 the entire time. I felt like I was a super model and I was the most perfect being in the world… it’s been almost 2 months and that feeling hasn’t left me yet.

So, my moral of the story is if you’re on the fence about doing a session with Amber. Just book a dang session. Honestly if you’re like me and are waiting to be smaller or a different version of you – that’s not what this is about. This is about celebrating YOU as you are. Not how you would be down the line if you changed everything about yourself. I spent so much time hating my body – I’m so glad I finally decided to worship it.

Thank you Amber for changing my mindset and being so incredible all the time.”

Chloe, thank you so much for going against that feeling of wanting to cancel and showing up for YOU. I am so proud of what we created, you are absolutely beautiful inside and out! Thank you for sharing your personal experience.. I know there are so many women facing the same feelings and same battle as you were. My hope is that when times are tough and you are feeling down on yourself, that you remember that this person full of confidence is inside you, ALWAYS. You got this girl.

With love,

Amber Tyler, Owner/ Photographer of Hello Beautiful Boudoir | Coeur d’alene, ID

This week I had the opportunity to get away for a couple days and go to Las Vegas! While I was there, I attended a shoot led by Teri Hofford of THP Studios. Teri is a photographer I have followed for quite some time and I have always admired her work and the message behind her work. My “why” for what I do has always been in line with self- acceptance, self-love, and self- empowerment, and that fit right in with her message as well. When I saw she was offering spots for this shoot during WPPI, I had to get in on it! It just so happened to be the day after mine and my husbands anniversary (hello 10 years!!).. So I asked him if he wanted to go on a little adventure with me to Vegas so we could celebrate our anniversary AND attend this shoot. Naturally he said yes hehe.

I needed this shoot. At some point, every artist gets in a rut. A time where they feel like they have hit a creative wall. I’m not going to lie, all of January had been feeling like one giant creative rut. Maybe it was the lack of vitamin D from having no sunshine here in the PNW. Maybe it was moving into a new studio with tons of ideas and then having no creative reign in the space. Maybe it was simply because I fell into a routine and didn’t push myself creatively. I have a good feeling it was a little bit of all of the above lol! But then I came across a quote that talked about how we may not have control over the things that are happening in our lives, but we definitely have control over how we react, and ultimately we have more say in our outcome than we think. That made me take a deep look at the problems I was having. I realized that ultimately if I’m feeling like things are holding me back creatively, it was really on me. I was truly the only thing holding myself back from flourishing. I couldn’t change the problems I was having with my studio, but I could change my outlook and get creative. I couldn’t change the weather- but I could escape it for a moment! And I could definitely change my routine and push myself outside of my comfort zone. So I decided to no longer be in this rut and I booked a spot for the shoot out and booked our airline tickets. I took back control over these feelings that were seriously dragging me down!

At the shoot, we all had time to work and pose each model to get the shots we wanted. These photos are my interpretation of the shoot! I hope you enjoy them. I know I truly do! They represent so much to me, but most importantly they say “Amber got her groove back”!

Cheers!

Amber Tyler