Epic Boudoir at Castle Hotel and Spa: Bra Silia

This epic boudoir shoot in a castle gets my “Boudoir Shoot of the Year” accolade. It took eight hours and seven striking outfits, if “no outfit” counts as one. The client crashed in exhaustion, still making an irresistible subject.

Epic Boudoir: Buzz or Biz?

Many photographers, me included, love throwing the word “epic” into the description of their style or a given photo shoot, be it a boudoir, wedding, couple, or seniors. Most just use it as a buzzword, as something they just ought to decorate their pitch with. I guess we all interpret the word differently. If you Google for “epic boudoir” images, you’d get… boudoir images that are hardly any different from all other search result for boudoir. In other words, what’s so epic?

To me, “epic boudoir” means “legendary”, as in putting so much more effort into a shoot, and standing out so much that you cannot unsee those images. They can’t use the same boring bed, set of Victoria’s Secret underwear, and natural light. They got to be massive in at least one of the following aspects:

• scope
• visual impact
• setup
• creative lighting
• props and wardrobe
• post-processing, or
• digital art (like fantasy art)

If you add some cosplay outfits borrowed from historic, fantasy, or fairytale characters, that would be a true icing on the epic boudoir cake! Oh, and call this a “guy thing” but if you’re really digging post-processing those boudoir images to this epic music, you know that your boudoir session is 101% epic. That’s what I call a true epic boudoir experience!

Far from all of my boudoir sessions qualify for “epic” but there were precedents, I believe:

Yet, this epic boudoir photoshoot beats most of them, and the praise goes not to me but to the client. I’ll call her Brasilia as this is where she’s visiting from.

Meet the Heroine

Brasilia is visiting the US for a few months for her education. She’s first in her family to have attended and completed two universities. I won’t mention her field (it’s among the highest professionally rated) but she studied her entire life and secured employment contracts with national and multinational companies.

Planning on staying in NYC, she searched for a New York photographer to deliver “chic, bold, confident, conceptual and metropolitan” feel in the boudoir photography. Soon enough, she came across my Consensual: Bold and Refined New York Boudoir Photography blog post and contacted me. I was traveling and shooting a wedding in France and had less than usual time for discussion, but once I returned, we dug in.

(Fun fact: because of her occasional “foreign” English and the way she pressed to pull me into the initial discussion, I first thought she could be a scammer! I get such messages often, and even researched and wrote an article on how to flag and deal with fraud targeting photographers.)

Boy, wasn’t she an avid character! “I have a lot of demands!!!”, she said right off the bat. From my initial questionnaire, I learned that she’s into Lord of the Rings, Twilight Saga, Vikings, Game of Thrones, and such. She adores vintage, Victorian, Gothic, and vampire style. She is also an amateur belly dancer and took classes.

Epic Boudoir Outfits

I sent her my thorough boudoir preparation guide with a load of resources and tips, including what to wear for her vision and where to buy it. She then sent me some pics of the outfits she’s considering, many from my list, and my jaw dropped. Nothing like your average boudoir thinking! Things started to get hot. She turned out to be a rare gem!

I’ll direct link to the boudoir outfits we used at the end of the blog.

Castle Hotel and Spa

We initially talked about renting a chic hotel room in Manhattan but with these epic concept developments, the choice fell on Castle Hotel and Spa, a small luxury landmark that sits majestically atop one of the highest points in the region overlooking the Hudson River in Tarrytown of Westchester County, NY.

Built in two stages between 1897 and 1910 by noted New York architect Henry Kilburn, the Castle was planned in a style reminiscent of Norman fortification in Wales, Scotland and Ireland. The finished castle boasted 45 rooms, 31 of which are now guest rooms and suites.

When I drove up into the parking lot, I recognized the place. I shot a wedding there back in 2010 or so. I don’t remember much about that wedding day—suspect that the scheduling was super tight and didn’t allow for a proper photo exploration. Don’t have any images in my portfolio from the place, but now I sure do!

Catching the Sun

There was a bit of a snafu with the makeup artist. Because Brasilia was coming from abroad with limited English, she had no US references for beauty professionals. I sent her my vendor list but none were available or responsive*. On a short notice (two days before the shoot!), she pleaded for help, so I went shopping for her on several gig sites, postponing all my other projects. Went through dozens of beauticians… This epic boudoir shoot could not get half of an effort. With her sizeable investment into the full day experience, luxurious outfits and mythical location, we could not cut corners.

I finally found two options. One fell through a few hours later, but the last one was promising. That makeup artist did end up doing a fabulous job but arrived late and for an unexplainable reason, was still waiting for me to arrive to the hotel (I’d come towards the end of the beauty prep) instead of going to the client to get a head start…

I’m known for dramatic, dark-mood photography, but that’s not all I do! I was so game on catching lots of natural light for a mix of soft and dramatic light used later in the shoot! Alas, I couldn’t start until 4:00 PM, shortly before the sunset and two hours later than anticipated. I had to limit my soft looks to just a few poses and two wardrobes, all done indoors with a softer makeup.

Going Dark

The sun set during the makeup and wardrobe change for a darker mood, more aligned with the epic boudoir claim. We rushed outside as I still hoped to get the Castle’s vibes in natural light. I had to bump my ISO to 4,000 and if you zoom in, you’d see more digital noise than I’d desire.

Then I embraced the darkness, of course, and created a cool shot by a window which stressed the stone wall akin to the medieval fortress. I dramatized the mood with colors there, enhancing both blue and amber colors. Then another wardrobe change and makeup refresh came in (kudos the MUA for staying with us for hours!)

By that time, there was little hope for any ambient light so I set up my off camera flash and worked on a powerful Queen of the North character with the dark castle in the background. The “walking to the camera” shot was the highlight of the entire epic boudoir photo session. I spent over an hour on its post-production, also adding the full moon and enhancing the torch lights a bit, similar to what I did in these Christmas portraits.

I didn’t mention the temperature. It was low; it was freezing. Closeups would reveal her goosebumps on all outdoor shots… She was shaking, so after nailing those epic boudoir outdoor portraits, we went indoors, changed, and continued in an area that I spotted during my scouting. There is a throne in the far back of the castle, so here are less warrior and more regal portraits of our Queen.

Are We There Yet?

By that time, Brasilia considered wrapping up. We covered half of her outfits and it was almost 10 PM. She was exhausted and felt content with the results. Not me, though. I insisted on a break, put on the spa music, and let her have a healing meditation to gather up the last bits of energy for the final indoor segment. She paid me for the full-day package (8 hours) and I saw a few exquisite boudoir outfits left! A belly dancing set had to be skipped, or left for a later shoot.

First, I wanted to capture that medieval-style tapestry in her suite. Here she is, almost saying, “Are we done yet?” Then, she put on her wide brim hat, gloves, and strings of pearls for a series of classy glamour boudoir shots. The little of the lingerie that was left by that time was also dropped, teasing this story with a touch of fine art nude.

And there she is. Literally crashed on her bed. She changed into the last outfit but could hardly follow the directions with enthusiasm. I asked if she wanted to stop, got her shy “Yes”, and that was it. Queens, even of the North, are human.

Links to Props and Wardrobe Used

I’m pushing this blog out in a rush so I’ll add some behind-the-scene footage. Check back later!

Gothic Queen Crown, $25
Gothic Black Natural Feather Cape Shawl with Choker Collar, $30
Bestga® Gothic Punk Claws Fake Nails Ring Set, $17
Feathers Body Harness Lingerie Full Strappy Cage Garter Belt Set, $33
Yandy Premium Northern Queen Medieval Warrior Women Cosplay Costume, $185
Victorian Ruffle Gothic Lace Satin Shrug Rivets Bolero Red-Black Stitching Short Sleeve Shoulder, $52
Gothic Lace Sheer Jacket Long Dress Gown, $73

Utopiat High-End Audrey Style Black Wool Hat W/ Silk Scarf, $150
Old Hollywood Feather Robe Boudoir Robe Feather Bridal Robe, $130
Long Sleeve Feather Bathrobe Sheer See Through Lingerie Kimono Bridal Robe Cover Up with Fur, $28
Blue Valentine Long Gown, $65
Daisy corsets Top Drawer Wine Brocade & Faux Leather Steel Boned Corset, $104
15 cm Stiletto High Heels Platform Sandals Epic Boudoir Pumps, $63

Client’s Feedback

Naturally, I ran this blog by the client before making it public. Here’s her immediate reaction:

* Makeup artists and hair stylists: I’d love to update my vendor list as when arranging for this last-minute epic boudoir photoshoot, I realized some of my current contacts either moved out or are no longer in business. Please contact me to discuss.

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