Why do a boudoir shoot?

As you all now know, boudoir photography has been around for quite a while. One of the first question we get when we talk about Scandaleuse is "why the heck would a lovely lady (or gentleman!) ask for this particular photography session?"

Whether you are hesitating about booking your session or just curious about who we work with, we have gathered some pointers for you little Scandals!

Reason 1: Just because you want to.

We might as well start with our favourite excuse to walk around half-naked followed by a camera. You may have woken up one day feeling ready to immortalize your beautiful self or you may have worked really hard on a new you. Or maybe you always wanted to do it and you now gathered the courage to start your google search.

Reason 2: You have another person who will enjoy it.

Doing it for yourself deserves two thumbs up,but sharing your photos with your special someone takes the cake. (and god knows we love cake. We’re French, don’t blame us)

Why not giving a little peek to the person who makes you heart shake so you can brag one more time about how good you look?

Reason 3: Because you are working so hard on that body of yours

All of those hours squatting at the gym with the litres of sweat involved are a good enough reason to get a shoot done. Let's face it, if you have a 6-pack or a booty Brazilians would kill for, you might as well show it.

Reason 4: A teeny tiny soon to be big mush of love is coming!

You are expecting a major change in your life and it is now or never to capture your body changing. Scandaleuse loves big bellies. For real. We are amazed by why the human body can do.

Reason 5: Gooooing to the chapel…

..and we’re gonna get maaaarried. Forget the standard cufflinks as a wedding gift and spice it up with yourself instead. Need more details? Hint: it involves a veil, rings and I do’s. And a sexy honeymoon.

That’s it for today lovely Scandals. Just know that whatever reason you pick, we have your back! (or your front. Or... well you got it.)

You have any other reasons? We are all ears!

Show Us Your Tats - Mike

We were beyond excited to meet Mike. First, because he is officially our first participant for our brand new project Show Us Your Tats (SUYT) and then because we were so lucky to start this project with such an interesting piece. Indeed, Mike has his entire back covered, from neck to lower back.

Tell us a little bit about yourself:

My name is Mike, Right now I’m currently an International MBA student at the Schulich School of Business. I also sit on the board of a not-for-profit organization, and part-time I’m also a valet driver

Let's Talk Tattoos

Right now I have 2 tattoos (hoping to get more!). The first one I have is on my chest piece which is a Polish eagle, which represents my background and my family. It was a great first piece because the whole anxiety of future regret was removed, since regardless of what I become in the future, I will always be Polish by blood. This first one was done by Nathan Draper (at the time he was at Pearl Harbor Gift Shop in Kensington).

My second tattoo is a combination of things that I saw during my trips to Vietnam and Bali. The vietnam portion (the dragons) came to be when I was touring the Temple of Literature, and saw this very intricate design on the door. Instantly I knew it was something that I would want, since education is a large part of who I believe that we should all strive to be constantly learning. The second portion is a Balinese Garduda, which really connected with me when I was at the Garuda Wisnu Kencana in Bali. At first it was the design that really hit me, but then the more I looked into it the more the idea of “fiercly attacking” started to stick.

In the end, I decided to combine the two on my back, so it’s a personal reminder that I should always be striving to improve myself, and that anything I choose to do to that end I do so with undaunting ferocity (when the going gets tough - keep going!). Of course, I can’t forget the very wonderful and talented Jenn Liles who did this piece!

What was the time and budget allocated for each piece?

The Polish eagle took 2 sessions, total maybe 5-6 hours. Approximately $300-$400

The backpiece took 10 months to complete. I asked Jenn if she knew how much it ended up costing in the end; all she said was that she lost count. Truth be told, so did I, and I think it’s for the better (I’m sure the total cost would have paid for a good portion of my tuition now). No regrets whatsoever - it never felt like I was overpaying for anything.

Is there something you wish you had known before getting tattooed?

The pain experienced is different for everyone.

The deets

Polish Eagle by Nathan Draper, now at Taunton Tattoo Company & Sugoi Tattoo
Back Tattoo by Jenn Liles, now at Hidden Door Tattoo (Dufferin & Queen), Toronto, Ontario

Our Boudoir Approach - Between sexual harassment and body shaming

Scandaleuse was born over coffee in Toronto. When Fanny and I first discussed the concept of shooting boudoir, we were surprised at the positive reception from our friends and family. If anyone was going do it, we realized, it was going to be the two of us.

Let's face it, human bodies have always been fascinating, and risqué. Whether it was in the 1920's in Paris where it was forbidden but secretly exciting, or in the 70's to encourage women's femininity, we have always photographed people showing skin. There are no rules, no average, no limits.

When starting Scandaleuse, our main goal was (and still is!) to provide a high quality session in which our models, women or men, would feel completely themselves. No disguise, no theme, just beautiful people in beautiful places. Where did this thing start you may wonder? While we don't have a straight answer, we do have a few pointers.

As simple and juvenile as it may sound : body shaming sucks. Come to think of it, we spend so much time comparing or underestimating ourselves. Beauty standards will always be here unless we break them. You should feel comfortable in your own skin. After all, you only have one. Who's to say that if you are not a size 0, you are not beautiful? Who can tell you what to wear and what not to wear to fit in society? As far as we know, there are no fashion gods, only people with strong beliefs that don't always make sense.

Shooting boudoir photography is our way to contribute to stop body shaming, one shoot at the time.

Here comes our second but just as important trigger to what we are doing today. Growing up in France and living quite a bit of time in Paris, we can officially say that being girls over there is not the nicest feeling on Earth.

Take Paris for example: all of our friends, ourselves included, have suffered from sexual harassment while minding our own business. Between daily insults (or physical assaults in the worst cases), all of us have wondered if this skirt was too short, or if this outfit showed too much skin even if we felt comfortable right before passing the front door.

Once we set foot in London and in Toronto, we realized that this kind of behaviour was not okay and far away from the norm. We have never been bothered by anyone walking down the street in Toronto in 4 years (and still counting!).

That being said, we are happy to say that we took something good out of this nasty behaviour: promoting women. Showing off their bodies by giving them the respect they deserve and make them feel beautiful.

Don't worry gentlemen, we got your covered too. Wellnot "covered" per se. You get the idea!

We are game if you are.

Dear Future Scandals...

This is iT. Scandaleuse is finally ready to see the daylight, ready to conquer the Torontonian streets with a touch of Frenchie-ness.

Photo credit: CreativeX

After many sleepless nights, creative outbursts and double espressos, your Scandals-en-chef have arrived, and together, we are ready to work our bums (no pun intended) off to bring boudoir photography to the next level.

We are very excited to meet you all, Scandals-to-be.
Hold on to your panties, we are up for a ride.