I’m not sure I like the term “dudoir” for intimate, sexy, and artistic photos of men, but I haven’t come up with a better alternative. We usually use “boudoir” to refer to sexy photo sessions for women and dudoir is a takeoff of that. Whether you identify as a man or a woman, these sessions can be powerful, affirming, a lot of fun, and perhaps a bit scary.
People usually have themselves photographed nude, or nearly nude, as a gift for their spouse, boyfriend, or girlfriend. It can also just be for yourself, to feel good about how you look. If you’re young, perhaps it’s to mark a point in time you can refer back to many years in the future. If, like me, your body has matured, you might want to document how you’re aging but still young inside.
My goal in your dudoir or male nude photo session is to create timeless, artistic, and tasteful images that you’ll love to share with that special someone.
Tasteful Male Nudes
Your nude photo session can be in our warm, comfortable, and private studio or at a location of your choice. That might be in your home or a tasteful hotel room. Our portrait garden and woodland are also private and great locations for your session when the weather is warm.
I work with light to accentuate your best features and minimize your flaws. If you’re a bodybuilder, I’ll use strong and direct lighting to accentuate your musculature. If you’re softer and more rounded, soft indirect lighting may be the way to go.
Modern digital cameras capture full color, and I often work with colored light in the background or on my subjects for dramatic effect. I also like processing images to monochrome (black & white) and sometimes mix color and monochrome for a subtle color effect. The choice is yours as we plan your session or when you select your favorite poses and order finished images.
While the naked human figure never goes out of style, you don’t have to be completely nude for your session. You get to choose what to wear, or not wear, and how much of your body to show if you’re not wearing anything. I’ll never ask you to go full frontal if you’re not comfortable showing your penis. The choice is always yours.
Plan Your Nude Male Photoshoot
Most men take a while to think about being photographed nude. For a lot of guys, it’s scary to take your clothes off in front of someone who isn’t your lover, spouse, or intimate partner. I get it. It took me years to get comfortable being naked in front of the camera. Now I look forward to it as I build a series showing how I’m aging.
Once you’ve decided it’s time and have found a photographer then it’s important to spend some time planning your session.
I always meet with my clients, fully clothed, for a planning session. This can be at your home, our studio, or a neutral location like a coffee shop or taproom.
As we plan your session, we’ll talk about several things:
- Where will your session take place?
- What is your goal for the session?
- What are your physical assets that you want to show off? If you’ve got a six-pack you probably want to show it off.
- What do you think of as the flaws you want to minimize? If you’re heavier than you’d like, there are ways to visually slim you a bit.
- Do you want to be fully nude, wear something sexy, or both?
- What props or costuming do you want to include?
- What grooming might you want to do before your session?
- What do you plan to do with the photos after your session? An album? A group of prints on your wall?
During Your Nude Photo Session
If you’ve chosen a studio session, I’ll have the studio nice and warm when you arrive. Based on our planning session, I’ll have lights ready for the first setup. There are always some final adjustments to make and you can stay clothed for those test exposures if that’s more comfortable for you. In fact, most dudoir sessions begin with you clothed and go from there.
The session itself will be relaxed and fun. Your photos will be better when we collaborate and play with ideas together than if either of us dictates what to do. Over the course of a two-hour session we’ll come up with a nice selection of photos from which to choose your favorites.
What Does a Dudoir Session Cost?
The session fee is $200, which includes a couple of hours in the studio or one location, my expertise, and initial editing to weed out the inevitable clunkers and blinks.
Finished prints are a la carte and can include large framed prints, small gift prints, or a custom book. Most people invest around $1000 in their photos, although you can spend more or less.
Let’s Do It!
If you’ve read this far and are interested in a session, email David Michael to connect and get started.