We recently connected with Joy Gustin and have shared our conversation below.
Joy , thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. We’d love to hear about a time you helped a customer really get an amazing result through their work with you.
I always knew that Boudoir Photography has an impact. I had seen firsthand how it empowers women to love themselves and their bodies. It’s tool people use to get in touch with their sensuality and their sexy badass self. But when I started working behind the lens, I was humbled by how often my clients used boudoir to propel themselves further down the road towards healing.
One client came to the studio in celebration of recovery from her eating disorder. She’d spent the past years working through the trauma that her childhood had bestowed upon her. And had finally arrived in a place where she could love and appreciate her body in a way that she’d never been able to before.
Like most sessions, we talked, she shared her story, and when I showed her the images, she was thrilled. But what I wasn’t expecting was when she called a year after her session to say, “The most healing thing I ever did was that boudoir shoot… I think people don’t understand what boudoir photography can actually do. People hear about it, and they get this preconceived notion about it, but they just don’t understand until they experience it for themselves.
“It’s so healing. What better way for a woman to love her body then to embrace it in a shoot like that. You’re doing it for yourself, you’re loving your body, you’re embracing it for what it is. And you’re doing it for you.
“It’s the most healing thing you can do. It inspired me so much to be a strong woman. And on tough days, you need a strong woman to look up to. And you inspired me to be a strong woman. And every woman needs an experience like that.”
I’ll be honest, I nearly cried. I get reviews sometimes. Testimonials from clients who enjoyed their experience. Ones who felt strong and empowered by boudoir after fighting self doubt, trauma, abusive relationships, mental health journeys, and so much more. Often, they share their stories throughout the session, and I’m honored witness them reclaiming their identities.
But it’s rare for a client to call after so long to share how impactful her session was. It’s the sort of story that reminds me that my work carries more value than I had ever dreamed it could. I love that I can hold up a mirror to a woman to reveal to herself her own beauty and value. But knowing that the impact of our short time together can have such deep roots and help strengthen the foundation of their identity… I can’t imagine a higher (or more humbling) honor.
Joy , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
It’s silly to admit that I am always surprised when someone tell me that they’ve never heard of Boudoir Photography before. But most people have never heard of it before. I’ve just mildly obsessed by it for the last seven plus years, so I forget that it’s still a kind of new idea.
But Boudoir is a branch of photography that focuses on empowering women to own their strength, beauty, and sexy self. I’ve heard it referred to as Lingerie photos, sexy pics, Spicy images, or even “Victoria’s secret style.” But the most important thing to know is that Boudoir captures who you are and who you want to be. There are no prerequisites when it comes to Boudoir. You don’t have to “fit the mold.” Just be yourself.
I started working in Boudoir Photography after a session of my own that allowed me to push my insecurities to the side and find full confidence in my own sensuality. I felt like I was becoming the sexy superhero version of myself that I always dreamed I could be. And after that I was hooked.
Most people have tried to take their own sexy pictures at home in one way or another, but there’s a special finesse to being able to capture that kind of energy on camera. It’s not as easy as *think sexy thoughts* and take a picture. There are nuances to posing, lighting, set design, intention, and emotion that all play into the story being told within the image. Especially if you want them to be images that make you feel alive every time you see them.
I specialize in balancing all those elements to create emotional connection in my photographs. While many can pose a body, I guide clients from their fingertips to their toes, helping attune all the details (breathing, muscle tension, facial expressions) to capture my clients at their best.
In my little studio in Nashville, Tennessee, I strive to make every client feel safe, confident, and kick ass. Every session starts with a planning call that goes over everything from stylistic preferences, wardrobe options, hair and makeup, themes, props, etc, to tailor each session to our client’s preferences. So that we can create portraits you become obsessed with!
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
Most of the women I met have lost a piece of themselves in some way. A piece of themselves that made them vibrantly alive. Some have lost their confidence, energy, or joy. For some, it’s their appreciation of self or their inherent belief of their own value and beauty. They lose their willingness to prioritize their needs or even their own understanding of who they are. We lose these pieces, and then work to rebuild them. Sometimes that work is hard to do on your own.
It’s hard to embrace the most vibrant version of yourself when it feels like the world is constantly chipping away at you. But it easier when you have someone who can come along side you and create a space for you to experience how vibrant you truly are and then gives you proof of your vibrancy for the days where everything feels dull again.
My goal is to create space to help women reclaim and heal what was lost. I want to empower them to grow. To find their strength and beauty and to take ownership of it.
I hope that every person who steps into my studio feels like they are being true to who they most want to be. That they are finding and claiming their own beauty, their sexiness, and their strength. Because that’s the best way I can think to empower the women in our world.
We’d love to hear the story of how you built up your social media audience?
I started on TikTok earlier this year, hoping to give potential clients a chance to get to know me better. And to my surprise, a little community started building around me. But it wasn’t until I decided to try to share some of my skill, giving tutorials on posing, that my audience grew. We’re now 55K strong.
It’s crucial for solopreneurs with service-based businesses, like myself, to find a way to connect with their potential customer base. People need to get to know you. They need to like you, and make sure that they can entrust you with their business.
Social media is one of the fastest and easiest ways to communicate your businesses values and offerings. But with that ease of communication comes so many pitfalls and the dreaded algorithm. While I’m not an expert, I have learned a few things.
It’s more important to communicate “with” your client than “at” them. So don’t just tell them about you and your business, talk with them about the problems you know they have. The ones your business can solve, and the ones you personally can empathize with. Make a note of the questions people frequently ask, and answer those on social media. Invite them into the process of what you do, create, or make so that they can see you being the expert in your field. Teach them something that they want to know (*like have you tried to take sexy selfies, but they never turned out the way you wanted? I’ve got a playlist with more than 100 videos on my Tiktok that will show you easy poses you can do at home with just your phone!).
And while you create content that does all that, remember the only social media schedule that matters is the one that works with you (not against you!). Consistently posting multiple times a day, is great! And it works! The more you post, the higher your chances of stumbling on a video that will go viral. But unless social media is all you do for your business, it can be difficult to keep up a schedule like that. So, focus on creating a social media presence that is achievable for you.
Social Media algorithms will always change. They are literally designed to evolve constantly based on user interaction. But they will always give some amount of preference to new features or updates. Don’t hesitate to use trends, but also try new things. Make a note of what gets you the most engagement. Keep making what works. Embrace the grind.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://joygustin.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/joygustinphotography/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JoyGustinPhotography
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCvfF5SPHBX3COqRw_0I1jpQ
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/joy-gustin-photography-nashville
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@joygustinboudoir