The most important Love?

Does February remind you of an obligation to show your love through physical gifts and heart shaped items, or rather makes you roll your eyes up in the air - “love is to be celebrated every day!”.

I agree - Love is to be celebrated and shown every day. Love, the feeling that has many shapes, goes to different faces, but at the core is always the same - incredibly liberating feeling we live for, the one through which we exist.

What is the most important love of all? Love towards your parents or your children? Love towards your partner or friends? Love towards your mission in life or the mindful activities you lean on to keep yourself sane? What is the Love that truly matters no matter what? Where do you find it and how’s it look?

The answer is simple - it’s You. The love you most need is the love you have to give yourself. The same enormous feeling of liberation and fulfilment that vibrates in your chest, expands outwards and sweeps everything on its way. The love you long for to feel complete, to feel happy, to feel content is the pure love that you need to give yourself.

But… How come? Isn’t this selfish?

No.

It’s not selfish, it’s self care. Your capacity to love unconditionally must start from within and expand outwards. The relationship you most need is the one you need to build with yourself in order to share a loving partnership with someone else. Because you can only give what you already have and not the other way around. The more compassionate and loving you are to the person you are most critical towards (yourself) is the key to building a deep, meaningful relationship with anyone else.

During celebrations like Valentine’s day we often put ourselves in a certain group of people, depending on our marital status. If we’re single - we root for self-love. If we’re in a relationship - towards romantic love. I’ve seen people change and take sides depending on the year. I’ve been one of them too - choosing a certain side depending on the moment. But what we all really must understand and accept is ourselves and the love we must give ourselves first.

Nobody else is you, nobody knows what’s inside of you. Nobody will ever be as close as your own Self, nobody can feel your emotions like you do. So let’s start there first. Not just once a year pumped up by the bombarding marketing from all directions, but every day in privacy. For you from you. Because you deserve Love and Love is all you need to allow yourself to give yourself in order to receive. Rest will follow.

With Love and Gratitude,
Mariya

What do you need before a photoshoot of any kind?

Literally nothing but your excitement. Everything else is adjustable.

People often stress too much when they’re about to be photographed. The experience of somebody in your personal space hiding behind a machine that takes high resolutions photographs on witch you can see all the details you dislike about your body is definitely something that can bring quiet a it of stress in your everyday life.

But things are not that scary. The professionals know all of your thoughts and concerns about a photography session - they have been there themselves and they have a constant reminder of it by their clients.

The truth is that no-one is looking at your flaws because we all have them. A good professional is there to capture your essence, to give you the desired result despite the concerns they know you have. The idea is to enjoy the process, to celebrate yourself in this moment in time accompanied with your Self or your loved ones.

Native Americans used to believe that by taking a photographs of them you take a piece of their Soul too. I find this a little scary but also romantic. And perhaps its a correct description about the process. Part of you is captured, frozen in this moment in time. Not particularly in a bad way though. Photograph if you is a memory, a legacy, a reminder that you were here, you experienced life in your own unique way and you celebrated this moment in all of its glory.

So next time you have this inner desire of having beautiful photographs of yourself, quiet down the ego voice telling you you’re not perfect enough, and let your Soul make the appointment. Go and celebrate You - the person you are, the life you live and work you do in this world.

Life is too short to be afraid of things we passionately want to do.

Let your Light shine bright!

Your Body, Your Canvas

Who is there for you when no-one is there? Who is taking care of you, holding you tight, moving you forward, nurturing you and giving it’s best to guide and support you?

Your Body.

The Bestest of friends you will ever have. No judgement, no manipulation, just simply a reflection, love and service. Giving you back all that you give it, the choice is yours.

Took me years of physical and emotional pain to realise there’s no-one there but my body. My body, my house, my secret temple, my life diary.

Photographing my body has helped me reach this connection. A connection for belonging and acceptance that I was long longing for. Looking out in all the wrong places to finally look in the mirror and see that all I needed was right here during this whole time, waiting for me to realise it.

Out body is like a clean blank canvas. When we’re born is tight and fresh. With the ears and experiences you mark it with all different colours, chemicals and textures. The picture of our own life gets developed layer by layer, paint brush by paint brush. What we use and what we do with our canvas matters to how long and in what state will live. Why not take care of it to look its best until the end?

Do you allow yourself?

Do you pay attention if you’re allowing yourself? If you do things for you or the way you’ve been told/think it will be accepted? Do you live according to norms set by somebody else?

Childhood patterns and all the experiences we go through put us in situations where we collect certain behaviours, believes, expressions. Often down the line in life, carrying and using them by default, we usually accept them as our nature, the way we are.

This is not entirely true. In fact, many of the believes and behaviours we carry don’t serve us well and we feel it. But trapped in the years of conditioning, forget to look them from aside and make the conscious decision to change them.

Lately I’ve been in a period of seeing, understanding and desiring to change something seemingly simple in my life, but that has been tripping me for years without me even knowing. I replied I don’t allow myself to live the life I actually want. Why? - because of my childhood condition to follow rules and guidance, that long ago now don’t have any value. I proved to myself I can do things I want, things I desire, if I put my mind into it and take the required steps. Now it’s another transition, seeing how much really all those patterns mean nothing to the adult me now. The child inside tho, scared of rejection, still believes them and here is when it’s time to change the pattern.

By taking actions, small different steps that what used to, we’re able to rewrite the script and change the pattern. Yes, it will take time and it won’t be easy, but the fact that is actually possible keeps be believing its also possible for me.

Don’t let voices, expressions trapped in your inner child’s memory from years long ago to affect your adult life. You have the power to change, to better your human experience simply by making the decision to take action in beneficial for you direction.

How to prepare for a Boudoir photo session?

Have you always wanted to experience a boudoir photo session, but maybe felt some insecurity about taking your clothes off in front of a stranger?

Worry no more, I got you, girl! I’m here for you!

My boudoir sessions are tailored for women with or without experience in front of the camera or with minimal clothing. The target is always one - to feel more comfortable in your own skin. I believe boudoir photography can help women feel freer and unapologetically themselves when they appreciate the beauty and intelligence of their own bodies. Bodies that go through so much transformation during their life and fully deserve to be acknowledged for it, appreciated and valued for their magnificence.

That’s why I’m here - to help people enjoy themselves in their own skin. Clothes and accessories are fun, but they also build a barrier, restrictions, putting certain norms and telling a story. But it not our nature, our authentic appearance as species. The clothed body is not what we actually live in and experience life with, but the nude body is.

The boudoir session is not necessarily a nude one, however surely it could transform if you decide so. I understand the sensitivity of the matter, that there could be certain boundaries and fully respect every individual's point of view.

So what do you need to prepare for a boudoir session?

It is actually very easy:
-decide how you’d like to be photographed
-pick up some outfits/looks
-decide how much of makeover suits you best
-and then just bring your gorgeous presence in the studio!

How would you like to be photographed?

We’ll discuss this more in detail in your pre-shoot consultation. Meanwhile, you can see examples in my work that resonate with you most and you would like to have your own photographs in the same style. Or you’re more than welcome to share any ideas that you have and dream about. I’m always open to experiment and create the best visuals of yourself you’ve seen.

What outfits would you like?

Feel free to share with me even before something that you’d like to wear. I would suggest you to get out of the box and norms if you secretly wanted to. This is a safe space for you where we’ll play, laugh and enjoy your beauty and uniqueness. A place where you can experiment and dress up as whoever you want. You can be with lingerie or any intimate wear or much more minimal and bare. The less the fashion, the more it focuses on your and your gorgeous body. But I let you decide.

If you feel like trying more nude look, you don’t necessarily have to be fully nude. For me is health and safety first so you can wear some minimal thongs that I can hide with poising or later on Photoshop if you want to look nude on your photographs.

How much makeover suits you best?

This option I left open for clients as some of them prefer more natural and minimal look. Boudoir sessions don’t have to have the heavy saturated makeover where you can’t recognise yourself. I’m here to capture you the way you want it to be and won’t force on you anything that can make you feel not yourself. I know make-up can sometimes change the look and idea of who we want to appear as. Therefore, the sessions I do include natural makeover, focused on your natural beauty. But if you prefer to go beyond the way you usually present yourself, we’ll help you with that. We can discuss all the small details before the session to make sure everything is the way you want it to be.

And last one is to just bring your awesomeness in the studio!

Again, keep i n mind this is a safe place for you. Somewhere where you can be yourself with no norms or ideals. I’m here to portray your uniqueness and celebrate you, because you deserve it! Feel free to share anything else you have in mind or any concerns that come up.

I listen carefully what clients tell me about their bodies, what they like and dislike about them. So I try to capture all of it, the more and less loved parts of they bodies in a way that they’ll love all of it. Our bodies are beautiful, despite the differences. In fact the differences are those that make them so unique, so let’s celebrate it!