NJ’s Top Boudoir Photographer gives POV on the ‘Sydney Sweeney’ Ad Controversy
Featured: NJ Boudoir Photographer Cate Scaglione’s Client…SHE’S a lifelong athlete and football fan wearing HER team’s favorite jersey. ;)
This past week, a half-nakey Sydney Sweeney ad caused quite a stir in the media.
As a boudoir photographer, it got me thinking not about Sydney herself but about a bigger idea…
BOUDOIR IN CONTEXT: Attention vs. Your Internalized empowerment
Some of my life storms are starting to clear a bit. And now I'm trying hard to stay consistent with my writing…so this is my way of staying in touch with you, m'aaam, Women of Monmouth County, and beyond. Sort of our “coffee talks” on some of the things that matter to us as strong women.
BUT WOW …speaking of life's storms…This media week was 'raging like a nor'easter over a certain Sports Gambling Ad, featuring Sydney Sweeney. Especially upset were the female athletes, my own daughter included.
As a portrait artist who's photographed more than her fair share of sporty boudoir (…ala sports jerseys, golf skirts, tennis rackets), I had to sit with the debate for a while.
Rather than me shaming an actress paid to read her script in character, I chose to focus on the bigger theme it brought up for me:
Male Attention vs. Internalized Empowerment in Boudoir.
Stay with me… there's also an introspective boudoir quiz for you at the end.
(or just click now, whatever you wish).
SOOOO Let's Be Clear what empowering boudoir photography really Is! (and not all boudoir is that actually)…
People are often surprised when I say this, but boudoir in the way I practice it, is rarely about the enticement. Or, definitely not as my starting point with you. Why? Because "enticement" is an outsourced thing, designed someone else's approval and definition.
I'd much rather start with a focus on your internalized empowerment. Not someone else's Rx of your beauty, power, sexuality, or sensuality that you might not be 100% comfortable portraying. We start with You.
YES, many of my clients gift their boudoir album to a partner, or for their NJ bridal boudoir
and that's incredibly beautiful and very special. So, enticement isn't the problem here…
A woman is allowed to want to be wanted and desired. As women, we can and should be –even biology says so.
But even in that case…
I choose my starting point to be your EMOTIONAL OWNERSHIP: What's the message to convey, and how should it be received?
Sneak peek your Introspective Boudoir Quiz: click here.
On session day, the main question I ask clients is usually not "What will he think?" It's "What do you want to feel?" WHY? Because you OWN your emotions, your stories/narratives and your boundaries. We don't lease that out to someone else's POV. That's why my clients always look so strong.
They're empowered goddess-like figures, no matter the outfit or pose. Because what you're seeing is the internalized power, her version, authentic to HER.
When the message is clear, the image will clearly convey it.
I spent YEARS in advertising as a creative director. It made me kind of an expert on underlying messages and intent. I know how to turn a feeling into a visual image better than most.
But I think that's where this “Sports ad” went so wrong. It wasn't the image itself. (I've shot plenty of these scenes), BUT fouled by its scripted intent/message.
It wasn't written about HER, or her love of the sports, or her athleticism, or much of anything Sydney at all. It was about leasing her body to titillation. And further, it minimized our reverence of athletics with the line: “It's just sports.”
For women, the script tanked. But that was by design by its creators. Because it was about HIS sports, his association of women and sports-- all to a subset of a male sports-betting population (one I'm willing to generalize ;)
Still with me? Boudoir Quiz at the bottom or click here.
For us, it sold an expired, outdated 1990's “sex sells” 'frat bro' version of modern femininity. Not through the picture, but through how it was cast:
…choice of words.
…tone of voice.
…body language as a siren.
It was designed for attention: “Look at me orbiting your sports to get your attention.”
Attention is owned by those who give it to us. It's not ours and it's temporary.
Internalized empowerment? That's yours to keep.
It can't be disputed, taken away or misrepresented.
Let's reference the Sports Illustrated Body issue. That same concept would yield a different response. Why? The underlying intent, the message. It's designed for an athlete's elite POWER. Her talents. Her ownership of her sport. And that's exactly how the message gets received, visually.
A photographer takes the picture. An artist knows how to SHOW what a feeling looks like. Enticing images speak outward. Mine almost always speak inward.
That's why I always ask the client her “adjectives” first. How do you want to FEEL? And… that is how I will make it LOOK. (and feel, btw).
It's reverence, not just titillation. It's self-ownership, and it's expression. And while there's absolutely nothing wrong with being wanted and desired and doing it for someone else--
But still it's about letting you feel and control the way that happens.
The resulting image is not a woman trying to be “wanted”. It's a woman letting herself BE. She experiences her own power as a starting point, which is quieter and far more impactful visually.
WANT TO DISCOVER HOW YOUR NJ BOUDOIR PHOTO SHOOT WOULD TRANSPIRE?
Take this introspective boudoir QUIZ. Give it a go.
It's free, it's fun. And you might learn a little something about yourself.
