Stripper Of The Month: Zena
Granted it’s a little late in November for us to be bringing you our Stripper of the Month but let’s not get into the blame game and instead just enjoy meeting another beautiful woman. Deal? This time we’ve gone all boudoir with the owner of Mighty Aphrodite. By the way we’ve also got an exclusive reader offer for you if you fancy getting your Mrs a boudoir shoot as a Christmas or engagement present. Anyway, enough chat - and remember as always these posts should be considered Not Safe For Work!
Name: Zena Snowdon-Perkins
Age: 40 – something
Although you’ve stripped here, you’re not technically a stripper are you? So – who are you then?
I run Mighty Aphrodite – a boudoir photography studio with my husband, Leigh, who is the studio photographer. We specialise in nude portraits and sexy makeovers for women, men and couples. I am the studio assistant, make-up artist and lingerie technician – I’ve done up more suspenders than an Agent Provocateur window dresser. I’m not usually an exhibitionist, but I am very proud of my pictures and having done a nude photo shoot myself means I know how our clients are feeling during their shoot.
How did you end up in this business?
Purely by chance! We set up our studio originally to do makeover portraits and commercial photography, but women started asking if they could have shots that were more provocative – in their lingerie and even nude. There was obviously a gap in the market that was aching to be filled.
We set up the Mighty Aphrodite website in 2004 to keep the sexy stuff separate from our mainstream photography and the bookings came flooding in. The boudoir shoots gradually took over from the rest of our business. For the past four years, Mighty Aphrodite has been our full-time job. We don’t photograph weddings, kids or pets, just nude and boudoir photos.
How much does it cost to do a boudoir shoot?
Our packages start at £99 and go up to over £1000. Our most popular package is £450 and this is the one that most brides go for because you get a ten-page album included in the price, which make a perfect wedding gift for the lucky groom.
Do you get many people chickening out at the last moment?
It hardly ever happens. We’ve only had two no-shows in the past five years. We make sure we have a good chat with people when they book their photo shoot to help to get rid of any worries they have. Because Leigh and I deal with clients from the very first email or phone call right through to them receiving their finished album, they know exactly who they will be working with, so the fear of the unknown is not an issue.
Why do women want to do it? What do they get out of it?
Some women just have a shoot for themselves as a confidence boost but most often, it is a gift for their partner. Even then, they get such a buzz out of the shoot that they frequently say they feel that the gift is actually more for themselves. Some women want to show their partner that they have a naughty side and this is a great way to do it. They leave the studio bursting to let their partner in on the secret, so proud that they have been brave enough to push their boundaries and do some downright saucy pictures just for him.
Do men do it? What’s the ratio of women to men?
We do get quite a few men – the ratio is probably 70% women, 20% couples and 10% men. We always get a last minute rush of guys in December who can’t think what to get their partner and end up doing a shoot to give her an album or a calendar of sexy pictures. Men are generally a lot more nervous than women about getting their kit off. With couples’ shoots, it’s often the woman who is ready to get naked quite quickly while the guys generally like to keep their pants on for a little bit longer.
How come you can get women to strip for you by telling them how empowering it will be, but when we try it – nothing?
Maybe you are trying too hard! It’s still a mystery to us how we manage to make so many of our clients feel perfectly normal being naked. I guess because we do this every day, we are so comfortable with people being nude that our relaxed attitude transfers to our clients. About 98% of the people we photograph end up doing at least one nude pose.
A lot of our clients have said they were surprised by how normal we are – because we do such an unusual job, people expect us to be a bit weird. Humour is a great way to break the ice and Leigh is very good at making clients see the funny side of the shoot. Once you have them laughing, they stop taking it so seriously and it is easy.
Are there technical terms for the shots you do, can you teach us some of the jargon? e.g. do you say things like let’s start with “an arse and shadow” shot…
The terminology we use is much more sophisticated! It’s not really technical, but you do have to be comfortable talking about breasts and bums, as we direct our clients into every pose all through the shoot. When it comes to more private areas of the body, the terms “naughty bits” or “undercarriage” work well when discussing how revealing a client wants their images to be. Keeping it fun and light-hearted helps people to lose their inhibitions.
Where can readers go to buy this as a gift for their Mrs-to-be?
Our website has all the information you need. You can see details of all our different packages with full prices of everything we do. If you want to surprise your fiancée with a boudoir shoot, you can buy a Gift Voucher to give to her so she can come for a shoot. Or why not surprise her even more by having a shoot yourself. Better still, come together as a couple for some sexy pre-wedding pictures?
Thanks to Zena and have a look at the Mighty Aphrodite website for further details or you can call 0118 9835154 to speak to Zena or Leigh. Staggered readers can get a free wallet album worth £49 with all package one, two and three shoots (quote code MAWallet).
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