I am no longer the person I was prior to my session with Katie. I did not walk into the studio that day full of excitement, I walked in convinced I had made a terrible mistake. I’ve never looked at my body and said “wow I should take off my clothes and photograph this” but I pushed myself out of my comfort zone and scheduled an appointment many months in advance. I thought for sure that booking so far in advance that I’d have time to get in shape and transform into what I thought my body should look like for this shoot…and well then life got in the way and I showed up in the body I’ve spent most of my adult life in. It wasn’t the body I saw in other pictures and I assumed I had made a mistake going but I was already walking up the stairs and had no way to back out. 

Katie, hiding her powers and genius, immediately eased every nerve in my body and knew how to take this big anxiety-ridden event and make it into an experience I never wanted to end. From the most amazing hair & makeup to listening to Taylor Swift, the shoot felt easy (minus the back arching). I walked out of the studio for lunch absolutely convinced I was the most beautiful person in town and I had never felt that level of confidence walking down a street before. I was pretty worried my confidence bubble was going to pop when I saw myself on a big screen, all the parts I have spent years covering and wishing gone were going to be blown up AND in front of another person. However, Katie prepared me so well for this moment that I took a breath and opened my eyes and somehow loved what I saw. I didn’t focus on bumps and marks, I focused on how good my butt looked and how amazing the light hit in certain places. It never crossed my mind to tear myself apart in those photos, because Katie would never allow it and she made me feel like art.

I now have 3 photos hung up in my bedroom from this shoot and I get the same rush of ‘DAMN GIRL’ every time I see them. Since the shoot I have worn the clothes I didn’t think I could, I didn’t hide from pictures, and for maybe the first time ever I thanked my body for showing up. I don’t know how long the high lasts, but I’m going on week 3 and still riding it and I hope it stays a lot longer. Years of therapy couldn’t accomplish what Katie accomplished that day. 

I feel I have joined the hot girl club, every one of you is already in it, and the entry fee was just hot girl confidence. I gained my entry at Katie’s hands and it grows every time I admire the art that we made that day.