The Juicy Society - Women’s Erotic Photography Shoot

I first heard about Grace Gelder before I did level one of my recently completed Tantra Women’s Training Programme. My teacher told me she was a photographer and filmmaker and thought she and I should get together as she saw the potential for us collaborating. It was only during our second workshop, however, when Grace whipped out her camera, that I got a chance to see her in action.

And if you’re thinking, “I’m a blimp/have cellulite/stretch marks/ribs you could grate cheese on/knockers like a pair o’ spaniel’s ears – there ain’t nothing sexy about me”, I’m afraid you’re very much mistaken.

Like me, Grace is committed to walking her talk. Whereas I use writing as a medium through which to encourage folk to reconnect with their sexual selves, Grace uses the visual arts. And because, like me, she’s long been passionate about the female form in its myriad shapes and sizes, she aims to capture each woman’s unique essence and hold it up as a mirror so they might see it for themselves.

You see, it’s one thing to have someone position and contort your body into various ‘flattering’ poses and take sexy photographs of you; it’s quite another to have someone treat you as the individual you are and draw out, celebrate, and capture the inimitable expression of your sexuality.

Photo copyright: Grace Gelder (The Juicy Society)

Despite hearing nothing but rave reviews from the countless women who’d thanked her for helping them reconnect with their sexual selves, I was still nervous about doing my first shoot with her. But just because she and I have become good friends, didn’t mean I’d write about her without first having her photograph me and seeing the results for myself. What I hadn’t counted on, though, was just how liberating and healing an experience it would be.

Back in my early twenties, let’s just say I wasn’t averse to exploring the joys of my sexuality with a Polaroid camera. Until, that is, my mum happened upon an unwanted photo I hadn’t disposed of properly and proceeded to rain down on me a torrent of scornful judgement. With that, the innocent, joyful playfulness of my sexuality, now shamed and dirtied, fled across hill, dale, and out of sight. I eventually caught up with her during my recent Women’s Training Programme; but it was only during my session with Grace that I finally made peace with this long lost aspect of myself.

What I fast realised is, although she takes photographs, more important still, she gives permission: permission to explore and express your sexual self in whatever form it takes. She’s committed to giving women back to themselves in an authentic manner – which is why she won’t airbrush, do away with ‘imperfections’, nor trim the contours of the body. Anyone can take erotic photographs of women, but not every photographer uses their medium in such a consciously healing way, evoking the essence of femininity as gently and as powerfully as Grace.

Once you relax, it’s actually a lot of fun. It’s even better when you see the final results (which, let me tell you, are a massive confidence booster). Because, it’s not about which pose will make for the best photograph – it’s about capturing something you yourself may have forgotten, downplayed, or just never seen.

Photo copyright: Grace Gelder (The Juicy Society)

For example, Grace told me about one woman who had a particularly great bum. When I saw the photos, I was flabbergasted that she’d never realised this for herself – but Grace did, and she homed in on it and celebrated it to within an inch of its luscious life. Or take the woman who’d lost touch with her sensuousness (“just a mum”) and wanted to be reminded, for herself, that she was a sexual criatura (to borrow a term from the writer, Clarissa Pinkola Estés). Her photo shoot with Grace was her first step at reclaiming her sexuality on her own terms.

And if you’re thinking, “I’m a blimp/have cellulite/stretch marks/ribs you could grate cheese on/knockers like a pair o’ spaniel’s ears – there ain’t nothing sexy about me”, I’m afraid you’re very much mistaken.

The essence of sexuality isn’t mechanistic – something that can be conveniently isolated, fixed, and replicated according to some advertising exec’s narrow idea of what’s ‘hot or not’. Sexuality is an expression of the soul.

This is why I believe an imaginative, creative woman who’s at ease with, and committed to the ongoing exploration of her erotic and psychological self, is better suited to help tease the innate eroticism out of another woman. Having seen Grace fearlessly explore her sexual self within a Tantric arena and consciously heed the wisdom of her nightly dreams, I can attest she is just such a woman.

Photo copyright: Grace Gelder (The Juicy Society)

In fact, I was so impressed with the results of our shoot and her approach, I told her there and then we had to collaborate and spread the word, encourage other women to partake in this wonderful experience (seems our teacher was right after all). And so, on Saturday 2 February, Grace and I will be hosting a pop-up Juicy Boudoir at The Coach House Healing Centre in Marsden, Huddersfield.

Suzanne Bertenshaw, owner of The Coach House, is one of the most gifted healers/bodyworkers I’ve ever met. Long before Tantra, back in November 2005 when I loathed everything from the neck down, it was her who first helped me reconnect with my body. When she massaged me, I remember thinking she loved my body more than I did. To this day, the full body massage she gave me is one I’ll never, ever forget. Over the years, I’ve met many technically proficient masseurs, but Suzanne goes way beyond that. She has a gift that can’t be taught.   

So if you want to reconnect with your body and your sexuality amongst women who are comfortable with their own; if you’re tired of being judged and compared with the impossible standards our culture peddles as the ‘ideal’ and are ready to reclaim the sensuality of your body on your own terms; if you want to be celebrated and reminded of your innate eroticism; or you just want searing photographs to remind yourself and everyone else just how fabulous you are, join us. 

Photo copyright: Grace Gelder (The Juicy Society)

The pop-up Juicy Boudoir will take place on Saturday 2 February at The Coach House Healing Centre.

The price is £175 for an hour-long shoot with Grace which includes three 12” x 8” prints, lunch and refreshments throughout the day, and use of the centre’s relaxing Lotus Room with its hot-tub and sauna. You can also book a separate massage/healing session with Suzanne. Additional prints and digital images can be purchased at very reasonable rates.

Gift vouchers are also available.

For further details and/or to book your space contact me here with ‘Photo Shoot’ in the subject header. But hurry – spaces for the day are limited.