For 2021, I choose three words that I want to guide my focus for this year…. INCLUSION, CREATION, & INNOVATION. I am working through updating the website, social media, and throughout the business to be more accessible, more inclusive, address any other concerns, and update the imagery too. There’s a lot going on behind the scenes, and I wanted to share some growth and history with you.
I was brought up in a family with a verbally and emotionally abusive mother. My father died when I was thirteen. They had brought me up in a cultish religion where only they (the religion) had the answers, and everyone else was wrong. Changing your views was considered sinful and wrong… even when new information from many verified sources disproved that view/value. Hating yourself and putting your needs/boundaries last was considered the highest good. Many lies were fed to me through this religion, and any negative things about the religion or respected leader were hidden. Guilt, shame, and fear were the motivations to do “the right thing” as they defined it… and most of the religion’s values were either racist, misogynistic, homophobic, ableist, etc… and a lot of times a deadly cocktail of some of or all them. Add to this my struggles with undiagnosed ADHD (until summer 2020) and never feeling like enough or feeling like too much.
Fast forward to high school where I started questioning a lot of the misogynistic practices in my high school. Then to college and after, getting married, and having kids. Throughout my life, I never thought of myself as hot, sexy, or even beautiful. I thought of myself as cute, silly, quirky, and very awkward. When I started photography in the family business through weddings, I kept seeing again and again how only women who looked a certain way were in the movies, tv, magazines, models, advertising, etc. And that the view of a women’s beauty and her worth was only if she met this impossible criteria. I photographed my first boudoir shoots in 2010 and connected the dots… that all women are beautiful and should feel that way.
So when the mellBella Photography brand started in January 2011, our mission was to “remind women they are more beautiful than they think they are. Specializing in women’s photography to honor these Bella Beauties and the men they love.” WOW! Thankfully, we’ve done A LOT of growing since then. That mission was problematic… exclusive in several ways. We had a very narrow view of boudoir photography and what it was back then. Coming into boudoir photography as wedding photographers, we narrowed our focus to only brides either getting married or as gifts for wives to get their husbands. BUT that excluded LGBTQIA+ persons… it excluded any other gender… it excluded people who weren’t married… it excluded people who didn’t have a partner… and it made it only about a gift for someone else. And on top of all that, we had very little diversity in our clients.
Me circa 2011 early on in the mellBella Photography life
How did/do I change it? It came/comes through putting in the hard work personally and through the business…. education and communication. Being open to changes to learning… not being afraid of being wrong… apologizing and taking the steps to correct the problems…and changing the goal to not only became a better photographer but also a better human. To create a welcoming, safe place, and fabulous experience for our clients. And to always be learning, admit wrong doing, when you mess up–make up for it as best as you can, and to put love and kindness above all else. I have invested in education through The Boudoir University I’m over halfway through their foundational program called The 7 Pillar Program: The Course for Photographers Who Give A Damn. “The pillars are designed to confront blind spots, outdated belief systems, and biases that we all have when it comes to the human experience. In order for us to become more empathetic and thus, more empowering, we need to open ourselves up to understanding experiences from different intersections.” Boudoir Photography is truly so much more than “pretty pictures” or just a “photo or tw0.”
Image of Mell Bell by Christine Hamrick Photography
So, what is the mellBella Photography mission/goals now?!? I don’t have a formal mission statement right now that is wrapped up nicely in one sentence… but here’s what I value:
- EVERY BODY is beautiful. EVERY SINGLE BODY is freaking gorgeous simply because it exists.
- Boudoir Photography isn’t just for females… it’s for ALL genders.
- For my clients to see themselves with loving eyes instead of hypercritical ones.
- Celebrating YOUR version of beautiful, sexy, happy, strong, silly, sensual, etc.
- Confirmation, Detoxification, Communication, Exhilaration, Declaration, and Affirmation of YOU
- Creating a Safe Space of respect, trust, peace, vulnerability, emotions, and comfort combined with fun and laughter.
- An experience that puts back into someone…reminding them to value themselves… appreciate their bodies… AND yes, even CELEBRATE.
Here’s just a small sample of the portraits I’ve been doing. I dedicate to my unforgettable clients, my friends, and family who support me and my work:
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Something New for 2022
/in Before & After, Boudoir, Events, Frontpage Article, Pinup, Real Story /by Mell BellI’ve been working for several weeks on a new logo for mellBella Photography. This will be the third edition of the logo since the mellBella brand was officially founded The name mellBella includes my name, BUT I didn’t want it to be just me. Bella is a nod to the Italian roots of my husband’s family who started Richard Bell Photography who gave me my start in photography. PLUS, Bella means beautiful. The first version of the logo was retro feeling, and of course the B was capitalized. Our colors were hot pink, black, and silver.
She was a good logo and the B changed colors to red and purple depending on the photo shoot too. However in 2017, we changed to something more flowy, modern, and sleek. It took some time to find the right fonts and color, but she was professional, curvy, and cute.
BUT over the last few years, mellBella Photography has grown in so many ways, and this logo didn’t fit the brand anymore. mellBella is so much more than professional, curvy, and cute. Soooooooo much more than where we started…. the logo needed to be more and different. So in February, I emailed my designer, Andy, who is also a Bell, to figure out a new look. It had to FEEL just right. For the record, it’s really hard to describe something that you can’t picture in your head as the final look but you have lots of ideas, feelings, and an instinct that go into it. I’m so thankful to Andy for helping me through this process, listening, and translating it ALL into an actual design.
This portrait was the INSPIRATION behind our new logo. For her most recent shoot in December 2021, she asked if we could do some images with bisexual lighting. This lighting incorporates a blue gel and a magenta gel and where they meet creates purple lighting. The colors are on the bisexual flag, give an 80s retrowave vibe, the three main hair colors I’ve had in recent years, AND are used throughout tv shows and movies as well. And if you know me, you know I love to PLAY with LIGHTING and COLOR.
This lovely woman has trusted me to photograph her and embrace who she is. She gave me permission to share this image without her face and a few details about her story. She was my very first trans client, and she even used the photos we created from her first portrait session to come out to her mother. Wow, just wow. I’m so grateful to her because trans people face high levels of discrimination and violence, AND she’s not alone. To be clear, trans rights are human rights. She is inspiring… watching her confidence and comfort in herself grow over the years is indescribably beautiful. Of course, there’s SO MUCH MORE to it all… so much more detail, history, struggle, growth, and most importantly, LOVE. SHE is the phenomenal muse behind the new logo.
The new logo is dedicated to-
Check out the NEW look in the video below-
I wanted a logo that would be….
I was finally diagnosed with ADHD later in life, so I lived most of my life feeling Out-of-Place without understanding who I am. I felt Awkward, Too Loud, Too Random, Out-of-Place, Weird and Clumsy in my Brain and Body, Forgetful, Lazy, and Not Good Enough. BUT as a child, I would watch Mr. Rogers Neighborhood, and I always knew that Mr. Rogers liked me exactly as I am. No qualifications… no buts…. just how I am. Growing up, I wondered so many times– IF I was loved by my mother, IF I was unlovable, IF I could do anything right, IF I could ever decide what I wanted to do with my life, IF I was good enough, IF I can change myself enough to fit in, IF… IF… IF!!! I think that’s why the following quote is a huge part of my values:
This new logo feels right… it feels fitting… it feels like it reflects the changes and growth in mellBella Photography. It feels retro and modern. It feels masculine, feminine, and androgynous. It feels welcoming and fun but serious and professional. It’s a balance and whimsical.
My goal is for the art I create with my clients to show:
So….. what’s next? The website. It’s a process, but it will be worth it.
2022 Intentions- W A P
/in Boudoir, Frontpage Article, Pinup, Real Story /by Mell BellEvery new year, I choose words or phrases as my intentions for the year. I really liked last year’s intentions which were: Inclusion, Creation, and Innovation. I feel like mellBella Photography is on the right track, and we made some progress. I’m continuing my education in photography which goes far beyond camera and lighting gear. I’ve been reading, listening, and learning about fatphobia and diet culture as well as continuing learning about the “isms” (racism, ableism, sexism, heterosexism, classism, etc). I think the following quote sums up what I’m trying to do:
With the last few years, dramatically changing us all from figuring out life and daily tasks to exhaustion to mourning to anger, and to finding some joy and hope. I’m struggling as a parent of a toddler and elementary school student. I’m struggling with my PMDD and ADHD and possibly have endometriosis too. My PMDD causes me all kinds of problems and negative symptoms for at least 2 weeks out of every menstrual cycle. Time feels different. My ADHD is a beautiful but difficult conundrum, and allows me to pay attention to almost everything at the same time which makes sitting down to focus my attention difficult at times but it’s the best thing for a photo shoot because I’ll notice the mood, the lighting, the temperature, personality, changes, noises, etc. Now those are health struggles… and there’s so much more that goes into the day to day.
So what does this have to do with intentions for 2022? I am a W-A-P. For 2022, my intentions for mellBella Photography can be summed up by those three letters– WAP.
You are supposed to take up SPACE. Almost every person, who comes to my studio for the first time, is so nervous, and they shrink themselves at first. But throughout the photo shoot, it’s a discovery of seeing themselves as worthy of taking up space… of being a WAP– WHOLE ASS PERSON! Being a Whole Ass Person does NOT include being unkind and disrespectful. Basically, DON’T be an Ass Hole Person to yourself nor others. And as a Whole Ass Person (WAP), you are going to have feelings that might change daily about how you look or feel in your body. When you feel a disconnect or uncomfortable in your own body, it’s soooooo easy for the negative self talk to take over and the feelings of self worth plummet. Maybe you feel bad because you “should” look a certain way and don’t. There’s no one right way to look, BTW. You are worthy of LOVE because you exist. It’s inherent.
You bring your baggage literally to the photo shoot, and there’s so much going on inside of you before you arrive. I don’t know your history, but sometimes you share part of it with me before your shoot day. Maybe you’re recovering from an illness, accident, or surgery. Maybe you’re celebrating your birthday, anniversary, or surviving and leaving a bad relationship. Maybe you were raised to believe that your body is shameful. Maybe you’ve always felt self conscious about your body or that you feel awkward in it. Maybe you’ve done a photo shoot with us before and you want to try something different or bolder this time because you’re less nervous and more excited. Maybe you had a baby and want to celebrate or appreciate your new body.
I don’t know what happened right before you arrive at the studio. Maybe traffic was bad. Maybe you got in a verbal argument with someone important to you. Maybe you struggle with depression or anxiety and struggled even getting out of bed today. Maybe you’ve been caring for a sick loved one. Maybe inside you’re scared about hating photos of yourself… again. Maybe you were taught growing up that loving yourself/feeling good about yourself is selfish and you’re struggling with those conflicts still today. Maybe that person who was supposed to be safe and loving told you horrible lies about you and your body which you are still carrying with you. Maybe your kids were incredibly difficult to interact with that morning. Maybe you couldn’t sleep the night before your photo shoot. Maybe you want to do something just for you because it’s well past time you did and you need something to put back into you.
When you arrive at the mellBella studio, I want you to find a breath of fresh air, a place of comfort, a safe space, and a ton of joy. I want you to relax and be in this moment right now… not the past… not the future– but right now. I want you to set some of your baggage down, and take a little break from it. Maybe you have to take some of that baggage with you when you leave, but maybe just maybe, you can leave with lighter bags. I want you to feel more free and confident to be you, yourself, and your WHOLE ASS PERSONHOOD.
What To Wear For Your Boudoir Shoot– Top 10 ‘Not Your Typical’ Looks
/in Boudoir, Frontpage Article, mellBella Closet, Pinup, What to Wear /by Mell BellI get asked this question a lot, …
A lot of people are familiar with some of the typical lingerie options and accessories (underwear, bra, corset, stilettos, etc.) or possibly simply your birthday suit. But what about if typical isn’t your thing? What if you want to wear something that reflect more your personal style? Maybe one of our Top Ten ‘Not Your Typical’ Looks ‘ for your Boudoir Session will give you a place to get started.
Growth in Boudoir Photography
/in Boudoir, Real Story /by Mell BellFor 2021, I choose three words that I want to guide my focus for this year…. INCLUSION, CREATION, & INNOVATION. I am working through updating the website, social media, and throughout the business to be more accessible, more inclusive, address any other concerns, and update the imagery too. There’s a lot going on behind the scenes, and I wanted to share some growth and history with you.
I was brought up in a family with a verbally and emotionally abusive mother. My father died when I was thirteen. They had brought me up in a cultish religion where only they (the religion) had the answers, and everyone else was wrong. Changing your views was considered sinful and wrong… even when new information from many verified sources disproved that view/value. Hating yourself and putting your needs/boundaries last was considered the highest good. Many lies were fed to me through this religion, and any negative things about the religion or respected leader were hidden. Guilt, shame, and fear were the motivations to do “the right thing” as they defined it… and most of the religion’s values were either racist, misogynistic, homophobic, ableist, etc… and a lot of times a deadly cocktail of some of or all them. Add to this my struggles with undiagnosed ADHD (until summer 2020) and never feeling like enough or feeling like too much.
Fast forward to high school where I started questioning a lot of the misogynistic practices in my high school. Then to college and after, getting married, and having kids. Throughout my life, I never thought of myself as hot, sexy, or even beautiful. I thought of myself as cute, silly, quirky, and very awkward. When I started photography in the family business through weddings, I kept seeing again and again how only women who looked a certain way were in the movies, tv, magazines, models, advertising, etc. And that the view of a women’s beauty and her worth was only if she met this impossible criteria. I photographed my first boudoir shoots in 2010 and connected the dots… that all women are beautiful and should feel that way.
So when the mellBella Photography brand started in January 2011, our mission was to “remind women they are more beautiful than they think they are. Specializing in women’s photography to honor these Bella Beauties and the men they love.” WOW! Thankfully, we’ve done A LOT of growing since then. That mission was problematic… exclusive in several ways. We had a very narrow view of boudoir photography and what it was back then. Coming into boudoir photography as wedding photographers, we narrowed our focus to only brides either getting married or as gifts for wives to get their husbands. BUT that excluded LGBTQIA+ persons… it excluded any other gender… it excluded people who weren’t married… it excluded people who didn’t have a partner… and it made it only about a gift for someone else. And on top of all that, we had very little diversity in our clients.
Me circa 2011 early on in the mellBella Photography life
How did/do I change it? It came/comes through putting in the hard work personally and through the business…. education and communication. Being open to changes to learning… not being afraid of being wrong… apologizing and taking the steps to correct the problems…and changing the goal to not only became a better photographer but also a better human. To create a welcoming, safe place, and fabulous experience for our clients. And to always be learning, admit wrong doing, when you mess up–make up for it as best as you can, and to put love and kindness above all else. I have invested in education through The Boudoir University I’m over halfway through their foundational program called The 7 Pillar Program: The Course for Photographers Who Give A Damn. “The pillars are designed to confront blind spots, outdated belief systems, and biases that we all have when it comes to the human experience. In order for us to become more empathetic and thus, more empowering, we need to open ourselves up to understanding experiences from different intersections.” Boudoir Photography is truly so much more than “pretty pictures” or just a “photo or tw0.”
Image of Mell Bell by Christine Hamrick Photography
So, what is the mellBella Photography mission/goals now?!? I don’t have a formal mission statement right now that is wrapped up nicely in one sentence… but here’s what I value:
Here’s just a small sample of the portraits I’ve been doing. I dedicate to my unforgettable clients, my friends, and family who support me and my work:
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⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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What is Boudoir Photography?
/in Boudoir, Frontpage Article /by Mell BellWhat is Boudoir Photography to me? For starters, I’ll tell you what it’s not.
Boudoir Photography is NOT:
To me, Boudoir Photography is so much more than just a photoshoot. I photographed my first boudoir clients in 2010. As I’ve photographed hundreds of people over the years, my definition of boudoir photography has grown as I’ve grown as a photographer, artist, and person.
Boudoir Photography :
2020 End of the Year Events and Updates
/in Events, Giving /by Mell BellOur Community Care Event is going on through Saturday, December 12th. Here’s how to enter to help the community and enter for a chance to WIN prizes from Local Small Businesses.
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Even though Rockabillaque 2020 was cancelled. The 2020 Miss Rockabillaque Pin-Up Contest happening as part of this year’s CODfather Christmas Celebration on Saturday, December 19th. The Pin-Up Contest will be a Holiday/Winter theme. Register to compete in the 2020 Pin-Up Contest here: https://www.rockabillaque.com/contests As usual, we are sponsoring the Pin-Up Contest, AND the winner will receive a FREE pinup photography session with us including hair/makeup styling and access to the mellBella Closet. ($400 value).
The event will also include live rockabilly music, over 20 vendors, a giant Christmas tree, falling snow, Santa, kids activities, a bonfire, and more!! The Pin-Up Contest will be at 3pm on the Outdoor Stage at the restaurant. Miss Rockabillaque 2019, Ashley Kramer will be crowning the 2020 winner!
AND finally, we’re making some fine adjustments and planning for 2021, and we want to hear from you… what you want to see, hear, experience AND as always sooooo much more! Be sure to keep checking the blog and our social media for what’s coming next. Have a Happy Holidays, stay healthy, wear your mask, and look out for each other!
Small Business Saturday Special 2020
/in Boudoir /by Mell BellWe thought about doing a Black Friday Deal, and then decided not to. So instead we’re doing a Small Business Saturday Special. Be sure to follow the directions to get the deal. Here’s what to do:
Just email me at info@mellbella.com with a screen shot of your donation and type “mellBella 2021 Is My Year” in the subject line to be counted towards your session fee. All emails/ donations must be received by 11:59pm on Saturday, Dec 5th to be included in the Small Business Saturday deal. All mellBella sessions from this deal must take place on an available Monday-Friday in 2021 by August 30, 2021. Once I receive your email, I’ll send you a link/questionnaire with details how to officially reserve your mellBella Boudoir Session for 2021.
3. And finally a special just for previous clients… you get FREE shipping in the continental US & 30% off regular prices on:
Community Care Event
/in Events, Giving /by Mell BellWe have chosen the organizations listed below as part of this event. Each organization has been working in the community for several years to do things like fighting racism, empowering women, helping those struggling with food insecurity and/living in a food desert, and so much more.
Please donate and show your support to:
Here’s how to enter:
ALL prizes are from local small businesses. The more donations we raise, the more prizes will be released. Here’s just the start of the prizes available:
#MBCommunityCare
One Image Wednesday- Inferno Wings
/in Boudoir, Bridal Boudoir, Sets, What to Wear /by Mell BellHere’s a little something new we added to our studio… the Inferno Wings! These gorgeous gray wings can be added on to your session as an additional set. We can set the scene for a moody dark angel or maybe you want something a little more heavenly. What will you be?
Meet Mell Bell
/in Boudoir, mellBella Closet, Pinup, Real Story /by Mell BellIt’s been a while since I introduced myself. I’m Mell Bell… yes THE Mell Bell of mellBella Photography. I’m the photographer, artist, creative, designer, ride or die, never gonna give you up, cheerleader, etc. kind of person. My pronouns are she/her.
I’ve been a photographer with Richard Bell Photography since 2005. So I got my start in wedding and family portrait photography with my husband, Nathan, son of Richard Bell. I’m so thankful to be a part of the family business, but something was missing. In 2010, I photographed my first boudoir session, and after that, I knew THIS was the missing piece. So, with a lot of planning, long hours, and hard work, I founded the mellBella Brand with my dear friend. (Naming the company, Richard Bell Boudoir wasn’t going work. Totally not sexy at all!) Over the years, we’ve added pinup, styled, sets, a client closet, and so many things. Every year, I introduce a few new things that help make the mellBella Experience even better. Always thinking and growing!
Because I feel it’s important to have a great relationship with my clients, we should get to know each other a little bit. So here goes…
And finally I’ll end with a non Photoshopped boudoir photo of me, taken by me, and quote that is a mantra of mine.