What Happens When You Stop Apologising for Your Boundaries

“You don’t need to change who you are, most likely you just need to change who you’re around.”

This is something I haven’t really been doing since moving to Switzerland. Having to build a new network from scratch doesn’t exactly give you the luxury of being selective. You take what you can get and try to make it work.

But now, a few years in, I’m more deliberate about where my energy goes.

I’ve had enough experiences lately—people who say they support you until you stop making things easy for them—that reminded me just how important that choice is.

I shouldn’t have to adjust myself just to keep a friendship.

I shouldn’t have to make myself smaller so someone else can feel more comfortable.

And I definitely don’t need to explain my boundaries to people who only hear what suits them.

That’s not what friendship looks like.

Real connection doesn’t punish boundaries

All of this has made me think about how I show up in my work—and what I want to offer the people I photograph. Especially in boudoir sessions, where vulnerability is a given and pressure can creep in fast.

What I’ve learned in my personal life carries over.

I don’t ask you to tone it down. Or expect you to be confident, or even comfortable right away.

You don’t have to love your body. You don’t have to enjoy being photographed. And you don’t have to explain anything.

You get to show up however you are that day, and I’ll meet you there.

Boundaries belong in front of the camera too

Before every session, I make it clear: you set the boundaries. What you wear, what you don’t, what you show, what you keep to yourself. All of that is entirely up to you.

If something doesn’t feel right, you don’t even have to explain. A simple “no” is enough. You don’t owe me, yourself or anyone anything.

The results are better when we stop pretending

When you walk into a session trying to hold it all together—trying to be confident, or cheerful, or “photographable”—I can see it. And I get it. Most of us have learned to perform, especially when we feel exposed.

But that’s not what I’m here for.

The moment you realise that you can drop the pretending, everything changes. You breathe differently. You move differently. The images become something else entirely. Not polished, or posed. Just true.

That’s the work I want to do. That’s the kind of space I try to create.

So, if you’re looking for a Swiss photographer who won’t ask you to pretend, you’ll feel at home here.