My Journey Recreating Those Killer Bikini Shots
Alright folks, time to spill the beans on my latest adventure. Flipped through my feed yesterday and dang, Camille Kostek popped up. Again. Honestly, the woman’s swimwear photos? Always fire. So I figured, why not? Might as well try getting some pics like that myself. Just gotta see if my backyard efforts can even come close, you know? Buckle up.
First things first, I needed serious inspo. Grabbed my phone, plopped on the couch, and straight up dove deep into her Instagram feed. Seriously, just kept scrolling and staring. Not creepin’, promise! More like… studying. Really paid attention to what made her pics pop. Like, how she stands? Confident. Relaxed. Big smiles or smoldering looks. And the swimsuits? Bold patterns, bright colors, cool textures. Noticed a lot were bikinis with interesting details. Mental notes stacking up.
Next step? The hunt. Raided my own swimsuit drawer, digging out everything remotely fun. Patterned top? Yup. Solid bottoms? Got those. Retro high-waisted pair? Why not. Laid ’em all out on the bed like I was prepping for battle. Felt like most stuff was kinda plain compared to Camille’s epic choices. Needed more oomph. Said “Screw it” and headed downtown, hitting a few stores near the beach. Focused on finding pieces that had that fun, kinda playful feel she rocks.
The Key Stuff I Looked For:
- Crazy bright colors or wild patterns
- Bikinis with those cool twisty knots or funky straps
- Something that felt comfortable enough to actually move in
- Fabrics that didn’t look cheap (hopefully)
Found a couple possibilities after a bit of digging. Had this one bikini top with a bright pink palm leaf print? That felt like a win. Grabbed a solid cobalt blue pair with ruffles too. Thought maybe the contrast thing could work.
The Actual Shoot Struggle
Alright, gear up time. Shoved my little point-and-shoot camera, a tripod, and the chosen swimsuits into a bag. Where to shoot? Figured late afternoon light by the lake near my place would have that nice golden glow vibe I kept seeing. Got there around 4 PM. Set up the tripod kinda awkwardly between some reeds. Tried making it look natural.
First bikini on – the pink palm one. Felt a bit self-conscious, honestly. People walking their dogs nearby. Tried to ignore it. Hit the timer on the camera. Ran into frame. Stood stiff as a board. First few pics? Yeah, absolutely awful. Looked like a deer in headlights. Needed way more life!
Channeled Camille. Like, what did she do? Moved! Started twisting side to side, flipping my hair back like someone does so well in the ocean breeze (lake wind had to do). Leaned back a bit. Threw an arm up in the air like she always does near the water. Tried different angles – low shot looking up? Weird. Eye-level? Better. Laughed at myself. Got looser. Started just playing around, like twirling or casually looking away. Got more shots. Tried the solid blue bikini next. Did more of those relaxed poses where she kinda leans her head back, soaking it in. Had to force myself to not look at the camera every time.
The Flip Side: Figuring Out the “Good” Ones
Got home, dumped all the pics onto my laptop. Oh man. So. Many. Bad. Ones. Deleted whole chunks immediately. Then got down to looking closer at what kinda worked.
Noticed a big thing fast: Comfort showed. The shots where I was mid-laugh or just relaxed? Way better than the stiff, posed ones where I was trying to look cool. Legit copies of her poses usually felt awkward on me, but the times I let loose and felt the vibe? Those had potential.
The bright pink bikini print definitely showed up stronger in the pics than plain ones. That golden hour light I chased? Totally worth it. Made my skin look warmer, the colors richer. Water reflection helped too.
Rough Lessons Learned:
- Buying the cheap tripod? Mistake. Wind wobble = blurry pics sometimes. Annoying.
- Pretending to feel sexy? Looks fake. Feeling a bit dorky but happy? Looks real.
- That one pose she nails effortlessly? Might take me 50 tries to look half natural.
- Good light ain’t negotiable. Period.
Ended up with maybe three or four shots I actually liked. Sent ’em to my bestie. Her verdict? One of the laughing ones in the pink bikini was the winner. Said it looked effortless. Me? I’m just relieved something worked after standing in a freezing lake looking daft for an hour! Would I try it again? Maybe. But definitely using a sturdier tripod next time.
