Many photographers start out by taking photos of flowers.
Flowers are easy, soft, pretty colors, they pretty much do what you ask of them.And they rarely take a bad photo.
Somewhere along the line you decide to try “real people.”
Your family, your friends, your spouse.
Eventually most of them shy away from the camera when they see it pop up in your hands. There might even be a few confrontations involved when you over enthusiastically click away at them.
But none in my opinion are as difficult a subject as yourself.
I had a very challenging client the other day.
Whining, complaining, pouting, wouldn’t look at the lens, wanted to focus on the image on the screen instead. That’s my job, not hers.
Wouldn’t take my gentle directions, wouldn’t sit still.
Complained about her hair almost continuously… bad haircut by her former stylist in December, it’s not growing out… those new grey curly hairs are taking over… ”look at them ugh.”
She spent most of the session insisting that she was not photogenic, all the while tilting her head in odd directions, covering her face with her hands, and moving at the last second.
She complained that she didn’t have any makeup on, that the light was too harsh, she was hot, she was cold, she was tired, and the chair was too hard.
One time she picked up her cat, and despite the struggling of the fur covered beastie managed to subdue it long enough for a shot. Bribery was involved… kitty treats.
Difficult? Yes. Challenging, yes, fun? Not too sure about that for either of us.
Was it possible to get a good shot of her? She insisted that she was not photogenic, and that’s why she is always behind the camera, instead of in front of it.
We chatted about inner beauty, and how women are always self critical, learn to see the beauty inside, and you won’t focus on the faults I told her.
Was she one of the hardest subjects I have ever shot? Yes
Was she me?
Yes.
Did I learn more in this session about posing, making my subject comfortable, finding the best angle, making her look her very best, and coming up with a pleasing shot for both of us because of this? Yes.
Will it make me a better photographer, definitely! I have so rarely been in front of the lens… too many 6 foot tall beanpole shots as a teenager, stop shooting me from below, I’m not a tree. Reality in a 4 x 6, “hey is that really how I look,” for me to trust anyone with a camera in their hands.
I’m camera shy, and that’s why I hide behind the lens… it’s where I’m comfortable, watching, looking, recording…
I’ve included a few tutorials on Selfie’s… I know that I needed all the help I can get, and maybe you will find something in there helpful.
Christina Greeve how to take a great professional selfie. [This is my favourite, she’s amazing]
How to take a great selfie
7 tips for great selfies
My advice, relax, enjoy, watch your background, and keep clicking, after all one of them has to turn out eventually, let your inner beauty shine.
OK, so now you’ve read the entire post, and maybe even gone back to check, and you are wondering where the photos are… take a look at my About page, there is one there. I’m not big on having lots of photos of myself out there, so that will have to do for now. Jane @ Muddy Boot Dreams