Do you hate how you look in photos?

Like many people, I often don’t like the way I look in photographs. With the advent of cellphones and too many clicks that don’t flatter, I think the tendency to hate the way we look in photos has increased. Back in the day, before the advent of point and shoot cameras, people got professional photos taken. It was a thing to get the family together, dress up and have portraits taken - by a professional. Today everyone has a camera on hand and we are getting our photos taken quite often. Mostly the photos are taken in bad light, they are not posed well and they are unflattering. So it is no surprise that many of us hate the way we look in photos.

I have decided to adopt a mindset that passes off my really horrible photos to bad lighting and posing. This takes a change of mind and it takes effort. I know I am aging, and that is something that I cannot control. I am not expecting to be wrinkle free, but I want to look attractive. I want to look like myself at my best. I don’t want to look at my image and not like the way I look.

I have been putting off doing self-portraits for a long time. It is so easy to come up with excuses. In reality, I assumed that I would hate the way I looked. So here in quarantine, because I love to do portraits, because I cannot shoot clients, I was pushed into a corner. I had to do it - no more excuses!

I bit the bullet, and took a deep breath and set up a portrait session for me. I did my own hair and makeup, put on my favorite black turtle neck and set up flattering lighting. I did my best to do poses that I know are flattering. Without having anyone to direct me (like I would direct a client), this is a bit of trial and error. So far, I think my best look is with my face straight at the camera with my chin slightly lowered. I was pleasantly surprised that I actually like my photographs. Sure there are a few that don’t look good. That is normal in any shoot. With every client I will try different angles to see which is more appealing. I analyze which angle and expression looks best on them.

You need to exist in photos for yourself and for those that you love. Not someday in the future, but now.