Why You Believe You Are NOT Photogenic
It’s amazing that almost all my clients believe they are not photogenic; within the first 5 minutes of talking, almost all of them shared this with me. I ask every client how they feel about being photographed, knowing that 99% of the time this is their answer. It is such a widespread belief, and getting THAT out on the table is the beginning of creating beautiful photographs. Here’s why they, and maybe even you, believe you aren’t photogenic.
They are camera owners, not photographers.
Everyone, including their mother, now has a camera! It’s fantastic in terms of expressing our creativity and sharing our lives, but not so great when it comes to us ending up in photos we don’t like of ourselves. It is so important to keep in mind that these aren’t professionals taking your photo. Most amateurs likely don't understand lighting, posing, or facial structures, and how all of this plays into creating a flattering photograph of someone. They haven’t spent 30+ years studying this artistic craft, looking at faces, and understanding lighting. It's not their fault; they don't need to know this as a CEO, Chef, Consultant, or whatever career they kick ass at.
Margaret is an engineer. Give someone a safe space to play, and this is who shows up. She is relaxed and open.
It’s a wide-angle lens!
The lens in a camera phone is created to capture as much of a scene as possible. Great, right? Yes, for landscapes and large groups, but not for portraits. You know what that wide-angle lens does? It makes you WIDER. Yeah, it's right in the name. It distorts entire faces and specific features; it makes bodies look bigger than they are, and unless you can get that sucker about 5–10 feet from your beautiful face, it’s going to be unflattering. Take a look at the images below to judge for yourself. The lenses here start at 24 mm, which is a wide-angle lens like the ones we're talking about on camera phones. They go all the way up to 200mm, which is what I shoot with when creating portraits. You can see the effect each lens has on the woman's face, as well as how much more out of proportion her face looks with the 24mm in comparison to the 200mm.
I hear you; you’ve had professional photos, and you STILL don’t like them. So, here is the biggest reason I believe we think we are unphotogenic.
YOU DON”T FEEL SAFE.
After 30 years in this career and witnessing the challenges people have with being photographed, I can share with certainty that how we feel about how we look is why so many of us feel unphotogenic, a.k.a., less than beautiful or handsome. It’s all about self-love and feeling safe. It actually has very little to do with what you look like. How do I know? I see it every day in almost every shoot. It’s hard to be seen. It’s hard to let someone look at us. We believe they will see all of these things we think are flaws. It’s understandable, really. This information that we are not enough comes at us from all angles via messages growing up, the media, and social media. We hold all of these beliefs and thoughts, and then we stand in front of these visual microscopes and feed back our worst fears about who we are and what we look like.
I understand. I hated every photo I took of myself, except when my younger sister was behind the camera. I realized it was because I felt safe with her. I knew she loved me for me, and because of that, the inner dialogue shut off, and I showed up as the best version of myself. I simply stopped thinking about the negative beliefs I had accumulated over the years, because I knew the person looking at me only saw someone she loved. When we feel safe, when we don’t have to worry about being judged, when we are in the moment of love or laughing with friends, or when we don’t know a photo is being taken, that is when we love our photos. Our guard and self-protection are in resting mode, and we show up fully as ourselves, and that is always beautiful.
I've built a career creating a safe space for every single client who walks through my doors. I grew up not feeling seen, and it was incredibly painful. I believed I wasn’t worth it—interesting enough, too sensitive. Really, it can be any message we receive or create. Bottom line: I didn’t believe I was worth being loved, so now I let everyone know they are worth being seen for exactly who they are. I share as much of myself with each one of my incredible clients as I can. I am vulnerable, loving, goofy, and engaging. I genuinely care about each and every person who steps in front of my camera. My deepest intention is that you walk away with a portrait in which YOU can see the best version of yourself. Not a model! This point I want to make very clear: I am not interested in creating some false standard we all need to reach. The most beautiful version of you is the real you! The best version of you! The only way this happens is when we know it is safe to drop our guards and protections, which we think are keeping us safe but only keep us separate.
Coach and Advisor at One Women Effect Cheri SHINES joy in this photo! We laughed our butts off this entire session.
Executive Coach Mary M. found her flow as we moved through her shoot to capture this ease-filled, authentic Business Portrait. Imagine your clients seeing the absolute best version of you! You will be killing it!
Find out for yourself how photogenic you truly are! BOOK TODAY 🙂