I think everyone should take self portraits. Most people, when I suggest this, coil backwards and give a kind of “ehhh” or other guttural growls to very firmly mean “no way in hell.” I’m always curious about this response.
When I ask why, some people say they aren’t attractive enough, some say they hate looking at themselves. Some people claim they’re not good photographers. And even though this has happened literally dozes of times, I still have to take a few breaths to center myself before responding. Then I usually say, “hm. interesting.”
There are many guides out there about being a photographer, even guides about being, specifically, a self photographer. I’m not here to talk technicals. I’m here to point out the fact that you think you have to be attractive, or that you think you don’t want to stay alive, or that you think you need to have skills to do this. Self portraiture has nothing to do with any of that. I’m talking about how you’re thinking.
This guide is for people who are looking to invest in themselves in a way that is completely personal, private, and self-paced. This guide is for people who need to hear how someone took their self hatred, doubts, and darkness, and turned it into something else.
Please, come into my headspace after a decade of digging and creating. Let me show you what I look at, so maybe you can start noticing other things, too. Let me trick you, little by little, into starting to truly love the You that is here.
