A few years ago, I became obsessed with studio portrait photography. Dramatic, luxurious photos. I took online classes, used the money from freelance projects to buy equipment, and…never did any portraits. The equipment was used for corporate headshots and eventually, creative photography was relegated to the back burner as I focused on My Career.
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A year into pandemic life and I am starting to make room for artistic expression again. This week, I had to take self-portraits as part of a mini-project challenge with a friend. I have never done self portraits. In the 20ish years I’ve had a camera in my hand, I never explored myself as a subject (Instaselfies aside). So as my first try, it was go big or…stay home? I decided to lean into (1) my love of dressing up/wild makeup and (2) my latent interest in luxury portraiture.
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This project was so far outside of my comfort zone. I learned about anticipating framing without being able to watch through the lens, how to picture what I was doing with my own face and body, and how to keep up with shifting window light throughout the day. It was laborious and difficult and it really tested my self-confidence. But it was also magical.
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These are pictures from a day spent playing with color. I hope you enjoy looking at my face as much as I do. Please enjoy my frustration outtakes below.
