What If I’m Not Comfortable in Front of the Camera?

This is probably one of the most common concerns I hear from people thinking about having their portrait made.

“I’m not very comfortable in front of the camera.”

Guess what.  Most people aren’t.  And that’s totally fine.

Truth is, almost everyone’s at least a little nervous before a portrait session. I don’t expect you to walk in and suddenly know what to do, how to pose, or how to look natural.  Leave all that to me.

Before we start, I usually let people know that my sessions are easygoing,  not fast-paced. We’re not trying to rush through a list of poses, so we’re going to take our time, relax, and have some fun making photographs.

The first photos I take are usually test shots and practice shots. Not necessarily anything we’ll end up using. These test shots are a great way for both of us to get into the rhythm of the session without you worrying about whether you’re “doing it right.”

In my experience, even if you show up nervous, that tends to fall away pretty quickly.  Once we get going, most people loosen up and just start having fun focusing on making pictures.

Before we begin a series of shots, we’ll likely talk about the general look and feel we’re going for. From there, I give fairly light, casual direction.  If I think it’ll help, I’ll make small adjustments to things like the placement of your hands, feet, or the turn or tilt of your head. But I’m not interested in getting you into a series of formulaic poses.

I want you to relax into the flow of the pictures. And I want you to feel free to suggest things and try things, too. I’ve been told that working with me has an “artist/model” feel to it, and I think that’s a pretty good description because I feel we’re collaborating to make beautiful art.

But there’s something else I want people to understand.

You don’t have to be “photogenic” for me to make a good portrait of you.

That’s something I take responsibility for.

I don’t shoot thousands of frames and hope for the best.  But I do take enough photos to make sure we have something really good. As we work, I’ll look for the things that make you look like you, the expressions, gestures, personality, and little things that start to come through as you get into the flow.

Your initial nervousness isn’t going to ruin the photographs.  Hint: sometimes it helps!  We’ll find the beauty and personality as we go.  Whether it’s the everyday version of you, or a side that isn’t obvious but looks great in pictures, I’ll help you express that in your portraits.

So if you’ve ever looked at my portraits and thought, “I love those, but I could never look like that,” don’t let the idea of being uncomfortable in front of the camera stop you.

You don’t have to know how to make the photograph.

I’ll take care of that part.