Who are you?
Without telling me what you do for a living, who are you?
Without social media or digital means of expression, who are you?
This is a difficult topic I've pondered for weeks. Abstract, I know. Difficult, though interesting to explore what really makes a person the fullest person they can be and recognize the full extent of their mostness, and also to be able to shine that forth. Socrates said it succinctly: "Know Thyself". This is a greater thing than most of us are able to comprehend in the age of social media, which I feel greatly impacts our ability to truly know ourselves, what with instantly gratifying distractions, trends, templates, stereotypes, categories of person types and personality molds being created and yearned for every day. Why? What is all that? Does it benefit us socially to all be the same, or would it do us more innovative good if we were each our own outstanding person to share with other self-made outstanding people?
If this sounds a little philosophical for a post on a photography blog, understand that this photographer 'knows' herself little, but just enough in order to make a specific connection here. I work with a lot of people regarding topics of things close and personal to them: Portraiture. I also constantly, constantly strive to personalize portraits for them. I'm always encouraging subjects to tell me what interests them and how we can tie that into a photograph. "What feels like YOU?", I'll ask. Usually, there is no clear answer. "I like movies," or "We love going out" doesn't really give me much. I think it's a great, great thing to really Know oneself, to the extent that the content of your character can be known and expressed in a photo. If I can achieve that for someone, I'd be able to give something no one else can. Perhaps the experience in itself is an excursion in finding oneself. I'd love to be a part of that in someone's life.
I suppose this is how I differ as a photographer. I don't want to template you. Templates are horrible and trapping. I want you to experience something great, maybe learn new things about yourself. It's not just about photography, it's about empowering yourself. Think of the possibilities. What can your photographer do for you?
It starts with my subject. You have to know yourself in order to tell me who you are, in order for me to capture who you really are. I know this sounds pretty deep, but if I could blunt it down a little I'm basically saying: BE YOU. Don't be a copycat. Find yourself. Know yourself. This concept completely applies to your journey if you're getting married too because you should share the experience with your partner.
So, who are you? ...without being a copycat? Who are you without a Pinterest board or a Facebook page or a sorority house or career presence or a [personality type] label? What gets you going in this world of all this stuff which affects people at large? What are you passionate about?
It's my profound observation that social media affects our preferences to the extent that we become a vessel who embodies trends created by others rather than truly being ourselves and making something our own. I'm sure advertising has benefited greatly from this phenomenon; we're not people, we're canvases for other people to profit from. As a photographer, all this static makes it hard for me to really Know you. Did you know that brides who show me images they want to emulate on their wedding day (Pinterest source, I assume) are often showing me the exact same images that keep cycling around Pinterest as what I call the "Pinterest recycles"? When you put it all together, I see brides wanting to be models showcasing things that others have done rather than things they do and things they make their own. If I see the same shot carried out by 3 subjects, it kind of diminishes its authenticity, don't you think? It kind of bores me. I know you're something special. I want to help you express what that is about you.
How do you make something your own? Get to know yourself. If you could shut off all these things or people that tell you what to be or what to do or who to be, dive in to who you really are and start making a lifestyle of that. You don't need to be categorized. You don't need to BE anything other than yourself. Be that person no one can categorize, and you're probably on the right path. Lose your WiFi for a day and see how that works for you. Sit with your own thoughts for 15 minutes at least.
As a first step towards the Be You Movement, I'm starting small with a series of questions to submit to portrait clients which may help them realize themselves, and which I can use as inspiration for completely personalizing something for them. Honestly, it's the worst when I feel like I don't know someone whose soul I'm trying to capture. It kind of feels like having a pop quiz put in front of me when I haven't studied. Half of this is You and half of it is me trying to encourage you. I feel I have to resort to templates with lack of information, and that's simply no good according to my mission for photographing people. I'm changing this.
Of note, I enjoy that I was able to bring these previously jumbled thoughts to fruition while having a loss of internet connection during a vacation in India.
Without telling me what you do for a living, who are you?
Without social media or digital means of expression, who are you?
This is a difficult topic I've pondered for weeks. Abstract, I know. Difficult, though interesting to explore what really makes a person the fullest person they can be and recognize the full extent of their mostness, and also to be able to shine that forth. Socrates said it succinctly: "Know Thyself". This is a greater thing than most of us are able to comprehend in the age of social media, which I feel greatly impacts our ability to truly know ourselves, what with instantly gratifying distractions, trends, templates, stereotypes, categories of person types and personality molds being created and yearned for every day. Why? What is all that? Does it benefit us socially to all be the same, or would it do us more innovative good if we were each our own outstanding person to share with other self-made outstanding people?
If this sounds a little philosophical for a post on a photography blog, understand that this photographer 'knows' herself little, but just enough in order to make a specific connection here. I work with a lot of people regarding topics of things close and personal to them: Portraiture. I also constantly, constantly strive to personalize portraits for them. I'm always encouraging subjects to tell me what interests them and how we can tie that into a photograph. "What feels like YOU?", I'll ask. Usually, there is no clear answer. "I like movies," or "We love going out" doesn't really give me much. I think it's a great, great thing to really Know oneself, to the extent that the content of your character can be known and expressed in a photo. If I can achieve that for someone, I'd be able to give something no one else can. Perhaps the experience in itself is an excursion in finding oneself. I'd love to be a part of that in someone's life.
I suppose this is how I differ as a photographer. I don't want to template you. Templates are horrible and trapping. I want you to experience something great, maybe learn new things about yourself. It's not just about photography, it's about empowering yourself. Think of the possibilities. What can your photographer do for you?
It starts with my subject. You have to know yourself in order to tell me who you are, in order for me to capture who you really are. I know this sounds pretty deep, but if I could blunt it down a little I'm basically saying: BE YOU. Don't be a copycat. Find yourself. Know yourself. This concept completely applies to your journey if you're getting married too because you should share the experience with your partner.
So, who are you? ...without being a copycat? Who are you without a Pinterest board or a Facebook page or a sorority house or career presence or a [personality type] label? What gets you going in this world of all this stuff which affects people at large? What are you passionate about?
It's my profound observation that social media affects our preferences to the extent that we become a vessel who embodies trends created by others rather than truly being ourselves and making something our own. I'm sure advertising has benefited greatly from this phenomenon; we're not people, we're canvases for other people to profit from. As a photographer, all this static makes it hard for me to really Know you. Did you know that brides who show me images they want to emulate on their wedding day (Pinterest source, I assume) are often showing me the exact same images that keep cycling around Pinterest as what I call the "Pinterest recycles"? When you put it all together, I see brides wanting to be models showcasing things that others have done rather than things they do and things they make their own. If I see the same shot carried out by 3 subjects, it kind of diminishes its authenticity, don't you think? It kind of bores me. I know you're something special. I want to help you express what that is about you.
How do you make something your own? Get to know yourself. If you could shut off all these things or people that tell you what to be or what to do or who to be, dive in to who you really are and start making a lifestyle of that. You don't need to be categorized. You don't need to BE anything other than yourself. Be that person no one can categorize, and you're probably on the right path. Lose your WiFi for a day and see how that works for you. Sit with your own thoughts for 15 minutes at least.
As a first step towards the Be You Movement, I'm starting small with a series of questions to submit to portrait clients which may help them realize themselves, and which I can use as inspiration for completely personalizing something for them. Honestly, it's the worst when I feel like I don't know someone whose soul I'm trying to capture. It kind of feels like having a pop quiz put in front of me when I haven't studied. Half of this is You and half of it is me trying to encourage you. I feel I have to resort to templates with lack of information, and that's simply no good according to my mission for photographing people. I'm changing this.
Of note, I enjoy that I was able to bring these previously jumbled thoughts to fruition while having a loss of internet connection during a vacation in India.
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