Selfies are like fast food, good for satisfying a quick craving on the go, eaten with one hand while you steer with the other. Self-portraits are more like lingering over Michelin star steak frites and champagne in a Parisian cafe with lifelong friends. I'll explain. When I was researching material for my Self Portrait Studio course I spent ages sifting through information on self portrait photography and all the advice available about feeling more confident in photos. (more on that journey here) Not only was this an exercise in frustration—it was shockingly superficial, surface level jargon. Instead of digging deeper to uncover the root of the disconnection much of the advice focused on insecurity and how to "fix it" for the photo. No one was talking about why we feel the way we feel about our photo. Why do we have so much trouble connecting with our own image in the first place?
It's so much easier to put the responsibility squarely on your shoulders. To sell you on a quick fix that plays on your insecurities and shame about your body, your beauty, your age, instead of giving you the tools to heal. The real truth is it's not personal. Your brain has been trained not to see yourself the way the camera lens sees you. The way the rest of the world sees you.
You simply can't ignore what's happening in your brain on a psychological level when it sees a photo of yourself. This is the piece no one is talking about. This is the real root of the disconnect and where the healing begins. When you understand this—you understand it isn't personal, it isn't just you. You also begin, perhaps for the first time, to feel hopeful...and excited.
Inside the Self Portrait Studio Community we start with a simple shift. Back camera photos only. In ditching the selfie cam we decide to commit to seeing ourselves as we truly are, the way the rest of the world sees us. Join our community and learn to take photos of yourself that honor this. It’s time to know and appreciate the beautifully imperfect and entirely magnetic person you are, on the outside. It's time to see yourself through a new lens - the back camera lens.
