Helping portrait photographers be their very best creative selves. Eyes are indeed the windows to the soul. But how does a good photographer make sure that these 'windows' are letting enough light through, so that we can experience that beautiful soul in all its glory? Well, the answer is simple Your eyes have been communicating naturally and with everything they have for a lifetime, effortlessly.
It is only when they are clouded with overthinking and 'trying' to show something that they struggle to do what comes naturally. These windows to the soul are experts and they don't need any help, but sometimes the owners do. This is why I specialise in putting each person at ease in front of the lens, so that the most important part of their faces - their eyes - can communicate as freely and honestly as they do the rest of the time. From this place of ease we get truthful, beautiful images that allow a little and sometimes a large glimpse of that all-important soul.
Are there specific types of photos you should use for LinkedIn? What is the best result? Being seen in the scroll and being known when you enter a room. If you use a half-body shot on LinkedIn, you are not utilizing the real estate to its full potential! A chat with another photographer recently brought up some old feelings about how I perceive myself. They said they sensed a 'shyness' in my work, and I became rather defensive, saying that I'm not shy.
Perhaps it's that I'm quite self-deprecating. I'm not too show-off-y. I prefer to listen more than speak. And then I realised: that is probably most people's definition of shyness. When I was younger, I hated it when people said that I was shy or quiet, as it seemed to suggest that it was a negative trait. And it's true that because I was so unsure of myself in those days, that quietness held me back. Mind you, growing up as a British-Bangladeshi kid in s Aberdeen, Scotland, probably made me feel even more unsure of myself, but that's a story for another day!
However, one of the benefits of being older is self-acceptance and the insight we have about ourselves. What we used to see as a weakness in our childhood, we can now view it as a strength. I now know that rather than being 'shy,' I am an introvert, and I understand that this is an asset. In very basic terms, Introverts are people who generally get energised by being alone, whereas extroverts get their energy from interacting with others.
