Self portraits are not vain. They aren't reserved for actors, entrepreneurs, models, or one-and-done for your LinkedIn profile. Self portraits are empowering and encapsulating of this moment of your life. Not to get too meta, but time is fleeting, it doesn't slow down for anyone, and each "era" of our lives is worth celebrating and documenting with an heirloom collection of portraits - to be admired now and cherished forever.
I want to shape the narrative around getting solo portraits done because over the years I have pretty much exclusively gotten bookings for "headshot" style or "branding" sessions. While I equally support folks wanting images to promote their talent and put a face to their work, that's not the only value of a self portrait. Everyone deserves beautiful self portraits where they can look at the resulting images and see their truest self shining back at them.
I empathize with the possibility that you may feel like there's no "reason" to book self portraits if you're not necessarily celebrating or promoting anything. You may even be thinking that your iPhone and a few good friends does the trick! While it may, there is still (speaking from my own experience here) this feeling of awkwardness asking someone else to take your photo or something that isn't quite right and you don't want to ask them to re-take it a million times. So you settle and go back to stare at it, maybe post it or maybe delete it, nevertheless, most likely forget about it and certainly not print it. Or! Maybe you really aren't comfortable in front of a camera in the slightest, so you have very few individual photos of yourself, but that little voice in your head that wishes you did.
Imagine how different that experience of being photographed would feel if it was by a professional who feels like a friend, but has expertise on posing (where to put your hands), lighting, and evoking your personality... that changes things! This isn't to say you need a photographer for every good outfit or golden hour, but how empowering would it be to have a variety of self portraits to (1) gas yourself up !!!! (2) use for any personal or professional needs (3) commemorate this season of your life - how your hair picks up the sunlight, laugh lines grace your cheeks, your personal style of the moment, and so. much. more.
Here's a collection of images from a recent self portrait session with Sarakim, who booked with me partially to have a new freelancing headshot, but also to celebrate her 25th trip around the sun. I couldn't love this sentiment more.
So! If you still need validation or a reason to book self portraits, here's a few that come to my mind:
Quarter century birthday (25) or your "golden" birthday
'X' number of years at your job / owning your business
You just lost your job, someone was really shitty to you, life flipped on its head in some way - you just could use a pick me up
You recently got a new outfit you really love or inherited a special piece of clothing
Or a new haircut that you are obsessed with
Bought a new home, recently decorated your home, or leaving a favorite home behind
You found a new hobby and feel most yourself while doing it
There are a million reasons, whether joyous, neutral, melancholy, nostalgic, self-indulgent, etc. in nature, I will always always always welcome and celebrate a self-made self-portrait inquiry. We will work together to create a vision and select space(s) where you feel most yourself.
Email: hello@ashkcaptures.com today to inquire for your self portrait session. If you made it all the way to the end of this blog post, include the link or mention it in your inquiry and I will happily honor 10% off your first self portrait session.
So, why NOT book a self portrait session?
You deserve it (!!!)
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