Overcoming A Fear Of Photography
5 Reasons Why You Don’t Have To Fear Having Your Photo Taken
If you run your own business, you’ll know how important it is to have good imagery on your website and across your socials. But, even knowing this, I suspect there is a strong chance you’ve been using stock images for a while instead? And have put off for a long time, having your own photos taken; am I right? And I suspect it’s because you HATE and probably fear having your photo taken? You are not alone! Overcoming fear of photography is actually much harder than it sounds. Almost everyone I photograph tells me the exact same thing. In the past, if you’re anything like me, you may have had your fair share of dreadful photos taken! But, I’m here to change that for you!
In this post, I’ll let you know that overcoming fear of photography isn’t as hard as it sounds and, hopefully, persuade you that a photoshoot can actually be quite fun!
1. Hate having a camera pointed at you?
Most people I meet hate having their photo taken. 99.9% of my clients tell me this at the start of their session! And I get it! Having a camera pointed at you makes you feel exposed and vulnerable! Plus it’s very common to focus on the bits of ourselves that we don’t like when we look at photos.
Luckily, I have a wealth of experience with all these issues. The benefit of having a professional take your picture is that we know how to get you to relax. I think it’s important to take the time to get to know you and chat about your (photography) fears. Throughout my sessions, I always show my clients the pictures we are capturing on the back of the camera so they can see what they look like. 99.9% of the time, they are happily surprised by how good they look!
2. Don’t know what to wear?
Prior to every session I will arrange a pre-shoot consultation via either phone or zoom, to chat through exactly what you want to achieve with your brand shoot. I can give you advice about what we can achieve with a branding photo shoot if you’re not sure what you want. And I am always very happy to give advice about what to wear, from colour choices to tie in with your brand, to style and accessories. I also provide a “Preparing For your Photo Shoot” PDF guide with lots of advice too.
3. Worried it will be uncomfortable and awkward?
Sometimes it can take a while to build up a rapport with someone new. And I understand this can potentially lead to an awkward situation in a photo shoot if you already feel uncomfortable about the whole idea. As I mentioned above, a pre-shoot consultation is included with my packages. Not only does this process allow me to get to understand and get a feel for exactly what you need, but – arguably more importantly – it also allows you to get to know me a bit as well. I pride myself on putting my clients at ease in front of the camera and that is easier to achieve if you have already met/spoken to me! My sessions are generally very unhurried, completely relaxed and I aim to make them actually FUN! So, hopefully by the time we’ve finished the session, you will have really enjoyed yourself!
4. Don’t know how to pose?
Don’t know where to put your hands? Or how to hold your head? It’s not always easy and that is why I will be there to gently guide you into flattering poses and give you prompts to elicit the most natural looks. And it’s not always about looking down the barrel of the lens…It’s funny how often people forget how to do something simple like walk or sit when they are asked to do it in front of camera! If you have always tensed up in photos and looked stiff in pictures of the past, you’ll be surprised how completely relaxed you’ll look now!
“Georgina took fantastic shots for me to use on my website and across social media. I loved working with her.
Very happy to recommend her!”
Sarah Woodhouse
5. Wondering why you need that many photos?
It today’s digital world, it is so important to be visible. There is only so much that words can do! Having a bank of on-brand, stand-out imagery unique to you and your business will put you in excellent stead to stand out from the crowd and be visible to your ideal clients. Imagine not having to scrabble around for images to populate your website and social channels; imagine being able to schedule weeks of social posts in advance while you get on with more important bits of your business.
Doesn’t that sound amazing?!
See imagery from happy Personal Branding Clients here.
In this article, I hope I have been able to show you that overcoming fear of photography for your business is really quite achievable. And that you can see it’s not nearly as scary as you might have thought.
If you still have some questions, please don’t hesitate to get in touch for a completely free from obligation chat about what I can do for you and your business.
Who is your Personal Brand Photographer?
It’s Me! Hi, I’m Georgina.
I have a genuine passion for photographing people. My clients tells me time and again how much they hate having their photo taken. By the end of their sessions, they are telling me how much fun it was!
I pride myself in putting people at ease in front of the camera and making each and every photoshoot as much fun as possible.
I have photographed marketing specialists, graphic designers, yoga instructors, screen writers, therapists and many others besides. If you would like to chat about your own brand photography session, please do get in touch.