Friday, January 6, 2012

52 on Fridays- Week 1/52



I am a huge hypocrite. While I tell people all the time to relax and just be themselves during sessions, I completely freak out when it comes time to take just one little picture of myself. It took me two weeks to build up the courage to actually point the camera my way for this week's 52 on Fridays self-portrait theme. And when I did finally shoot, the doubt and insecurities inside made me feel pretty much like the picture on the left.


Okay, so that sad face is just a bit for show; I wanted to be funny to hide behind my real fear of looking at myself. But it does reflect the amount of unnecessary stress we as women put on ourselves to be perfect. There is a quiet, yet so demanding, voice of doubt inside that can give us so many hurdles to cross that we never start towards our goals. In the case of photography, we leave ourselves out and leave others with fewer memories of the wife, daughter, sister, mother, or friend that they love.

My sweet daughter, Maggie, led me to try again for a better image. She greeted my joke of a frown with a disgusted, "But that's not you mom. You are always smiling!" She is right; I am usually perky to a fault. While I may worry that my nose is too big, my body isn't like it was when I was 18, and I could seriously use some makeup lessons, my friends and family love me for who I am right now. I should celebrate the me of today in every way I can including pictures.

If I can tell women one thing about photographs of themselves, I'd say take them. Don't wait for images of the you of tomorrow. Stop putting off pictures until after you have lost a few pounds or your hair grows out or you get a new outfit. Give others the gift of having the you of today in their photo memories. And if crossing those hurdles of doubt is hard, let me know. I'll cheer you on as we kick them all down together.


Want to see more self-portraits? Visit Renee at MyLife365 to see how she interpreted this week's 52 on Fridays challenge theme.

16 comments:

Tracy said...

Self photos can be very difficult! I love how you took a silly one and then a serious one. We are very hard on ourselves as women and do think we need to be perfect. I have yet to break from that mold! Love your selfie!

Jodie said...

Hmm... I tried to comment earlier, but it didn't go through. Just wanted to say I love love your frowny face picture!!! You know those are the ones that always "stick"! I took a silly face picture and hubby veto'ed it when I added it to my post. :( I might go back and add it anyway. :) Beautiful shots! -Jodie

Anonymous said...

Inspiring words! I think you look wonderful! Love that you posted two!

Anonymous said...

Tifani, this is a wonderful shot of you. I loved reading your post too. It hit home, I tend to hide behind the camera way too much. I need to be out in front of it more with my family. :)

Sarah {Crinklelove} said...

LOL, my husband urged me to use some of the out-takes; they were pretty funny. But, I didn't have the guts. Kudos to you; these turned out great!

Jackie said...

Great job! yeah to Maggie for reminding you who you really are! It is easier than ever to feel the weight of comparing, sad but true. You are simply beautiful...thanks for the reminder to get in front of the camera today.

Bob said...

yippee!!!!!!! my bestie has a blog for her photography and it rocks!!!!! whooooooooooo hooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!! And I still love the hair cut!

Liz said...

Awesome Tifani! I love this - your photograph & your message. I'm so glad your daughter encouraged you to take another picture that really shows who you are. I wish I were perky to a fault - haha! Thanks for sharing, Tifani, & I really look forward to getting to know you during this awesome process.

Leslie Maxwell said...

Love your post...so true!

Nurse Mom said...

I love your photos! I hope we see you all sometime soon.

Anonymous said...

So true! Cheers to you for your courage to sit behind the camera and accept you! It's been a challenging week for all of us!

CrisStephens said...

That last paragraph is absolutely beautiful. So true. Love that you wrote that. Love that you embrace the challenge. It is difficult looking at yourself because we are our worst critiques!!!! we see imperfections even were there really aren't!!!! so WTG! Love them. Love the simplicity. How natural they look. The light is beautiful and the PP very clean (if any ;-)!

Rhonda said...

Love your photos. They made me smile. Also love the reflection of us as women! Can't wait for the rest of this year.

The Inman Family said...

Love the photos and love the blog! I enjoyed going full circle looking at all the talent in your group. I can't wait to see what is in store for next week! You ROCK!

Chay Hastings Photography said...

I really enjoyed reading your post. I'm happy your daughter persuaded you to open up!! Wonder what makes it so hard for the photographer to be in front of the lens? I really got a sense of who you are from this post and these photos! Nailed it!!

Anonymous said...

Tif, I think your mom, friend, lived a lot of life beauty far surpasses your "18 with a hot bod beauty". Garrett and I love that you bravely took your portrait "full-on" hiding behind nothing! You haven't changed a bit...after 25 years of friendship, still as beautiful as ever.

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