Creating artwork every day is HARD! I know I fail at this often. Life just gets busy and your camera is too far away. Like upstairs. (I’m obviously speaking from experience, Ha!) The question is why should you create a self-portrait? Answer: Lots of reasons!
Sometimes you need a cheap model to practice.
That’s the truth! It’s hard to keep asking the people in your life to take their picture. It wears them out, and it’s good for you to get yourself in front of the camera every once in a while. It’s also important to express yourself as an artist. I know many photographers who are great at self-portraits. (Go here or here for an example.) They use it to work through what they are feeling and experiencing. It is important to stay inspired. In order to stay inspired you can take a walk, draw, paint, try a new skill. I like to try to recreate paintings or various artwork through photography. For example: I used the painting by
Philip Alexius de László as my inspiration for the following photo.
For this next one I used a painting by Edward Hopper.
Modeling in front of the camera helps you to sympathize with your subjects in your business and personal work.
Modeling is hard work. And when you get in front of the camera you will see just how hard it is. Being able to move your own body in a way that translates into a good photo will help you direct your subject to carry out your vision when you’re behind the camera. This is no easy feat! I know I am way more comfortable behind the camera rather than in front of it. And now that I know that I can help my subject feel at ease. Take notice if you are more comfortable looking away from the camera or straight at it. I am a bit of an introvert, and I tend to like the ones where I am not looking right at the camera. I am certainly more comfortable pretending the camera is not there! Maybe that will translate to your introverted subject.
Getting in the frame is important for you as a photographer too!
Often times we as photographers are missing from all of the family photographs. It is important to get yourself in the frame, to document those moments with your kids and to just show who you are/were. Someone who does this beautifully is Meg Loeks. She makes it a point to always take a self portrait on her birthday, and she is always getting in the frame with her kids. Try not to be intimidated by her level of talent! Your kids are going to want to see you in the photograph, not just endless pictures of themselves. (Although, that can be fun too.) Remember a self-portrait can simply include the details. It doesn’t have to be your face necessarily.
How to do it:
I use the Nikon app on my phone called WMU. For Nikon you can find it here. For Canon go here. It is very handy for cameras that have the wireless feature. To turn on your wireless connection on your camera go to the set-up menu (the wrench icon) > Wi-Fi> Network connection>Enable. Then use your phone to connect to your camera’s Wi-Fi. Then you can open your app, and you can choose to take pictures or view them. Your battery must be charged to use this feature. Using the app allows me to set the focus, which is perfect when you are using a shallow depth of field (wide aperture). You can also use the self-timer. You can choose however many photos you want at a time. For this option, I have found it better to close down your aperture, for a wider depth of field. It’s also good to set your focus with a stand in object, and then switch your lens to manual. That way it doesn’t try to refocus when you walk in front of it, and you lose the focus all together. If you don’t have a fancy digital camera, then just use the self-timer on your phone! Lastly, embrace the imperfections! Sometimes, you’ll have a whole set that is blurry. But now is a good time to experiment. Remember, no one has to see them if you don’t want them to!
I hope you found this helpful! Thanks for reading.