self-portrait myths

The only impossible journey is the one you never begin.

Tony Robbins
  1. You need a whole bunch of fancy gear, and to be successful you should wait until we are able to clone ourselves, or better yet, hire a model to stand in for you
  2. You need to dress up, be fancy, plan everything in advance and then hope for a blue moon
  3. They are virtually impossible and it’s not even worth trying

No. No. NO. Forget these myth’s today… here let me help you!

  1. You need a whole bunch of fancy gear, and to be successful you should wait until we are able to clone ourselves, or better yet, hire a model to stand in for you
  2. You need to dress up, be fancy, plan everything in advance and then hope for a blue moon
  3. They are virtually impossible and it’s not even worth trying

Trust me, I told myself all of these things and more.  Self portraits were an intimidating black box that I had no idea where to start.  How on earth was I supposed to be behind and in front of the camera at the same time, let alone grab focus, nail my settings settings, and not look half asleep, covered in food, and not stiff as a box.

If you do need a new tripod, or are looking for new gear, this is what I use.

a few types of self-portraits

how to easily and successfully get in the frame TODAY

  1. KISS (Keep It Simple, Seriously):  See above, I had no idea how to get myself in a picture, and worse when I asked my husband or others, I typically ended up either blurry, half cropped, or in the most unflattering angle ever.  All you need for a self portrait is a tripod, or a stationary place to set your camera, some type of trigger for your camera.  I also like to have an inanimate object or a person to set my focus.  I shoot with Fujifilm cameras, and what I love about them is that they have a built in intervalometer, so I don’t need an external one to control my camera shutter.  I also have the ability to tether my camera and phone together.  This feature is becoming much more common, and is amazing as you have a visual guide to aid you in your composition, settings, and setting focus remotely.


  2. Find something to do:  Self Portraits can feel intimidating because YOU are in the frame.  I think many of us feel self-conscious being in the frame therefore when starting off it’s best to detract from the fact that you are taking a self portrait- keep yourself busy, turn on some music and dance, use a prop, think of a story and try to depict it, and my favorite technique is inviting someone else to share the frame with you.  I have found taking self portraits has become fun this way.  Rather than getting in the frame feeling like chore where I’m on display, my mind is busy thinking of other things, which helps reduce my inherent awkwardness.  This brings me to my most important tip of all, once you take start taking these pictures and start looking at them be kind to yourself and silence your inner critic.  It is natural for you to immediately hone into all the “flaws” in your photographs.  Instead, focus on your why.  Remember why you are taking these pictures, and if negative thoughts fill your mind focus on your why or distract yourself with some of the previously mentioned techniques.  When taking self portraits, I try to remove myself from looking at my appearance and focus on the fundamentals- is my picture exposed like how I intended, does it tell the story I wanted to tell, and if all fails I ask a friend or trusted person for their opinion.


  3. Try new things:  When taking your self portrait think of it as a mini portrait session- start with taking a few safe shots where you set your focus and think of your ideal composition.  However, my favorite shots are typically when I push beyond the safe zone.  Vary your facial expressions, move your body and change up your angles, look at the camera and look away from the camera, and one of my favorite things to do is to think of things that evoke an emotional response.  Channeling emotion, especially any doubt and fears, in your self portraits shows vulnerability and helps your viewer connect and lends authenticity to your capture. Feel free to creatively crop images in post production and often times I will change things up by changing my narrative for the shoot by using a different light source or trying new props.

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.

Aristotle

As much as I wanted to get in the frame when I first started my photography journey I rarely did.  It wasn’t until I reflected on my why that I made it a point to get in the frame more often.  My personal work has become a way of leaving a legacy to my children and family. Often times my ideas are sparked from occurrences in our daily life and visually depicting my feelings has become a release in many ways.  I hope these tips helped and please reach out to me as you take them, let me know if you have any questions, and tag me in your self-portraits!

If you have been waiting to take a self-portrait- TODAY is the day! 

Tag me on Instagram @divyawolf, I can’t wait to see what you create!