Session ideas for people who hate being photographed
Half the people I photograph tell me, usually in their first message, that they are the least photogenic person alive. They are wrong, but I never argue. I just plan a session where there is nothing to pose for, because the secret is simple: people who hate being photographed are wonderful at being photographed while doing something else.
01
Walk somewhere, together
Movement is the enemy of stiffness. A slow walk down a quiet street or along the water gives your hands a rhythm, your shoulders a direction, and your face something real to do. Most of my favorite frames happen mid-stride, between the moments anyone would call a photo.
02
Do the thing you actually do
Make the coffee. Knead the dough. Tune the guitar, repot the plant, read to the kids in the usual chair. When your hands are busy with something familiar, the camera stops being an audience and becomes a guest. These sessions produce the photographs people cry over, because they look like life.
You will forget I’m there
That is not a promise about my personality. It is a promise about the plan. Tell me what an ordinary good hour looks like in your life, and we will photograph that instead of your nerves.
