Be Brave Enough to be Bad at Something New

Oct 9

Oct 9 Be Brave Enough to be Bad at Something New

👋 Hey. I just wanted to tell you something.

A zillion (that’s an astronomically certified number, BTW) Pinterest quotes will tell you that:

It’s okay to be scared. Valid? ✔
It’s okay to be scared to try. Valid? ✔
It’s okay to be scared to try new things. Valid? ✔

I literally was scared the entire time I did my first photoshoot with someone other than my daughter whom I bribe with popsicles for practice.

I think we try to convince ourselves that we are brave when we are trying something new for the first time. Americans are so tied tot eh concept of bravery. I think we all just do everything scared in one way or another until we feel comfortable.

This camera has been the greatest challenge…of my life! It’s something I so badly want to be good at and something that doesn’t come easy. There’s a lot of work and learning that goes into it and I don’t think that ever stops. Even the most seasoned photogs are still learning.

Every time I pick up my camera, I get better and better. My first real photoshoot was a big extended family shoot with kids of all ages and in some seriously harsh lighting due to the way the time worked out. I learned a lot about my camera, but more importantly about myself. At the shoot, I found that I would lose my courage to use my voice to set the scene to suit the needs of my creativity. I needed to keep control the entire time.

I’m not someone who thinks that I am going to be good at everything I try. My basketball skills can tell you that. Ask me how many points I scored combined in 7th grade and 8th grade: 1 point. ONE FREAKING POINT…from a foul. The thing is, I still tried.

The thing with photography is that you have to be really brave to be bad at it.

I still went home and edited until insanely late hours of the morning because #photoghigh is a REAL diagnosis. 😆 I was really proud that I was able to capture some really great shots and I learned from the not so great shots. I took notes and tried my hand at editing away harsh light.

And since then, I have done a lot of cool projects: single model, couples, animals, families, headshots and branding sessions. My nerves are still there, but I just push through the scary feelings as much as I can and focus on creating a really good experience for those that have graciously chosen to step in front of my lens. ❤

There’s so much I want to do and try. I want to do it all, really. I am thinking about creating a development page/blog so I can see my improvement and my work as it transforms into something I can call signaturely “mine.”

Here are a couple of my favorite shots so far: