THE ONE THING I FORGET AT EVERY SINGLE PHOTO SHOOT (& WHY IT’S ACTUALLY THE WHOLE POINT)
Yesterday I arrived at a shoot to the warmest welcome.
The cutest fluffball of a dog peeking through the window as I arrived. Heavenly home-made vanilla and chocolate raw balls and a hot cup of coffee. Tulips. A beautifully styled home that I immediately knew would be a dream for the photos we had planned. The sweetest family members (aka support crew). We’d been planning this for a while. We clicked right from the start and we were both excited about what we were going to create together.
The day before, we talked about how to mentally prepare and I reminded her that once she’d packed her pack with her outfits and props, all she needed to do was let go and focus on getting a good night’s sleep. On shoot day, there’s no need to perform, put on a mask or pretend to be someone else. All she needed to do was show up and I’d guide her through the whole shoot.
And it was such a great day!
There were so many moments and details I could have filmed to show you behind the scenes.
Content I probably should have filmed. So many photos and film clips that would have made beautiful behind the scenes content.
But I didn’t film a single second of it.
Every single shoot, I tell myself the same thing.
This time, I’ll grab some behind the scenes footage. A few clips. Nothing fancy. Just something real.
And every single time, I forget.
Not because I don’t care or don’t want to. Not because I don’t think it would make great content. But because the moment I step into a shoot, my whole brain and all of my energy is somewhere else entirely.
I’m watching the light. I’m thinking three photos ahead. I’m reading my client’s energy. Is she relaxed? Is she in her head? Does she need me to crack a joke or to go quieter? I’m holding the atmosphere of the shoot, and to be honest, I just don’t want to switch my focus to record my own content.
And I used to feel embarrassed about this. Surely it should be second nature for a photographer to record everything. I mean, I of all people should be able to document my own work in the moment?
But here’s what I’ve come to understand.
Being fully present in creative work and simultaneously documenting it are not the same thing. One requires you to be in the moment. The other requires you to step outside of it and observe.
And I want to give all of my energy and focus to my client and what we’re creating together.
And I know I’m not alone
(BECAUSE MY CLIENTS TELL ME THIS ALL THE TIME!)
“I know I should be creating more content, but I just forget to capture the moments – or I just don’t want to. I’d rather just live my life and do my job without having to document everything.”
So many of my clients (and I) are from a generation pre-dating selfies and sharing everything online. So for a lot of us, it isn’t second-nature. Not that we can’t. But because most of the time we just don’t want to or it just doesn’t cross our mind.
And I can see that as so many of us are feeling overwhelmed and a little burned out from the online space, we’re craving real-life experiences and interactions. Which means we don’t want to be constantly reaching for our phone to record and share the moment.
We’re running our businesses, showing up fully for our clients, managing ten things at once. It’s enough as it is.
This is one of the reasons Lumeah Photography exists and why I work the way that I do.
The work I do isn’t just about taking nice photos.
It’s about creating an image library that feels spontaneous and alive. Images that look like they were caught mid-story, mid-thought, mid-laugh. So you don’t have to feel the pressure to constantly create your own in-the-moment content when you want to focus on other things. So when you need a photo that says “this is who I am and how I work” it already exists. So you’re not scrambling. You’re not posting something that doesn’t feel like you. You just pop into the folder on your computer and there it is.
So, if you’re someone who keeps meaning to create more spontaneous content and keeps not doing it, you’re not alone. You’re just present – in your work and your life. And when you think about it, that’s probably exactly how it should be.
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And you don’t need to have all the answers before getting in touch. If you’re not sure which package would be best for you, just reach out and we’ll talk it over.
