Professional Headshots/ Long Island, Huntington NY
How To Be Comfortable In Front Of The Camera
Sitting in front of camera is hard. Whether it’s taking a selfie, getting a family shoot, or having headshots taken for business. Smiling on demand and looking your best in a single moment is not the easiest thing to call upon.
When we try to do it ourselves or call on a friend to take our picture, what happens is we end up with hundreds of photos that we don’t like. Our smiles is fake or off, the angle isn’t right or we blinked. This becomes discouraging and can get pretty annoying. Why can’t we just take one or two good photos right away?
It all comes down to being comfortable in front of the camera. You create a fake smile, or just go the stoic route and not smile at all, the nervousness makes you stiffen up giving you pictures that look very rigid and well, kinda unnatural. Taking great pictures and being comfortable while doing so SHOULD be easier.
Being in photography for over 20 years, this is what I have found that works best. Just laugh! Laugh at yourself. The whole idea of being uncomfortable in front of a camera is so silly that all you need to do is just laugh at how awkward you feel. It’s normal to feel uneasy, awkward and like you have to perform. Laughing will help you to relax, easing the tensing muscles in your body and face so you can feel more relaxed in front of the camera and take a lot of great photos. If you’re getting a professional photographer to take your photos make sure to talk to them before hand.
When talking to a photographer, make sure to be open about that you think you don’t take great photos or you that you don’t feel very comfortable in front of the camera. How they respond will tell you everything you need to know about hiring them or not. They should be reassuring you that they work with many clients that feel the same way and have always walked away with a photo they love.
After you have found a photographer you like, here are some things to keep an eye out for. Any great photographer will be extremely reassuring and fantastic at starting a conversation with you. (If one asks you to smile, politely grab your keys, because you just remembered you left the iron on!) No photographer should have to ask you to smile, it is their job to make you feel comfortable and coax those genuine smiles out of you.
When working with a professional photographer, they will ask you many questions, for one reason only. To make you comfortable. We are uncomfortable when we are in settings and around people we don’t know. So a photographer asking you questions is taking two birds with one stone.
1) They are distracting you from being nervous and uncomfortable and getting to know you so you can look as good as you should.
2) Subconsciously since they are interested in you, you will naturally gravitate towards them and let your guard down.
Remember it’s not to be nosey, or too personal. It is to help you look as good as you should! A photographer will ask things such as…
-Do you have children
-Their ages
-Which child gives you a run for the money (I bet you just smiled)
-Any pets
-What you ate for breakfast yesterday
All just to build a relationship with you, and get you to be more comfortable.
So you can have amazing photos that you absolutely love the end result.
So all in all remember here is what you need to do.
1. Be silly, laugh at yourself
2. Research and talk to photographers that interests you
3. Pay attention to how they work with you or others
Everyone wants to look their best at all times, with these tips, you will love feeling more
confident and comfortable in front of a camera.
Time to look your best. Now go make yourself laugh!
Some of our happy business portrait clients
