SELF.

for me, taking a self portrait is so much more than putting the camera on a tripod, smiling and clicking a button. i need to be in a certain mood, i need to not hate every inch of myself, the background & setting have to be right; they need to be how i want, my hair needs to be having a good day & i need to be wearing clothes that make me feel comfortable.
for me, a self portrait should encompass you, it should encapsulate your human form & your internal mind.

self portrait.

as soon as the words "self portrait" are uttered, i shudder. i don't like my face - i pretty much don't like anything about me, but we'll not get into that - so the thought of having to take a self portrait and to then have that in my portfolio is incredibly daunting. i had fifteen minutes to think of what i was going to do and go and do it. i knew i didn't want my face in it, but since i don't like anything else about myself, i wanted to incorporate movement, unwillingness and secrecy.
i tried one shot with a slow shutter speed, but you could see my face and the movement made it even worse than it already is, so i decided to go the opposite route and try fast shutter speed. i ended up with three images that look good on their own - one is even my profile picture on twitter - but together, they incorporate the movement i wanted to show, just more peacefully.
i'm glad i didn't cop out of this assignment & used my imagination and what i've learned so far to create this self portrait.
i'm incredibly inspired to see how i can grow and change and become more confident in my photography during 2014; i'm thinking a few photography challenges may be in the works. you know what i'm like though, i'll post my aims for the new year and (hopefully won't) fail at the majority.