Monday 20 January 2014

to confess my hatred of photos..

I must confess.... I wish I was more photogenic...

There are people in my life, who I am extremely jealous of. They are not supermodels (although some of them should probably think about it!), they are not movie stars, they don't have personal stylists and makeup artists at their house each morning (at least I don't think they do!) but yet with each and every photo they post they look amazing!

We all have those people in our lives I am sure, some of you reading this are those people! Doesn't seem to matter what they are wearing or what they are doing they seem to take really really amazing photos. I am NOT one of those people.

However, it appears Google begs to differ.. Doing some intense research for this post, Google tells me that everyone is photogenic...There's even a website called 'Everyone is Photogenic'.
Wikihow says that 'Being photogenic is not an inborn talent, but an acquired skill that can be learned through practice'.. So one would think that after having had my photo taken for the best part of 34 years I would be as photogenic as all hell!! But truth be known, I must confess, I actually really do NOT like having my photo taken, as it is a rare occasion that I actually like the end result.

Perhaps it's because all this time I have been doing it wrong and it is my hatred extreme dislike (hatred seems so harsh) of having my photo taken that is resulting in me being unphotogenic (totally a word...I'm sure!). According to the Wikihow article 'How to be Photogenic' I can be more photogenic in just 3 simple steps:

1. Clarify my skin - Apparently you need to have clean beautiful skin to be photogenic. Considering acne and uneven skin tone is something that I have struggled since puberty hit me at a young age and spent oodles of money on over the years, I am yet to achieve this and not sure I ever will...

2. Focus on what makes me unique - mmmm... not sure about this one, apparently photogenic people are confident in their appearance, but when you struggle to meet step 1 then step 2 is difficult!

3. Show your emotions - supposedly it's easy to tell someone who is posing compared to someone who is photogenic. You have to always smile your natural smile and not fake it. When I smile my top lip seems to disappear, I really don't like my uneven teeth, I almost always have red eyes and look like the devil and when I do the 'squinch' the eyes trick, it seems to just emphasis my bags! (and I have an unbelievably 'sleepy eye' in photos)..  The advice says that I need to spend some time perfecting this in the mirror!

It is also said that fear of having your photo taken is what can make you look unnatural and not happy with the end result.

Now Kirsty has asked us to be brave and share some of our photo shockers and she has no idea how much this is making my stomach turn, but, not wanting to be a spoil sport I am prepared to share just one photo..

I absolutely hate this photo of me, despite it being taken at a time when I was very happy and enjoying the live tunes of my beloved Keith Urban.....

Adult acne sux!!
Now head over to My Home Truths to link up your photo shockers!



7 comments:

  1. I just said to my husband yesterday that at my age my skin is beginning to thin and wrinkle and sag so I'm just going to have to smile more because everyone looks great when they smile! You look beautiful in that photo :)

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  2. You look so happy! and Keith Urban (what is not to like? I fell for him during The Voice last year, he seemed so nice. I hate photo's too, but now I have kids I need to be in them more xx

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  3. I take so many of myself before I get one that I am happy with and have found the best angle is from up above..not much help when you are in a group shot!

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  4. You look so happy. I desperately need an attitude adjustment and a workshop on how to take good selfies.

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  5. I actually like that photo Zita - you look genuinely happy. Thanks so much for being brave and joining me this week! BTW I also hate adult acne. I'm nearing 40 and it's still rearing it's ugly head - what's that all about?

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  6. As you've seen I have a bank full of shockers but I rely on the fact that sometimes photos don't show the truly beautiful creatures we are even though the ones we love and know us will see it straight away.
    As a photographer nothing bugs me more when people shy away from the camera for fear of a bad photo because guaranteed you will end up with a bad photo. Stand tall, be proud and know you are gorgeous xx

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  7. Thanks to blogging I'm slowly discovering the secret of great photos (especially selfies) - take 100 and then you might get 1 you like!!! As one who has also suffered from troubled skin most of my adult life I sympathise. I ended up on mild antibiotics for about 10 years in my 30s. Not ideal but I felt a lot better!

    Oh and the advice about emotion and being happy in pics is rubbish. Some of my best pics are smiling awkwardly to keep me eyes open more, and angling my chin forward to hide the double/trip chins lurking under there! And, selfies are best taken from above for the same reason!

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