'F.E.A.R - Fake Evidence Appearing Real' - Unknown
If there is one thing I feared the most, it would be spiders. I was already afraid of them when I lived in USA, and coming to Sydney, AU didn't ease this fear at all. One night the power went off at my sister-in-law's house and I bravely offered to go outside to flip the switch back on. It wasn't till after I offered to help that I realised that my chances of encountering an eight-legged beast was probable. With a trembling flashlight in one hand and a handful of sweat in the other, I turned the corner of the house and saw a spider that was the size of a standard front door. I forgot to mention that my wife was with me and I instinctively pushed her towards the spider and made a run for it. She of course laughed at me (probably along with the neighbours) and said the eight-legged beast was actually the size of an 50 cent coin and my flashlight is what made the demon bigger than it actually was. Personally it made no difference to me because I would've reacted the same way, however I believe fear does the same thing to anyone who gives fear such an opportunity. Something so small being projected by my flashlight became a big problem for me. How often do we shine our flashlights on fear?
The night before my first photoshoot of the year, my mind journeyed through the land of 'What Ifs' and I started to disqualify myself from the task at hand. Before fear started taking root, I reminded myself of these three things and it enabled me photograph with a new sense of strength. Here they are:
1) Remind Yourself of Your 'Why.'
"I love bringing out the best in people and capturing it." This was the heartbeat of what got me into photography and I know so many share the same passion. Though sometimes when finances are involved, complicated and difficult clients can cause frustration and the seasons of life can dim that very passion. The more complex life gets, the more we need to remind ourselves on why we started this journey in photography.
2) Connect With The Person Before Your Camera Does.
Last year I photographed a girl who volunteered to be a model for a NGO I was doing business with. Normally I would like to meet up with the model(s) before the shoot to be more acquainted with each other. In this case however, we did not get the chance due to limited time and had to make the most of our time. In the first 5 minutes of meeting, I gave my best smile, introduced myself and made a real effort to get to know her. The first couple of shots were good, however I knew it could be better. Connecting with her for another 5 minutes again before taking out the camera brought out the best results.
Don't allow fear to get in your way when it comes to connecting with people.
3) Repeat
"If you knew nothing could stop you, what would you do?" So often we disqualify ourselves before we even begin the journey. Fear does come in different shapes and sizes, however by reminding ourselves of these two steps we can overcome. Remind yourself of your 'Why' and connecting with the people you are photographing will strengthen your confidence to defeat this foe called fear.