One: Go out and take a walk with your camera. Photograph everything you like and remember this is a reflection of you and it's for you.
Two: Get photographed! Many women often say, next year when I lose weight, I hate pictures of myself or I've never had a good photo taken. I have some photos out there of myself, that I wonder (cringe), if that's what I really look like. Or walk out the door without looking in the mirror and then shockingly catch a glimpse of my tired unkept self. Those images that I carry around with me are not very beautiful. And while they can be a true reflection of who I was at that moment, they are not a true reflection of who I am all together. Yet I carry those yucky images around with me into my day to day. Besides the outer beauty question, we so often can't see ourselves the way others see us. We are so hard on ourselves and I can't tell you how many times I hear exhausted mothers tell me that they look in the mirror and don't even know who that person is.
When I have ladies walk in the door with me, nerves and excitement are common. Conversations can go from what it's like to be a woman in your 30's, 40's, 50's, what it feels like to never have been the pretty girl, what it means to love yourself. There are tears, frustrations, and laughter that come out in these sessions. And then there's a piece of art. You. A new perspective of yourself. This is the one that you don't look at in the mirror in the morning or the one just before bed when your are totally exhausted and finally get a minute with yourself. This is the image that you look at over and over and say, now who is that pretty lady? Who is that strong woman? I want to thank my friend Sarah for coming into the studio for one of these sessions and allowing me to post this image of her. Sarah, I hope this image captures the beautiful, thoughtful artist side of you, while maintaining your strength. Love, Rose
