DamianHarty.com

Damian and Linda's Photography

Do You Envy Other People's Photos of People?

Photographing people is not an easy thing. It's easy to get a picture their mother will like, but for me real success is getting a picture that the person in it likes. When I had a photography business, the first thing I did was set out with a clear goal in mind. Actually, it turned into three goals:

• Providing lasting delight
  with exquisitely presented images of and for families
• Capturing fleeting moments
  and preserving them for a lifetime's review
• Showing people themselves
  as warmly as others see them

Really, at it's core for me it was all about number 3. Most people don't like being photographed. Sarah (below) was no exception. While being completely lovely, she nevertheless quite despised pictures of herself. To get a good picture of her - good in her eyes - was really rewarding, and for me it captures what I like best about photographing people, which is breaking down, in some small way, the negative self-image that many of us carry about ourselves.

I made various comments and observations during the time of running the business; they are in the sidebar menu off this page. They are as much for my own memory and amusement as anything, so don't go taking them too seriously.