Let me be honest with you about how sessions usually begin.
You arrive. You look around. You smile — a little too wide, a little too fast. We say hello, we chat about where you parked, whether you want water, how the traffic was. Normal things.
And then, we start the session. Usually somewhere between minute three and minute seven, it hits.
Why am I here. What was I thinking. I look terrible in photos. I don’t know what to do with my hands. She’s going to think I’m awkward. I AM awkward. This was a mistake.
All of it, at once, at full volume.
This is completely normal. In fact, I expect it. Those first minutes are where everything comes up — the self-consciousness, the old story about not being photogenic or good enough, the sudden awareness of your own face. The camera is just a mirror, and mirrors can be uncomfortable.
Here’s what I want you to know: you don’t have to get rid of any of it. You just have to embrace your emotions for those ten minutes.
Because something happens after. The conversation relaxes. You forget to hold your stomach in. You say something funny and actually laugh. The camera stops being a threat and becomes something else — a companion.
Over half of my clients ask to extend their session time. Not because they felt great from the start — but because of what they found on the other side of those ten minutes.
You don’t need to arrive confident. You just need to arrive.
