Shooting Outside My Comfort Zone

I’m not incredibly outgoing around strangers, and I tend to be much more of a listener than a talker. I feel safe asking questions, offering advice, and nodding my head in agreement. When I’m forced to be the one to speak about my life I get antsy and uncomfortable, as if, “Who really cares about what’s going on with me?”

Photography has been challenging me lately to speak up, tell more of my story, and share my life with others…

You see, the other day  I ventured downtown with my new lens in tow, with the intention of just taking some pretty shots of nature, maybe some buildings or other interesting architecture around me. Ones that didn’t challenge me. Safe shots.

But then I spotted this girl. And I waited and watched, pondering how I could get close enough with my fixed zoom lens without being “creepy”. Then she turned her face and I got this shot, and it felt good to stand my ground without shying away. I took a few more. It got easier. And then I was so concentrated on capturing her energy that I forgot I was clicking away at a complete stranger in the middle of the busiest street in the city.

I felt energized and excited about photography in that moment. Not because I got a perfect shot with the ‘right’ composition. Because I didn’t. And that’s okay. But because I was pushing myself out of my comfort zone.

Later in the week I went to our farmer’s market early in the day before any of my friends had woken. I knew I could get some pretty shots of produce… maybe some baguettes. The usual farmer’s market fare. Safe subjects that I could capture from a distance.

Then I remembered how good it felt to take a risk. So I started asking people if I could take some shots of their products and samples and hear their stories’.

And when they asked me mine, I was proud to say I write a blog. And that I love photography. And good food. That I’m a student and this is just a hobby. It felt good to tell a piece of my story too.

I spotted these girls sharing food and making art, and I loved the moment that they were having. So I took a shot from behind. And that was safe.

So I walked around front and asked if I could take a picture of their food because it told a story. I love the paint splattered hands and the incredible array of breakfast foods. And I told them that. It felt good to speak up.

None of my pictures are the perfect exposure, breathtaking depth of field or composition. But they all challenged me. Not only to capture new kinds of subjects and moments, but to speak up.

Tell a bit of my story. Meet new people. And listen to bits of their’s.

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Have you taken on any personal challenges lately? Pushed yourself to grow? Learned something new about yourself through a hobby or experience? Please share!