Maria’s Portraits

{February 26, 2o16}

We have known Maria for over several years now and had always wanted to take photographs of her. She’s just one of those people that we felt compelled to feature on our blog. So when the opportunity presented itself in the form of a photography project, we didn’t hesitate to ask her to be our subject. Maria is such an intelligent, quiet, elegant, & beautiful person that we were thrilled when she agreed to working with us.

Taking Maria’s portraits ended being way more fulfilling than we had anticipated. We believed in our ability to get the images we were working towards; however, we didn’t realize anything about how she felt in the weeks leading upto the session. I mean, just read what she said about it below.

“When Funmi approached me about lending a hand with her photography project, my immediate thought, like in any instance of being in front of the imposing eye of a camera, was “I am going to look absolutely ridiculous and awful.” My lack of experience on a professional set and a general dissatisfaction with my own body have made me hesitate to be in any image, especially one that could have eternal, awkward life on the Internet. Nonetheless, despite my reservations and stage fright, I agreed to be a participant, for the most part because I was excited to be able to contribute to the work of somebody who was familiar to me and with whom I had a degree of comfortability.

After weeks of being nervous and not knowing quite what to expect, the day of the shoot finally came, and the drive to my home (the decided location of the session) started, on my part, with the anxious worry of seeming … too worried. But somewhere along that journey, making friendly conversation in the car with Funmi and Adrian, sitting amongst curious, unfamiliar pieces and bags of photography equipment, I managed to unconsciously slip into a state where I wasn’t stressing every three seconds about whether or not I looked okay. It seemed alright to forget that, because I was with friends, on our way to do something exciting and fun.”

“We arrived at my home and as the equipment was set up, I asked what type of clothes they would like me to wear. Funmi gave me a kind and relieving answer: “Whatever makes you feel the most comfortable.” So I changed into a petal pink dress that my grandmother gave to me, and finally sat down outside on the porch, facing that strange camera eye. I only realized it after the session, but I had completely forgotten to check if my makeup was still in place.

I had no idea how to sit at first, or how I was supposed to smile for the lens. Funmi talked to me through the whole experience, and as she coaxed a smile or a laugh from me every now and then, it was in those moments of genuine comfort and friendly joy when I heard the shutter click, and Funmi would smile down at the image she’d just taken. I think I laughed out loud when she showed me one of the first few photos she took. And I think I said, “Wow, I never like pictures of myself. But … yeah, that looks pretty good. I like it.”

“In my head, Funmi was now this genius who had the magical touch of being able to portray my sincere expression of happiness. I look back at these photos and wonder why I was so nervous in the first place. Funmi’s enthusiasm and appreciation for every good shot (and some very goofy ones) was infectious, and I laughed and smiled more and more. I don’t think I’ve ever had a photo where I looked so much at ease.

At the end of the session, I felt glad that I said yes all those weeks ago.

I wanted to thank you again for including me in your portrait project! It was truly a fun experience :)”

Now, you can see why we were blown away with this session and Maria’s thoughts on its results. Thank YOU, Maria for being a wonderful subject!