Be Photographed!

The wonderful Kyle Cassidy (see link on the right hand side of this blog) posted a link to this special message on Facebook today.  I was blown away by what Teresa wrote.  So many of us can relate to what she is talking about (as evidenced by the many people who have left comments, myself included).

I certainly can, as a person of a larger size although I don't know that I have ever not had my picture taken because of my weight, I just don't always like how I look in the photo. 

But to give another example, I work with a woman who doesn't like her teeth so she rarely smiles when we take group photos. As a result, she always looks rather stern or grumpy in photos and it is so unfortunate, she is such a beautiful woman (I personally don't think there's anything wrong with her teeth or her smile, which I have repeatedly told her).  Plus I'm always having to explain to people when I show the photo, "oh no, she wasn't in a bad mood that day..." 

I have friends who will actually step out of the way when anyone pulls out a camera.  It's sad really, that we just don't see ourselves the way other people do.  The people who love us want us in their photos, regardless of whether we are big or small or have all the hair or teeth we used to have in high school.  The comments people have left about not having any photos taken with their kids or wishing they had taken more pictures of people who are now gone, it's heartbreaking to think of those lost opportunities that you just can't get back.

Sure, some photos are just baaaad photos, it's just the way things turned out when the shutter clicked. You blinked, you looked away, your brother put rabbit ears behind your head.  Of course, that's the beauty of digital photography in this day and age - the really bad photos can be deleted quickly and easily! But the reality is that the more pictures you have taken of you, the more likely you're going to end up with some you actually like.

I would suggest to you that you not be one of those people who avoids the camera.  Be photographed with your family and friends, leave them with visual memories of you.  Step out from behind the camera or the lamp or the table or the tree you've been hiding behind and be seen for who you really are, now, today.  In all your glory.

P.S.  I'm also amused by the reaction to Kyle's sharing of this post.  Kyle has quite the following online. When I read the message and left my comment around 4:20 this afternoon, 102 people had left comments.  It's now two hours later and 40 more people have posted.  Twenty minutes later, there were 20 more comments. That's the power of the Internet.