Creep on Creepin’ on
You know how tough it is to have a fashion blog when you can’t take photos of your entire outfit?
It’s fucking hard!
But, you know how hard it is to use a self-timer, even with a tripod?
It’s – as you might have guessed – fucking hard.
If you want to take a bunch of photos from the same angle where you are blurry & have your eyes closed, you should totally get a tripod. Because holy shit, will that thing ever deliver.
Still, I actually really like these shots. I took clearer, more fashion-y photos on a white background but for now I kinda like the “Oh hey! Here you are in my house!” vibe of these. Come on in, yo.
My beginner skillz mostly mean that these shots are pretty honest. With mirror photos you just pose until you look hot, smile, and then press the shutter button. Here, I have basically no guaranteed way to control what I look like. Okay, to rephrase, I have no idea what the photos will look like, including whether I am even in the frame.
For me the whole point of this outfit is the highlighter-pink of these jeggings with the poppy orange of my flats & my earrings. Do you know how hard it is to get your face and your shoes in one photo?
It’s fucking hard.
But I am also excited about being able to represent my body in a more complete way in photos, even if that means that the photos themselves are less “flattering”.
Here you can see both hands – and both tattoos – at once! I’ve never taken a photo of that.
The backs of my shoes have little bows, okay? Do you see the bows? Bows!
Also, here is a photo of myself from behind, which I don’t think I have ever taken before. Can you see that the back of my hair is asymmetrical? The old ladies at the grocery store were loving this new modified bowl cut, and I love old ladies.
I also have a matchy-matchy manicure with poppy/berry/orange zigzags, but two-handed close-up shots are beyond me, for now.
Oh & because you’ll ask, my shirt says “Timber Timbre.” Nick booked a show for Taylor in Ptbo last spring in a beautiful church here & it was such a perfect event.
I have almost stopped buying band shirts because I rarely like the way they look on me (or their “girly” tees are American Apparel and are automatically too small.) But this one is black, soft, and fitted, which means it’s in at least a bi-weekly rotation on my bod.
Okay we’re done now. I’m sure I will wear clothes again soon: stay tuned.
You are such a megababe!
(Sorry if this is creepy, coming from a stranger and all. I stumbled across your blog a few months ago and just couldn’t hold myself back from confessing my adoration for any longer! Excellent music taste + top-notch aesthetics + CRAFT = crushworthy.)
I clicked thru to your tumblr, scrolled down for like half a minute and clicked “follow.” Looking forward to getting to know you better!
Totally the whole point of blogging is meeting craft babes from all over, right?
*swoon*
it absolutely is!
honestly iris i think you’re really onto something here. i think a lot of bloggers – fashion or lifestyle bloggers – make it look effortless to document your own warddrobe. they often make it look as if the sun is always out, the apartment is always clean, and your hair/makeup/outfit is always on point. not to mention being photogenic.
it reminds me of how defensive and angry i used to get when people would playfully make fun of my etsy store and how many photos of me there were. as if they didn’t realize i used myself as a model because i could not afford to hire someone. as if they didn’t realize i took 50 self-timer photos in the hopes of finding 3 or 4 good, useable ones. as if they didn’t respect or realize the time and energy that goes in to trying to take a photo that does your hotness justice, that represents you in a way you want to represent yourself, you know?
aside from these thoughts: i love your outfit. i love your modified bowl cut. i love your tattoos. and! i’m excited you got a tripod.
the best advice i can give, from almost 8+ years of sharing photos of my outfits online, is practice makes perfect. i know my best results come from ten second delay, 5 photos in a row. i know where the photos look best always depends on where i am in my house. i know there are only two spots when my 5’11″ frame will fit into the entire shot with relative ease.
Absolutely whenever I use a self-timer I think of you! & I know from watching you that the self timer thing is a skill that comes with a LOT of practice.
I think a lot of what people discuss when they talk about blog fatigue is that
a) everyone looks flawless & “aspirational” is intimidating/boring
b) for bloggers, it takes SO MUCH WORK to even meet that cliche standard.
Using a tripod is going to help me unlearn a lot of my webcammy habits & I am looking forward to it… as well as getting to know/like my body the way it looks all the time, rather than with a camera held out at arm’s length, or straight on/stationary in the mirror.
I def. have been hesitating on posting too many photos of me because how many white/abled/cis fashion bloggers do we need? But something about this process feels like a worthwhile thing to document.
man you don’t even know how nice it is to see that referred to as a “skill.” i don’t think i have EVER heard that before and i’ve been doing it for ages.
you are definitely on to something about blog fatigue – lately i’ve seen lots of chats about how there are fewer and fewer comments on blogs, even the most popular ones, and how that is often seen as a measure of success. how many people “like” your post on facebook, how many people wish your life was theirs based on a handful of glossy photos of you, how many people steep in jealousy because for some reason their outfit photos will never look as good as yours.
i think we’re more than overdue to start unpacking the amount of work bloggers put in to meeting that cliche standard, and how much they are invested in making it seem effortless. AND I TOTALLY HEAR YOU ON THE OVERSATURATION THING. a few people have asked me why i don’t share outfit photos very much anymore and part of it is that i’ve been thinking about a) the labour involved and b) how many more photos of a white, able, cis fashion blogger do we really need? why do people want to see me? why do i want people to see me?
Babest babe that ever did babe.
Also, those pink pants make me smile a whole damn bunch. And I need more tats… even though I just got one.
Done.
I LOVE your tattoos together! I never saw them like that before! Awesome juxtaposition!
<3