365 Photo Project - Day 144

Taken: May 24, 2010, 6 p.m.
Location: Healdsburg, Ca.

I'm behind in my posts -- again. Been doing some writing and then resting and also working on a personal project that is relatively easy but emotionally charged to the point where it's been stressful.
I hope by some time tonight (or tomorrow) I'll be all caught up. Up to this point, as my loyal readers can attest, my self-portraits have hidden a lot of my face. As I've written about here, it's mostly my vanity at work here.

But they've also been progressively offering more, which is not entirely on purpose. It's been a naturally evolution for me as I become for confident in myself -- and even more important -- my photography abilities. I'm happy to report that I'm trying to branch out more in that regard and am shooting almost entirely in manual mode. This might not seem like a big deal to some but it's huge for me -- it means I'm taking more chances, using my gut and my eye more and drawing on everything I've ever learned about this craft. Fun meet scary. Ha.

The other evening I was working in my office and needed to take a break from a sticky writing problem, I decided to try setting up a real self-portrait. I used a halogen lamp and some cardboard to direct the light, set the camera up on a tripod and then later just took a bunch of shots handheld style. This image is my favorite of the bunch (one of the handheld versions). I like it metaphorically as well as actually because of how my face seems to emerge from the shadows. They do say a picture tells a thousand words.

I think of this blog like that, as me offering more insight into me even as I learn more about myself. It's been grueling but fun too and I'm mostly enjoying the ride. But since I have two more posts to put up before the end of the day, I'm going to keep this one short.