Do I Photograph Ugly People??!?

Take a scroll through Instagram, and there's no limit to the young blonde brides or well-tended hipster

This is not how I looked when I had a newborn.

beards you'll come across. Healthy families with always-fresh haircuts, destination weddings, and skinny new moms can all set high expectations for your portraits, and guess what? You SHOULD have high expectations, because your pictures are going to look *amazing.*

Maybe some of the Instagram people look like that even when they go to Wal-Mart, but most of us do not. Some of us have chronic health problems. Some of us are obese. Some of our kids have behavior disorders. Some of have bad skin, or crooked teeth, or we hate our thighs, or our spouse is moody or we don't have time to drive somewhere picturesque or -.

Take a breath. I photograph all of those people. I AM all of those people.

So what do I do when I need to photograph not-traditionally-attractive people? I do the same things I always do; we try different positions until you relax a little and we find the perfect pose. Maybe your eyes are gorgeous. Maybe the love just shines right out of your face when you smile at your children. I promise that every single thing about you is NOT ugly. And let's be honest- you're not showing up in Wal-Mart mode. We can consult ahead of time about what might be most flattering to wear, and you can curl your hair and do your makeup. We can bribe, er, reward your kids with treats, or you can give me the heads-up ahead of time if they need me to do or NOT do something to work well with them.

Not many of us fit society's ideal beauty standards. We still deserve beautiful portraits, and we have people who love us who want copies of those pictures. And when I'm not busy shopping at Wal-Mart, I'll be more than happy to take those amazing pictures for you.

I am NOT saying anyone here is anything less than attractive! But we've got various ages, body types, physical abilities, etc. at a wedding in the parking lot of a courthouse during a pandemic, and it's still one of my favorites.